South Carolina great A'ja Wilson makes history, has WNBA's first 30-point, 20-rebound game
On Aug. 10, Wilson became the first player in league history to score 30 or more points and have 20 or more rebounds in a game.
In the Las Vegas Aces' 94-86 win over the Connecticut Sun, Wilson had 32 points, 20 rebounds, five assists, two steals and shot 52% from the field. Seven of her 20 rebounds were on the offensive end.
Earlier this season, Wilson became the fastest player in league history to reach 5,000 points. It took her 238 games to break the record held by Breanna Stewart, who reached 5,000 in 242 games.
The year before in 2024, she became the first player in WNBA history to score 1,000 points in a season and set a WNBA single-season rebound record.
Since leaving coach Dawn Staley's program after four seasons (2014-18), Wilson has won two WNBA championships and three MVP awards. In July, she played in her seventh All-Star game.
Wilson is averaging 22.2 points and 9.6 rebounds this season for the Aces, who have won seven of their past 10 games. Despite a rocky start to the season, they are now 18-14 and third in the Western Conference behind the Phoenix Mercury and conference-leading Minnesota Lynx.
On Aug. 8, Wilson turned 29 and on her birthday, scored exactly 29 points in the win over the Los Angeles Sparks. She added 12 rebounds and three assists as well.
CURRENT GAMECOCKS: When will Dawn Staley, South Carolina women's basketball face MiLaysia Fulwiley, LSU?
Since the All-Star game, she's scored 20-plus points in six of the past 10 games. To end July, she had 34 points, 10 rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks also against the Sparks.
Wilson is one of six former student-athletes being inducted into the University of South Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame this year. The induction ceremony will be on Oct. 23. The 2025 WNBA playoffs begin Sept. 22, and the last possible day of play for the season is Oct. 20.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: South Carolina basketball great A'ja Wilson has WNBA's first 30-20 game
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