GAMES
RANKINGS
Cy Woods alum Erica Ogwumike Earns Spot on Nigerian Olympic Team
(Release from Rice University Athletics)
HOUSTON – The Nigerian women's basketball program announced the national team roster for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics on Monday (July 19), and Rice all-time great and alumna Erica Ogwumike is among the players who made the cut.
Ogwumike, who played for the Owls from 2017-20, is one of the most decorated players in program history and was a 2020 WNBA Draft selection before entering med school. She became the fourth player in Rice history to be drafted in the WNBA.
Ogwumike won consecutive Conference USA Player of the Year awards and was a WBCA All-American Honorable Mention her senior season after averaging 19 points and 10.3 rebounds.
A member of the illustrious 2,000 points/1,000 rebounds club, Ogwumike concluded her three-year Rice career ranked first in scoring (17.7 ppg), second in rebounding average (10.1 rpg), third in free throw percentage (81.4%), fourth in made free throws (421), fifth in rebounds (921) and sixth in total points (1,597).
In her career, Ogwumike helped lead the Owls to two conference titles and 72 wins over three seasons, the greatest stretch in program history.
Team Nigeria's first game of the Olympics in Tokyo will be against the United States on Tuesday, July 27 at 11:40 p.m. (CT) from Saitama Super Arena. They reside in Group B along with France, Japan, and USA.
BREAKING: Cy Woods, Rice star Erica Ogwumike drafted by New York Liberty, traded to Minnesota Lynx
HOUSTON - A third Ogwumike is heading to the WNBA.
On Friday night, Erica Ogwumike, the youngest sister of the four, was drafted by the New York Liberty with the 26th pick of the 2020 WNBA Draft and then traded to the Minnesota Lynx for Stephanie Talbot. Ogwumike joins her sisters Chiney and Nneka in the league, who both play for the Los Angeles Sparks.
Ogwumike starred at Cy Woods High School for four years, leading the Wildcats to the 2015 Class 6A State Championship. Ogwumike was the MVP of that title game. In her high school career, Ogwumike played in 143 games and scored 2,227 points and had 1,141 rebounds.
Once Ogwumike left Cy Woods, she went to Pepperdine for a year where she played for one year before transferring back home to Rice University.
LEAGUE BOUND | Erica Ogwumike is headed to New York after being drafted by the @NYLiberty!
Go be the ⭐️ we know you are.@Ogwumi13 x #WNBADraft pic.twitter.com/E924dzNyBa
— Rice Women's Basketball (@RiceWBB) April 18, 2020
After redshirting, Ogwumike became the first-ever Rice player to earn Conference USA Newcomer of the Year in the 2017-2018 season. She finished that year ranked fourth in the conference in scoring, averaging 17.9 points per game. Rice reached the WNIT that year.
Last year, Ogwumike helped make history at Rice.
The junior helped lead Rice back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005 and for the third time in program history. Ogwumike averaged 16.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game to become the first-ever player to ever win C-USA Player of the Year and was also named C-USA Female Athlete of the Year as well.
This season, which was cut short, due to COVID-19, Ogwumike averaged 19 points per game and was poised to lead her team back to the NCAA Tournament before the season ended early. She was named the Conference USA Player of Year for a second-straight season.