South Carolina basketball coach Dawn Staley had a lot of WNBA action to watch over the weekend, and several Gamecock alums had big showings.
A'ja Wilson, as A'ja Wilson does, dominated for the Las Vegas Aces. She posted a ridiculous 34-point, 13-rebound performance in a Sunday win over the Los Angeles Sparks and added 5 steals, blocked 2 shots, and made over 50% of her shots. On Saturday, she had a 24-point, 11-rebound game (with 3 steals, 3 blocks, and better than 50% shooting) against the New York Liberty. Wilson pushed her WNBA record for consecutive 20-point, 10-rebound double-doubles to eight games in a row.
Two other Gamecock post players put up career-high numbers over the weekend.
Aliyah Boston stuffed the stat sheet in two games against the Phoenix Mercury and Seattle Storm. On Friday against the Mercury, she had 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists. On Sunday, she continued to be a box score stuffer as she had 9 points, 15 rebounds, and 8 assists. The 15 rebounds was one off of her career-best of 16, and the 8 assists was a new high for her. Her all-around efforts (along with great games from teammate Caitlin Clark) helped lead the Indiana Fever to back-to-back wins to start post-Olympics play.
Kamilla Cardoso shot 6-7 from the field during Sunday's game against the Phoenix Mercury, but it was her Saturday statistical output that stood out. Against the Los Angeles Sparks, Cardoso scored 15 points and pulled down 14 rebounds en route to her 4th double-double of the season. 14 boards is a new career high on the glass for Cardoso. The 15 points is one less than her best mark of 16 points, and her 3 assists is tied for the top number of dimes she has gotten in a single game.
Wilson is the frontrunner for the WNBA MVP award (and probably the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year honor, too), Boston has a chance to make the All-WNBA squad, and Cardoso is in the conversation for WNBA All-Rookie honors.