Guard Shavonte Zellous wasn't a highly recruited prospect when she was coming out of high school and, frankly, even the major college coach who offered her a full scholarship, Pitt's Agnus Berenato, admitted her talents were not very refined.

But Zellous always has been a hard worker and a self-described gym rat who relishes every opportunity to improve her game. It didn't take her long to make the leap from lightly recruited player to a three-time All-Big East Conference performer and an All-American.

That rise, and the work that went into it, is a big reason Zellous hasn't flinched in making the transition from college to the WNBA, and it is a big reason she is a candidate for rookie of the year.

Zellous, from Orlando, Fla., is the third-leading scorer on the defending champion Detroit Shock (10.6 points per game) and she is averaging 2.3 rebounds and an assist as well. She was drafted in the first round of this year's draft (11th overall), becoming the first Pitt player drafted by a WNBA team.

She is second in the WNBA in scoring among rookies and second among rookies in free-throws made (83) and attempted (92). She is first among rookies (among those who qualify based on the minimum number of attempts) in free-throw percentage (.902).

But while her offensive numbers are impressive, Zellous was picked by the Shock in large part because of her athleticism and her defense.

The defensive stopper role is something she likes the most.

"I think it helps that I've gotten to play for two coaches whose main focus is defense," said Zellous of the Shock's Rick Mahorn (who took over as head coach after Bill Laimbeer resigned three games into the season). "They were from those Bad Boys teams in Detroit, so coach is kind of a hard-core kind of guy. It is all about defense. You want to play on this team and, really, in this league, you better be able to defend.

"Luckily, defense is my thing, though I am also brought in off the bench to provide some scoring."

Zellous, who led Pitt to four consecutive postseason bids and two consecutive Sweet 16s, said the main difference between the WNBA and college basketball is the speed and strength of the players.

But she hasn't felt overmatched, and that's mostly because the toughest defensive assignment she gets is at practice every day.

"There are a lot of great players in this league, but my teammate, Deanna Nolan, is the toughest player I've had to guard," Zellous said. "And I have to guard her every single day. She really pushes me. She helps me a lot with my game because she plays hard all the time. That's been a great thing about this team. They've all been so helpful and made me feel so welcome."

Although Zellous, who averaged 22.6 points per game as a senior at Pitt and set a single-season school record by scoring 729 points, plays a defensive role, she has proven that she can still put the ball in the basket. She is one of the first players off the bench each game and has often given the team a much-needed boost.

Five times she has scored 18 or more points in a game, three times she has been more than 20 and she scored a career-high 25 against Atlanta June 26.

If there is an area in which she needs to improve, it is her shooting percentage, as she is shooting 36 percent from the field and 27 percent from 3-point range.

But Zellous, who has signed a contract to play with a professional team in Turkey in the winter, isn't worried about her shooting percentage because she knows it just gives her another excuse to do what she loves to do most -- go to the gym and work on improving her game.

"Everything right now is new to me and I am still just sort of getting used to it all," Zellous said. "I always shot better than 40 percent in college and I will again, I just need to take some time to work on it. I would like to get my percentage up above 45 percent, but I know that will take a lot of work but that is my goal.

"I'm not stressing about it, though, because I know I've had a pretty good start in the WNBA and that's the main thing. The little things, I can work on."