Tag: Arike Ogunbowale

Jewell Loyd sets WNBA All-Star scoring record, wins MVP

Notre Dame was well-represented in the WNBA’s annual showcase.

[autotag]Jewell Loyd[/autotag] has turned in one phenomenal scoring performance after another for the Seattle Storm this season. That carried over into this year’s WNBA All-Star Game in Las Vegas. Her 31 points and 10 3-pointers both were records for the event, and they were key in Team Stewart’s 143-127 win over Team Wilson. Plus, she was named All-Star MVP, making her the second former Notre Dame player in three years to earn the honor after [autotag]Arike Ogunbowale[/autotag] did so in 2021.

Ogunbowale also played in this game, scoring 18 points for Team Wilson but shooting only 2 of 11 from 3-point range. [autotag]Jackie Young[/autotag], the third Irish legend in the game, was teammates with Ogunbowale for this affair. She didn’t fare much better, knocking down only a pair of 3-pointers on 2-of-12 shooting from the field.

Maybe Notre Dame’s representation wasn’t terrific across the board, but the fact that three of its players were there shows how great the program is. Check out how they looked under the bright All-Star lights:

Arike Ogunbowale advances to WNBA 3-Point Contest finals

The former Notre Dame star can say she was a part of history.

[autotag]Arike Ogunbowale[/autotag] was busy when it came to tipping off WNBA All-Star Weekend. The Notre Dame legend and current Dallas Wings star, who now is a three-time All-Star selection, participated in both of Friday’s events that served as precursors to Saturday’s game in Las Vegas. After her and Wings teammate Satou Sabally’s 52.6 seconds were not enough to advance in the Skills Challenge, it was time for the 3-Point Contest.

In the first round of the 3-Point Contest, Ogunbowale made four of five shots on her “money ball” rack, and her 21 points were enough to advance to the finals. Fellow former Notre Dame star [autotag]Jackie Young[/autotag], who leads the WNBA with a .480 3-point shooting percentage, had a chance to eliminate Ogunbowale as the last first-round competitor. The Las Vegas Aces guard only scored 15, and her elimination surely was a disappointment to the hometown crowd.

Ogunbowale was off the mark in the championship round, scoring a contest-low 11 points, but she would have had to be almost perfect to win anyway. The New York Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu turned in a historic performance with 37 points while missing only two shots and making 14 straight in between misses. That’s a record for either a WNBA or an NBA 3-Point Contest. In fact, you need to see it to believe it:

If Ogunbowale was going to lose this contest, at least it happened in part because of a performance like that. Now, the 2021 All-Star MVP can focus on the game itself. That should be fun for her, Young and [autotag]Jewell Loyd[/autotag].

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Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Three former Notre Dame guards to start WNBA All-Star Game

The Irish will be well-represented in the WNBA’s annual showcase of top talent.

We’ve mentioned several times on this site that Notre Dame has an influx of former players in the WNBA. We’ve also mentioned before that several of those players are pretty darn good. 2023 has been no exception. The latest evidence of that is that three of this year’s All-Star Game starters are former Irish guards.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise as all three guards are among the top five WNBA scoring leaders. And while some of them have been professionals longer than others, it doesn’t change the fact that Notre Dame is and will continue to be a hotbed for women’s basketball talent. Heck, there are at least a couple of players on the Irish’s current roster also destined for the WNBA.

Here are the three former Irish who will get to flaunt their skills among the rest of the best the WNBA has to offer July 15 in Las Vegas:

Watch: Jewell Loyd learns she’s Western Conference Player of the Week

Congrats, Jewell!

Notre Dame alumnus [autotag]Jewell Loyd[/autotag] is having by far the best season of her WNBA career. She’s the league’s leading scorer, averaging 25.4 points a game, which is well above the career-best 17.9 she averaged in 2021.

Loyd scored a career-high 39 points to help the Seattle Storm beat [autotag]Arike Ogunbowale[/autotag] (41 points) and the Dallas Wings, 109-103, on June 17. This performance undoubtedly factored into her being named Western Conference Player of the Week, a honor that Storm coach Noelle Quinn was happy to announce:

Loyd previously won conference player of the week honors in June 2021. While she surely is happy to add to her trophy case, her focus most likely is on the changing her team’s fortunes. The Storm are 3-7, placing them 10th in the 12-team league. She will need some help if the Storm are to keep their seven-year playoff streak alive.

