Carbondale Reporter

Junior Gift Uchenna from Southern Illinois University's women's basketball team has been honored with a place on the All-Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Third Team and the All-Newcomer Team. The league announced these accolades on Wednesday.

Uchenna is the first Saluki to receive the All-MVC Third Team award since it was introduced in the 2022-23 season. She joins Cari Hassell, who received the honor in 1995, and Ashley Jones in 2023 as SIU players named to the All-Newcomer Team.

During the regular season, Uchenna averaged 14.4 points, 12.7 rebounds, 4.8 offensive rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game over 29 games. Her rebounding average and total of 369 rebounds set single-season program records for SIU, while her 62 total blocks rank fourth all-time for SIU women's basketball.

She led the Missouri Valley Conference in rebounding, offensive rebounding, and double-doubles with a total of 20. Additionally, she ranked second in blocks within the conference.

Nationally in NCAA statistics, Uchenna placed second in rebounding and third both in offensive rebounding and double-doubles while ranking 22nd in blocks per game.

On November 16th, Uchenna achieved a career-high by scoring 34 points—a figure tied for sixth-most scored by an individual player during a game within program history. Originating from Ebonyi State, Nigeria, she has scored at least twenty points across six different games this season including achieving a remarkable "20-20" game against Valparaiso where she recorded both twenty-one points alongside twenty-one rebounds on December twenty-ninth.

Her performance against Valparaiso marked another achievement: securing twenty-one rebounds which stands as most collected by any player throughout this year's MVC competition thus far; notably contributing eight out of fifteen top performances relating specifically toward grabbing boards throughout current campaign overall.

This season also saw recognition extended towards newcomer status through four separate occasions when being awarded MVC Newcomer-of-the-Week honors dated February tenth onward via January twentieth then December thirtieth prior concluding back November eighteenth initially

Looking ahead into postseason play: Uchenna alongside teammates will compete versus fifth-seeded Illinois State Thursday afternoon beginning half-past two local time during opening round held Credit Union One MVC Tournament situated Ford Center Evansville Indiana

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