Hours after honoring her mentor, Kobe Bryant, and her protege, Bryant’s daughter Gianna, at Monday’s memorial service in Los Angeles, Oregon point guard Sabrina Ionescu made history on Monday by becoming the first player in Division I basketball history, male or female, to collect at least 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists.
Ionescu totaled 21 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists in the No. 3 Ducks’ 74-66 win at No. 4 Stanford. Her ninth rebound, which came late in the third quarter, gave her 1,000 in her career, making her the inaugural member of the 2K-1K-1K club.
Ionescu said afterward on the ESPN broadcast that it was especially meaningful to accomplish the feat on this particular day because of Bryant, who had mentored Ionescu over the last year.
Oregon basketball star Sabrina Ionescu (right) pictured alongside her mentor, Kobe Bryant (left), and her protege, Gianna Bryant (center), whom she called the ‘future’ of the sport
Ionescu speaks during The Celebration of Life for Kobe & Gianna Bryant at Staples Center on February 24. In her speech, Ionescu told the story of meeting Kobe and Gianna Bryant last year, when they sat courtside as the Ducks played USC in LA. She described her interactions with both in the months since, including on-court moves that Bryant helped teach her
Oregon point guard Sabrina Ionescu made history on Monday by becoming the first player in Division I basketball history, male or female, to collect at least 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists. Ionescu totaled 21 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists in the No. 3 Ducks’ 74-66 win at No. 4 Stanford. Her ninth rebound, which came late in the third quarter, gave her 1,000 in her career, making her the inaugural member of the 2K-1K-1K club
‘I mean that one was for him,’ said Ionescu, who took a chartered flight from Los Angeles after Bryant’s memorial to arrive about 90 minutes before tipoff at Maples Pavilion.
‘To do it on 2/24/20 is huge. We had talked about it in the preseason. I can’t really put that into words. He’s looking down and really proud of me, and just really happy for my team.’
Ionescu’s triple-double was her eighth of the season and the 26th of her career. She managed it despite an emotion-filled day and while battling illness, as she skipped pregame warmups after feeling nauseous.
‘Being able to speak (at the memorial) was such an honor for me,’ Ionescu said. ‘Being able to hear everyone speak. I tried to do everything I could to hold it together tonight, and my team helped me a lot doing that.’
Oregon guard and Team USA star Sabrina Ionescu (right) pictured alongside Gianna Bryant
Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, were memorialized at Staples Center earlier Monday. They were among nine killed in a helicopter crash near Los Angeles on January 26.
Sabrina Ionescu honored Kobe and Gigi Bryant on her Nikes before Monday’s game
‘If I represented the present of the women’s game, Gigi represented the future, and Kobe knew it,’ said Ionescu.
In her speech, Ionescu told the story of meeting Kobe and Gianna Bryant last year, when they sat courtside as the Ducks played USC in Los Angeles.
She described her interactions with both in the months since, including on-court moves that Kobe Bryant helped teach her.
‘He taught me his step-back, he told me that if I could bring that to my game it would be over for any defender trying to guard me,’ Ionescu said. ‘He was giving me the blueprint. He was giving Gigi the same blueprint.
Ionescu has 2,467 points, 1,041 assists and 1.003 rebounds in 137 games during her Oregon career. She is averaging 17.3 points, 8.9 assists and 8.8 rebounds in 28 games this season.
Bryant helped teach Ionescu several moves, she said: ‘He taught me his step-back, he told me that if I could bring that to my game it would be over for any defender trying to guard me’
Pictured: Kobe Bryant (far left), Sabrina Ionescu (next to Kobe) and Gianna Bryant (No. 2)
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