Even if the Storm don’t make the postseason, this will be a season for Loyd to remember. It will be awesome to see her continue to ascend to new heights.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Notre Dame players in WNBA for 2023 season

Who are the former Irish to watch this season?

The 2023 WNBA season is upon us at an all-time high in popularity for women’s basketball. More opportunities are opening up for female hoopsters at all levels, and everyone is better for it. After the thrilling college season we just had, it’s time for the professionals to show what they can do. Particular attention should be given to these players since they paved the way for the sport to reach these unprecedented levels of attention.

Notre Dame has been one of the best women’s programs for some time now. Their two national championships since the turn of the century are evidence of that, but you can see it in the WNBA, too. Ten former Irish are suiting up in the league this season, which gives Notre Dame the second-most players of any program. If you need a refresher as to who to follow over the next few months, here they are:

Pistons’ Jaden Ivey ‘wouldn’t be where he is today’ without WNBA players

Ivey respects the women who helped paved the way for him and is forever grateful for the opportunities they have provided him.

Detroit Pistons guard Jaden Ivey is no stranger to women’s basketball.

He is the son of Irish great Niele Ivey, who played five seasons in the WNBA. She was an All-American at Notre Dame and is the head women’s basketball coach at the university.

Jaden grew up with legendary players and at the 2023 ESPNW Summit, he shared what he learned in that environment along with the players who inspired him. He mentioned he wouldn’t be where he was without impactful women like Arike Ogunbowale, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Natalie Achonwa, Jewell Loyd, Jackie Young and his mother, among others.

He shared a unique memory of Ogunbowale.

I could just remember being in the gym with (Ogunbowale) and losing in 1-on-1 games. My mom can remember. I’d sit there at night crying ’cause I couldn’t even beat Arike. She would just bust my tail all the time. I really thank her for inspiring me and putting that strength in me.

Ogunbowale, who is with the Dallas Wings, was a star at Notre Dame where she helped lead the program to its second NCAA title in 2018. Ivey played against her in the gym during her time at Notre Dame.

Ivey also mentioned Diggins-Smith as an impactful woman in his life.

(Diggins-Smith) was an inspiration to a lot of kids in my area in South Bend. A lot of boys and girls looked up to her and I just look at Skylar as just an impactful woman to society because she inspired so many people from where I come from. She busted my tail, too.

Ivey was selected in the 2022 NBA draft as the fifth pick overall by the Pistons. He played college basketball at Purdue and grew up on a WNBA court before he even left the womb. His mother was pregnant with him during her rookie season in the WNBA when she started 26 of 32 games.

When his mother was hired to a coaching position at Notre Dame, young Ivey followed his mother and watched her coach future WNBA stars. Ivey respects the women who helped paved the way for him to be in the NBA and he is forever grateful for the opportunities they have provided him.

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Latricia Trammell: Arike Ogunbowale is ready to lead the Dallas Wings

Dallas will lean on veteran guard Arike Ogunbowale to help lead the team this season.

The Dallas Wings have a new head coach, Latricia Trammell, and just drafted NCAA scoring leader Maddy Siegrist in the 2023 WNBA draft. The Wings no longer have Skylar Diggins-Smith or Allisha Gray, so Dallas will lean on veteran guard Arike Ogunbowale this season.

Trammell believes Ogunbowale is ready for the challenge, while Ogunbowale mentions there are many players on the team who are also strong leaders. The humility Ogunbowale has shown truly points toward her being a strong leader this season.

The Wings, Trammell said, are Ogunbowale’s team.

The Wings are rebuilding their roster and oddsmakers have them at plus-3500 to win the 2023 WNBA championship. With Ogunbowale at the helm, however, they are poised to prove the oddsmakers wrong. She believes they have the pieces to do so.

