Heidi Burge Horton, South Bay basketball star who inspired a Disney Channel movie, dies at 54 - BERITAJA
Heidi Burge Horton, a erstwhile WNBA subordinate who started her hoops profession alongside her twin sister astatine Palos Verdes High School and inspired a Disney Channel Original Movie, has died. She was 54.
Horton died Oct. 5 aft a conflict pinch gliobastoma, a type of encephalon cancer, according to an online obituary. The erstwhile University of Virginia standout was reportedly diagnosed pinch the Grade 4 crab past twelvemonth and concisely went into remission, but the tumors returned successful July, according to Houston news tract Chron.
“We are profoundly saddened by the passing of Heidi Burge Horton,” the Virginia women’s hoops squad said successful a connection posted past week connected X. “Heidi was a cherished personnel of the Virginia Women’s Basketball family, her bequest will everlastingly beryllium a portion of Virginia Athletics.”
Horton and her identical twin, Heather Burge, played 4 seasons astatine Virginia, wherever they helped the squad triumph 3 Atlantic Coast Conference titles and make 3 NCAA Final Four appearances nether early women’s hoops Hall of Fame coach Debbie Ryan. Among their teammates astatine assemblage was Dawn Staley, the Hall of Famer and Olympian who presently coaches astatine the University of South Carolina.
“We are each heartbroken!” Staley wrote connected X pursuing the news of Horton’s death. “We emotion you Heidi. May your psyche remainder successful bid and your assemblage symptom free.”
The University of Virginia’s Heidi Burge, right, pinch sister and teammate Heather Burge during the 1991 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship crippled against the University of Tennessee.
(Jim Gund / Getty Images)
After graduating from college, Horton — arsenic good arsenic her sister — would caput overseas to play professionally successful Europe for a number of years. When the WNBA was formed successful 1996, she joined the Sparks to play successful the league’s inaugural play alongside a acquainted face, Lisa Leslie.
“I played pinch the twins since we were 14 years old,” Leslie wrote, on pinch a surgery bosom emoji, successful the comments of the WNBA’s Instagram post announcing Horton’s death. “I’m truthful sad to perceive this! I believe for the full family.”
Heidi Ann Burge was calved six minutes aft her copy sister, Heather Marie, connected Nov. 12, 1971, successful Harbor City. She grew up successful Redondo Beach earlier her family moved to Palos Verdes truthful she and her sister could be the precocious schoolhouse there, according to a announcement by Eickenhorst Funeral Services.
The twins didn’t turn up playing hoops but were recruited by Palos Verdes High School’s coach, who noticed their towering height. Both sisters were 6-foot-1 by the clip they were successful the ninth people and would turn to beryllium 6-foot-5.
Horton was much resistant to trying retired for the hoops squad than her sister, and some were novices erstwhile they joined the team. The sisters would go prima players complete the people of their precocious schoolhouse careers, but they were praised much for their characteristic and activity ethic than their effect connected the court.
“I don’t deliberation they’ve had a play disconnected successful 3 years,” their coach, Wendell Yoshida, told The Times successful 1989. “They’ve practiced erstwhile they didn’t want to practice. They’ve worked done the tears, the sweat, the hurt, the pain. That’s what made them special. They didn’t make it conscionable because they’re tall.”
Horton was known arsenic the much outgoing and gregarious of the pair, but some sisters were described arsenic being inquisitive, opinionated, fiercely loyal and competitive.
The accommodation to the assemblage crippled was a spot unsmooth for them astatine first, and the sisters did not get overmuch playing clip together until their inferior year. They developed a estimation for being prone to mistakes and turnovers, and were considered a spot soft. But erstwhile again, the sisters put successful the activity to amended and became cardinal pieces for their team.
“When we did outcry it was mostly retired of frustration,” Horton told The Times successful 1992. “Just not being capable to do the things the different players could do. ... Our defense wasn’t effective capable for america to merit to beryllium retired location together. Now, we’ve proved offensively and defensively that we are an unstoppable brace erstwhile we get to play together.”
Heidi Burge, right, rises up to artifact Houston Comets defender Kim Perrot during a crippled connected July 16, 1997.
(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
After graduating pinch degrees successful Spanish and rhetoric and communications studies, Horton played hoops professionally successful Europe. After the constitution of the WNBA, she played for the Sparks successful 1997 and the Washington Mystics successful 1998 earlier retiring aft 2 seasons.
Horton and her sister inspired the 2002 Disney Channel Original Movie, “Double Teamed.” The movie told a fictionalized relationship of the twins’ clip astatine Palos Verdes High School. Horton was portrayed by Annie McElwain.
After retiring from playing, Horton moved to Houston, wherever she concisely served arsenic a commentator for the Comets. She later became progressive pinch Hoops-School, a younker hoops campy wherever she served arsenic a coach and mentor.
“When you had the benignant of coaching I did, you person to activity really hard,” Horton told the Buzz Magazines successful 2024. “But I besides want to springiness a batch of in installments to my coaches. Now I get to springiness the aureate nuggets of contented to the kids I coach.
“Second graders, 5th graders, they listen,” she added. “That’s the biggest reward successful your full life. I had truthful galore group move into me, and I get to conscionable move it correct out. That’s the torch.”
Horton is survived by her husband, Patrick; their children, Jonathan and Holly; her copy sister, Heather Quella, and different loved ones.
