South Carolina women’s basketball: Gamecocks in the WNBA – Week 12

The graduates of Post Player U showed out last week, plus it was a milestone week for the Atlanta branch. Get caught up on all the Gamecocks in the WNBA. 

The WNBA is offering a free trial of League Pass through Thursday, so even if you aren’t signed up, you should be able to watch all the games.

Atlanta Dream (18-11)
Allisha Gray
29 games (29 starts), 35.3 mpg, 18.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 3.9 apg, 1.2 spg
It was a milestone week for Gold Medal Lish. Against Dallas, she moved into sixth place on Atlanta’s career scoring and career assists lists. Gray made a career-high seven threes against Phoenix and scored a career-best 14 in the first quarter. She also became the 37th player in league history with 400 career threes, and she currently leads the league with 72 this season.

Last week:
vs Golden State (77-75 loss): 34 minutes*, 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists
at Dallas (88-85 win): 35 minutes*, 15 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals
vs Phoenix (95-72 win): 28 minutes*, 26 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, block
vs Washington (99-83 win): 35 minutes*, 22 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals

Te-Hina Paopao
28 games (5 starts), 13.6 mpg, 5.3 ppg, 1.9 apg, 1.5 rpg, 43.3 3P%
Paopao dropped all the way to fourth in the WNBA in three-point shooting percentage, but probably had the best week of her pro career. As a fill-in starter against Dallas, Paopao led Atlanta’s comeback in the final two minutes. She had a game-tying layup, back-to-back defensive stops, the go-ahead layup, and then, after Dallas tied the game, Paopao found Naz Hillman for the game-winner. It was finally enough to make the Dream realize she needs to play more, and against Washington, Paopao had the best plus/minus, Atlanta’s second consecutive season-high in points.

Last week:
vs Golden State (77-75 loss): 4 minutes, 2 points
at Dallas (88-85 win): 37 minutes*, 11 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 1-5 3PT
vs Phoenix (95-72 win): 19 minutes, 7 points, 3 assists, rebound, steal, 1-3 3PT
vs Washington (99-83 win): 33 minutes, 7 points, 5 assists, 2 steals, block, rebound, 1-4 3PT

Upcoming games:
Thursday, August 7 at Chicago (8:00 ET, Amazon Prime)
Sunday, August 10 at Phoenix (6:00 ET, NBA TV/League Pass)

Chicago Sky (7-21)
Kamilla Cardoso
24 games (23 starts), 25.5 mpg, 12.5 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.7 apg, 0.8 bpg, 51.7 FG%
Injuries have hit Chicago hard lately, but Cardoso has stepped up with six consecutive double-doubles.

Last week:
at Washington (103-86 loss): 29 minutes*, 21 points, 10 rebounds
vs Golden State (73-66 loss): 35 minutes*, 14 points, 11 rebounds, assist, block
vs Phoenix (83-67 loss): 28 minutes*, 12 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks

Upcoming games:
Tuesday, August 5 vs Washington (8:00 ET, League Pass)
Thursday, August 7 vs Atlanta (8:00 ET, Amazon Prime)
Saturday, August 9 at Indiana (8:00 ET, CBS)

Dallas Wings (8-21)
Tyasha Harris
5 games, 16.5 mpg, 4.6 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 2.6 apg, 45.5 3P%
Harris injured her left knee against Connecticut on May 27. Initially, there was optimism that it wasn’t long-term, but unfortunately, Harris underwent season-ending surgery on June 10.

Golden State Valkyries (14-14)
Laeticia Amihere
17 games, 14.2 mpg, 5.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.3 apg
Golden State has been hit with a rash of injuries, opening more playing time for Amihere. She has responded well and was one rebound short of being the fourth Gamecock with a double-double on Sunday.

Last week:
at Atlanta (77-75 win): 15 minutes, 6 points, 4 rebounds, assist, steal
at Washington (68-67 win): 13 minutes, 8 points, 5 rebounds, assist
at Chicago (73-66 win): 9 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds
at Las Vegas (101-77 loss): 22 minutes, 14 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists

Upcoming games:
Wednesday, August 6 vs Las Vegas (10:00 ET, NBA TV/League Pass)
Saturday, August 9 vs Los Angeles (8:30 ET, League Pass)

Indiana Fever (17-12)
Aliyah Boston
29 games (29 starts), 30.2 mpg, 15.5 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 3.8 apg, 1.0 bpg, 1.0 spg, 54.7 FG%
Boston no longer leads the WNBA in field goal percentage, but she’s playing like it’s 2022. She has recorded a franchise-record six consecutive double-doubles and led Indiana to its longest winning streak in a decade. 