“I think they have a lot of respect for me and I respect them,” Ogunbowale said. “Yes, I am a leader, but we got Natasha (Howard), too. She’s won three championships, and we got Diamond (DeShields), she won a championship. Satou (Sabally) has been here a while; Big T. We have a lot of players that can support me while I’m supporting (them) and vice versa. I think it is just really respect and what they give me I will give back.”

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Top 10 Notre Dame women’s basketball players according to ChatGPT

Does the bot know women’s basketball?

I asked AI information bot ChatGPT to list what it believes are Notre Dame’s top 10 men’s basketball players. It only makes sense for me to give the women equal treatment. Plus the women have both a better recent past and future than the men. You know people want to know who’s made the program so special.

Please note that ChatGPT’s knowledge cuts off at September 2021, so you won’t find [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] on this list. Heck, she probably wouldn’t have made it anyway since she just completed her sophomore season. She still has a legacy to complete.

Here is ChatGPT’s disclaimer regarding the list:

“As a language model, I do not have personal opinions or beliefs, and my responses are generated based on data and information available to me. However, I can provide you with a list of some of the most notable Notre Dame women’s basketball players, based on their achievements, accolades, and impact on the program.”

It also says this:

“Please note that this list is not exhaustive and is subject to personal opinions and interpretations. There have been many talented and accomplished players in Notre Dame women’s basketball history, and different people may have different criteria for their top 10 selections.”

With that out of the way, let’s see who the information bot has deemed worthy of making this list and what it had to say about each player:

Notre Dame Women’s Basketball NCAA Tournament History

One of the absolute best programs in the country.

Notre Dame women’s basketball is one of the best-known programs in the entire country and has been for quite some time.  Under the direction of Muffet McGraw who took over as head coach in the 1987-88 season, Notre Dame has gone to the NCAA Tournament 27 times, starting with their first bid in 1992.

Although it was a relative short time ago, Notre Dame has quickly arose towards the top of the list of best women’s college basketball programs nationally.  They’ve won two national championships, and have turned into a regular in the Final Four.

Here is how Notre Dame has fared all-time in the NCAA Tournament.

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Suns’ Kevin Durant, Chris Paul drop by Athletes Unlimited games in Dallas

Athletes Unlimited raised $30 million in new funding at the end of 2022 and Durant was part of the diverse investor groups.

Phoenix Suns players Kevin Durant, Chris Paul and T.J. Warren watched some women’s basketball games while they were in Dallas before their own game against the Dallas Mavericks.

The three stopped by Athletes Unlimited to watch women’s professional basketball players light up the court. The Suns beat the Mavericks and it could have been because the trio picked up some luck from Athletes Unlimited players.

Durant is an advisory board member of the league and, more recently, an investor. Athletes Unlimited raised $30 million in new funding at the end of 2022 and Durant was part of the diverse investor groups.

“We have been advisors for AU since the very beginning, and we’re excited to be a part of this capital raise,” Durant said in an Athletes Unlimited press release. “Athletes Unlimited is at the forefront of women’s sports and an inspiration for how sports leagues can thrive with an athlete-first business model.”

Durant consistently brings women’s professional basketball to the forefront across his social media. When Athletes Unlimited announced a renewed partnership with Nike, Durant shared the news with his 20.8 million followers on Twitter.

Durant is vocal about his support for the women’s side of the game and reached out to the Seattle Storm’s Breanna Stewart to urge her to sign with the New York Liberty during free agency so they could be in the same city. Shortly after Stewart signed with the Liberty, Durant was traded to the Suns.

When he got to Phoenix, a touching video was shared on the Phoenix Mercury’s social media account of Durant and WNBA superstar and Olympic champion Brittney Griner embracing. Griner was detained in a Russian prison while playing basketball abroad. After months of negotiation, she was finally released.

This embrace seems to say: “Welcome home, B.G.”

The Suns weren’t the only ones attending the Athletes Unlimited game on March 4. Dallas Wings guard Arike Ogunbowale and WNBA free agent Te’a Cooper stopped by to check out the action.

Athletes Unlimited games can be watched in a variety of ways: WNBA League Pass, CBS Sports Network and the Women’s Sports Network.

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