Sabrina Ionescu set multiple records en route to winning the WNBA 3-Point Contest on Friday afternoon in Las Vegas.
Not only did the New York Liberty star score 37 total points in the final round, the highest single-round record by either an NBA or a WNBA player in a 3-point contest, she made 20 straight shots — breaking Craig Hodges’ previous record streak of 19 from the 1991 NBA contest.
“I’ve put in a lot of work to be able to shoot like I have been from the 3-point line,” said Ionescu, who won the contest for the first time. “This one’s pretty rewarding.”
The former Oregon star and No. 1 overall draft pick missed a mere two shots on Friday in order to beat Seattle Storm guard Sami Whitcomb, who came in a distant second at 22 points in the final round, and Dallas Wings guard Arike Ogunbowale, who finished third with 11.
Ionescu’s win came after she and New York teammate Courtney Vandersloot fell to Las Vegas Aces teammates Chelsea Gray and Kelsey Plum in the Skills Challenge, which was a pairs event for the first time.
“There’s adrenaline. It was the final round. I had just lost in the Skills (Challenge) and I wasn’t going to lose again,” Ionescu said.
Gray and Plum, “Team Aces,” completed the skills course in 45.9 seconds in the first round and put up a similar 46.0-second score to beat Team Liberty in the final round.
The WNBA All-Star Game is scheduled for Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET, pitting a team of All-Stars drafted by Aces star A’ja Wilson against a team drafted by Liberty star Breanna Stewart.
–Field Level Media
