Brittney Griner has dominated women’s basketball all season.
Now the 6-foot-8 junior phenom is a unanimous selection to The Associated Press’ All-America.
She was joined on the squad by Stanford’s Nnemkadi Ogwumike, Notre Dame’s Skylar Diggins, Delaware’s Elena Delle Donne and Maryland’s Alyssa Thomas.
“That would be a very strong team,” Griner said. “I feel sorry for anyone who would have to play us.”
Griner, who was on the first team for the second straight year, hasn’t taken pity on her opponents. She has the Lady Bears two wins away from becoming the first team in NCAA history to go 40-0.
“I would never have thought it would be like this. It’s amazing,” Griner said. “Sometimes you forget what you’ve done. You don’t sit back and enjoy it as you’re so focused on a goal. It definitely has been a great year so far. I hope it finishes the right way, too.”
Griner has been incredible all season, but raised her game the past month. She’s averaging 23.4 points, 9.4 rebounds and 5.2 blocks this season. Throw in two incredible dunks in the NCAA tournament and she’s been unstoppable.
Griner and Ogwumike received 200 points and were unanimous choices by the 40-member national media panel that votes in the weekly top 25. Voting was done before the NCAA tournament.
Ogwumike had been on the second team the past two seasons and was thrilled to make the first team this year. Yet she was more excited that her sister Chiney earned second-team honors.
“Not a lot of people can say they play with their sister and win an award,” the Stanford senior forward said. “For her to be one of the top players in the country as a sophomore is remarkable.”
Diggins became the first Notre Dame player to make the first-team since Ruth Riley did it in consecutive years in 2000 and 2001. The junior guard was instrumental in helping the Irish win their first outright Big East regular-season championship, averaging 16.6 points and 5.7 assists. Diggins knows that she’d probably have a lot more assists if she was playing with this All-American squad.
“I’d love to be the floor general for that team,” Diggins said. “I’d probably average 20 assists. I can tell you right now, we’d be undefeated, we’d win every game by double digits.”
