Short Stack: Best D1 Women’s Basketball Players 5’4″ and Under

Bigger isn't always better when it comes to D1 Women's Basketball and these five players are proving just that. Coming in at 5-foot-4 and shorter -- an inch below the national average of 5-5 -- these ballers are running the floor with the best of them in the nation, hitting threes, dishing off assists, driving to the bucket and altering games on a consistent basis.

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Brianti Saunders, Stetson

Photo courtesy of Stetson Athletics

Brianti Saunders hasn't missed a game in her three years of playing for BR-189 Stetson . The 5-foot-4 junior has scored 420 points (19.1 per game) this season in leading the Hatters to a 14-8 record. She has also picked up 25 steals, 117 rebounds (5.3 per game) and is playing a team-high 35.9 minutes per contest. For her career with Stetson, Saunders already has 1,305 points, 424 rebounds, 199 assists and 110 steals. Looking at the stat sheet, you would think she was 6-foot-1. The Florida native is a former four-time Nassau County MVP while playing in high school, and she hasn't lost any of her flair going up against the big women in the Atlantic Sun Conference.

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Cha Sweeney, Eastern Michigan

Photo by Scott W Graullcon SMI, courtesy of Eastern Michigan Athletics

At BR-121 Eastern Michigan, 5-foot-2 junior Cha Sweeney has been phenomenal running the point, scoring 387 points (17.6 per game) through 22 games played. Ten times she's scored more than 20 points with her season-high of 31 coming against Harvard. In addition to her high offensive output, Sweeney is recording 4.4 rebounds per game and 4.0 assists per game. The Ohio native has been consistent if nothing else throughout her career with the Eagles. With a total of 1,580 points, she has an average of 17.4 per game through 91 games played.

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Kamilah Carter, IPFW

Photo courtesy of IPFW Athletics

Relatively undersized at 5-foot-4, Kamilah Carter has risen up the ranks over the years, going from Midland College to Owens Community College to BR-254 IPFW . With the Mastadons, Carter is getting her chance to shine, scoring 367 points (16.0 per game) while shooting .398 from the field and .340 from behind the arc. The senior is having a banner year at IPFW after scoring 9.4 points per game as a junior transfer. Carter is averaging 2.4 rebounds per game for her career and has 49 total steals. Her career-high 24 points came in a game against USC-Upstate.

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Andreana Thomas, Vermont

Photo by Brian Jenkine, courtesy of Vermont Athletics

Coming in at 5-foot-4, Andreana Thomas has turned her height into an advantage, running the floor with extreme efficiency while leading BR-295 Vermont 's back court. The grad student has nailed down 310 points this season for an average of 14.8 per game. Add in 41 steals, 106 rebounds (5.0 per game) and 76 assists and this Catamount is one of the best small guards in the nation. Prior to joining Vermont, the Connecticut native competed for Hofstra and was one of just three players to start all 31 games for the Pride. As a senior in high school, Thomas averaged 15 points, 10 assists and eight steals per game. Not much has changed now that she's at the D1 level.

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Roddricka Patton, Oklahoma State

Photo courtesy of Oklahoma State Athletics

Even the best D1 programs in the country employ players on the shorter side as BR-26 Oklahoma State has 5-foot-4 Roddricka Patton running the show from the point. The senior is ranked third in the nation in assists per game with 7.6 (170 total). She also has 67 rebounds (3.0 per game) and 100 points (4.5 per game). Patton's role is to make her teammates better and she is clearly doing that in leading Oklahoma State to an 18-4 record. Patton is in her second season with the team, but even she started out at a smaller school in Trinity Valley where she led the team to a third straight National Title in going 36-1. While at Trinity, she also averaged 7.1 assists per game, good enough to be ranked fourth in the country at the time.

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