Last week:
vs Phoenix (107-101 win): 30 minutes*, 22 points, 12 rebounds, assist 
at Dallas (88-78 win): 28 minutes*, 12 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, block
at Seattle (78-74 win): 31 minutes*, 16 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists, block

Upcoming games:
Tuesday, August 5 at Los Angeles (10:00 ET, CBS Sports Network)
Thursday, August 7 at Phoenix (10:00 ET, Amazon Prime)
Saturday, August 9 vs Chicago (8:00 ET, CBS)

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Las Vegas Aces (15-14)
A’ja Wilson
24 games (24 starts), 30.0 mpg, 21.6 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 3.4 apg, 2.3 bpg, 1.6 spg
The only thing consistent about the Aces is their inconsistency. Wilson had a monster game against the Sparks, scoring 17 of her 34 points in the first quarter. She went 8-8 from the floor in the first quarter, tied for the second-most field goals in a quarter in league history (despite only playing seven minutes). Wilson finished with 11 baskets in the first half, tying the record for most in a half, and finished with 16 baskets, tied for the second most in a regulation game. 

Last week:
at Los Angeles (89-74 win): 30 minutes*, 34 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks
vs Minnesota (111-58 loss): 22 minutes*, 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists
vs Golden State (101-77 win): 29 minutes*, 14 points, 14 rebounds, 4 steals, 2 assists, block

Upcoming games:
Wednesday, August 6 at Golden State (10:00 ET, NBA TV/League Pass)
Friday, August 8 vs Seattle (10:00 ET, Ion/League Pass)
Sunday, August 10 vs Connecticut (9:00 ET, NBA TV/League Pass)

Los Angeles Sparks (12-15)
Sania Feagin
11 games, 5.3 mpg, 1.3 ppg, 0.6 rpg, 0.5 bpg
Cameron Brink returned from a torn ACL last week and pushed Feagin out of the rotation.

Last week:
vs Las Vegas (89-74 loss): DNP-CD
at Seattle (108-106 2OT win): DNP-CD

Upcoming games:
Tuesday, August 5 vs Indiana (10:00 ET, CBS Sports Network)
Thursday, August 7 vs Connecticut (10:00 ET, League Pass)
Saturday, August 9 at Golden State (8:30 ET, League Pass)
Sunday, August 10 vs Seattle (8:00 ET, League Pass)

Seattle Storm (16-13)
Zia Cooke
24 games, 10.4 mpg, 3.3 ppg, 0.5 apg, 0.5 rpg
Cooke was productive in a blowout win over Connecticut, but did not play in narrow losses to Los Angeles and Indiana.

Last week:
at Connecticut (101-85 win): 12 minutes, 8 points
vs Los Angeles (108-106 2 OT loss): DNP-CD
vs Indiana (78-74 loss): DNP-CD

Tiffany Mitchell (First 16 games with Las Vegas)
25 games (3 starts), 15.4 mpg, 3.8 ppg, 1.5 rpg
Mitchell didn’t shoot well last week, and as a team, Seattle seems to be at a crossroads after the strong start to the season.

Last week:
at Connecticut (101-85 win): 15 minutes, 3 points, assist
vs Los Angeles (108-106 2 OT loss): 13 minutes, 2 points, rebound, steal
vs Indiana (78-74 loss): 22 minutes, 4 points, rebound

Upcoming games:
Tuesday, August 5 vs Minnesota (10:00 ET, League Pass)
Friday, August 8 at Las Vegas (10:00 ET, Ion/League Pass)
Sunday, August 10 at Los Angeles (8:00 ET, League Pass)

Unsigned
Bree Hall
2 games, 3.9 mpg, 1.5 ppg, 1.0 rpg
Golden State waived Hall on Monday, June 30, to create roster space for players returning from EuroBasket. It wasn’t a surprise, but hopefully Hall put herself on the league’s radar.