Three years ago, the WNBA All-Star Game had already pitted Team USA against a team of All-Stars, before the Tokyo Olympics. And the American team had lost, Arike Ogunbowale being named MVP of the match.
The Dallas Wings guard was hoping to switch teams for this edition, but she ultimately withdrew her name from the selection process, pointing to the “politics” behind the criteria to be part of the Team USA 12.
Challenged by Cheryl Miller
So the All-Star Game in Phoenix was the perfect place to send a message… except she hadn't scored a single point by halftime. In the locker room, her coach for the occasion, Cheryl Miller, challenged her.
“I didn't expect her to say my name”, explains Arike Ogunbowale. “She just told me to take a deep breath and play my game.”
And that's what she's going to do, and even more, by lighting up the selection in the third quarter. She's going to score 21 points in the period alone, to finish the game with 34 points, and the MVP trophy…
“It felt like déjà vu, honestly.”Breanna Stewart could only see in the opposing camp.
A feeling of déjà vu
The gap would even reach twenty in favor of the league's All-Stars, with a clumsy Caitlin Clark playing the conductor and finding Angel Reese for a layup in the fourth quarter.
Ultimately, Team USA lost 117-109. But that was no cause for alarm for coach Cheryl Reeve, as the American team won the Olympic title after losing the All-Star Game three years ago.
Arike Ogunbowale will have shown once again that she has her place within Team USA. No doubt she would have preferred to do it in Lille and Paris, rather than in Phoenix…
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-pointers / 3-pointers attempted; LF = Free throws made / Free throws attempted; O = Offensive rebound; D = Defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = Assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Steals; Bp = Loose balls; Ct: Blocks; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the court; Pts = Points; Eval: Player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
