Sports
South Carolina Basketball: Aja Wilson sets WNBA record – Garnet and Cocky
South Carolina basketball alum Aja Wilson has won the WNBA’s Western Conference Player of the Month award again. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports
South Carolina basketball legend Aja Wilson is one of the best to ever play in the WNBA. Already a two-time league MVP, she could be on her way to a third award (she won previously in 2020 and 2022). She is a clear top-two player in “The W” along with Breanna Stewart, and the former Gamecock demonstrated why with a dominant performance on Saturday.
The record for the best-ever field goal percentage for a player taking at least 17 shots is owned by two players. All-time great Lisa Leslie is the first, and Aja Wilson is now the second. Both players made 14 of 17 shots from the field as Wilson tied Leslie’s effort on Saturday.
In addition to the 35 points that came as a product of the 14-17 shooting performance, Wilson also brought down 14 rebounds and had 3 steals. The 35 points and 14 boards both were the top performances in the entire league on a Saturday loaded with games.
Aja Wilson’s dominance could be at an all-time high. She is currently rebounding at a career-best rate (9.8 per game), and she has blocked more shots than any other season of her career (2.1 per contest). Her scoring output and efficiency are also right at her career high as her 20.5 points per night is just barely behind her top mark of 20.7 points per game from her rookie year, and 53.2% shooting is the best effort she has put forward in her six years in the league.
Arguably the most impressive part of Aja Wilson’s assault on the record books is that her team is amazing. In ESPN’s power ranking of the top players in the WNBA, the Las Vegas Aces had four of the top seven players, and, yet, Wilson still puts up ridiculous stat lines despite sharing the ball with other great players like Chelsea Gray, Kelsey Plum, and Jackie Young.
The leading vote-getter in the 2023 WNBA All-Star Game will look to continue her strong start to the second half of the season when the Aces take on the Chicago Sky on Tuesday.
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