Former South Carolina basketball star makes WNBA All-Star Game weekend history

The South Carolina basketball program is well-represented at WNBA All-Star weekend. MVP-frontrunner A'ja Wilson will play on Saturday night for Team USA against fellow Gamecock legends Aliyah Boston, Allisha Gray, and Team WNBA All-Stars (a group made up of all of the non-Team USA all-star selections).

On Friday night, though, Gray took part in the "other" All-Star Game festivities as a competitor in both the 3-Point Contest and the Skills Challenge.

Things went well for the Atlanta Dream star as she became the first WNBA player ever to win both the Skills Challenge and the 3-Point Contest during the same All-Star Game weekend.

First, Gray brought home the trophy for winning the Skills Challenge. Besting Sophie Cunningham of the Phoenix Mercury in the final round, Gray finished the course in just over 32 seconds, over 2 seconds faster than Cunningham. Her first round time of 31.2 seconds was even faster and was the fastest overall time on the night.

Shortly after claiming the Skills Challenge crown, Gray went to work in the 3-Point Contest. She advanced out of the first round by scoring 23 points. Matched up with Jonquel Jones in the final, she scored 22, and in a matchup that came down the final attempt, Jones scored 21 to seal the win for Gray.

Gray joined Sabrina Ionescu and Becky Hammon as players who won both events, but neither Ionescu nor Hammon accomplished the feat in the same season. South Carolina basketball coach Dawn Staley, who coached Gray in Columbia, also won both events in different years. However, the Skills Challenge was in a different format then.

Thanks to a partnership with Aflac, the bespectacled Gray left the arena with a nice check as she earned the prize money for both events. The $115,000+ payday was more than double what she made during her entire rookie season in 2017.

During her South Carolina basketball career, Gray was an instrumental player on the Gamecocks' first National Championship squad in 2016-2017. She was asked to play multiple positions (especially after an injury to Alaina Coates moved A'ja Wilson to center more often), and she was one of the driving forces behind head coach Dawn Staley being able to cut down the final nets for the first time.

The WNBA All-Star Game will be played on Saturday, July 20th at 8:30 PM ET. It will be broadcast on ABC and streamed on the ESPN app.