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Three Former Irish Named to AP All-WNBA Team – Notre Dame Athletics | The Fighting Irish
Ten women were named to the AP All-WNBA Team on Tuesday. Just one school produced three of the 10.
Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd, Dallas Wings guard Arike Ogunbowale and Las Vegas Aces guard Jackie Young were named to the Associated Press’ highest honor on the eve of the WNBA playoffs. Loyd made the First Team, while Ogunbowale and Young earned a spot on the Second Team. Connecticut and Oregon both produced two members of the All-WNBA Team, while Duke, Maryland and South Carolina had one each.
Loyd had a record-breaking season for the Storm despite missing the playoffs. The guard, who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 WNBA Draft, broke the WNBA’s single-season scoring record, finishing with 939 points over 38 games. She also earned the scoring crown with 24.7 points per game, the second-highest average in WNBA history and the highest since 2014. Other records broken by Loyd include 21 games with at least 25 points and 254 free throws made. She also tied records with 12 games scoring at least 30 points and 287 attempted free throws. Finally, Loyd made a franchise record 115 three-pointers, which is the fourth-most in WNBA history.
Ogunbowale finished the regular season averaging 21.2 points per contest, which ranks fifth in the W. She proved her worth on the defensive side of the ball as well, notching 1.7 steals per game, tied for fifth in the league. She posted 41 points against Seattle on June 7, marking just the 27th time in WNBA history that a player has broken 40.
Young, last year’s WNBA Most Improved Player, managed to be a major factor on a star-studded Aces team that holds the top seed heading into the postseason. The No. 1 overall draft selection in 2019, she led the league with a 44.9 clip from behind the arc and posted 17.6 points every time she took the court. Her 52.3 success rate from the floor was the highest amongst guards.
The full AP All-WNBA Team can be found here. The official WNBA awards will be announced later this month.
The playoffs begin on Sept. 13 with games between the Lynx and Sun and the Aces and Sky. Notre Dame has seven players on playoff rosters, more than any other team from the ACC by four players: Loyd, Ogunbowale, Young, Marina Mabrey (Chicago Sky), Jessica Shepard (Minnesota Lynx), Lindsay Allen (Lynx), Kayla McBride (Lynx) and Natalie Achonwa (Lynx).
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