NCAAW: WNBA prospect Maddy Siegrist main Villanova Wildcats

For a handful of applications in NCAA ladies’s basketball, the title of the crew is intertwined with the title of a participant — one who has outlined that program’s successes throughout their time there and is most of the time the primary and predominant subject of dialog at any time when their crew is mentioned.

For the Villanova Wildcats (16-3; 7-1 Massive East), that participant is Maddy Siegrist, who has turn out to be nearly synonymous with the varsity’s ladies’s basketball program. The 6-foot-2 ahead even has her personal web page on Villanova’s athletics web site detailing all of her accomplishments, corresponding to passing the milestone of two,000 profession factors scored, a laundry record of convention and nationwide honors and reward from opposing coaches — one being UConn’s Geno Auriemma, who referred to to Siegrist as “one of many prime 10 gamers within the nation.”

With such an intensive record of Massive East awards and particular person statistics which have gotten increasingly more spectacular every season — culminating in what might be a Nationwide Participant of the 12 months-worthy marketing campaign in 2022-23 — it’s no surprise Siegrist is thought to be a future WNBA participant. Let’s check out what makes her so particular and the way which will translate to the WNBA.

Honors and statistics

Siegrist has been scorching the nets and racking up awards since very early in her collegiate profession. She was named Freshman of the 12 months within the Massive East for the 2019-20 season, additionally incomes First-Workforce All-Convention honors after averaging crew highs in factors (18.8) and rebounds (8.9) per recreation.

Since then, Siegrist has turn out to be increasingly more productive, averaging 22.8 factors and 9.8 rebounds as a sophomore and 25.3 factors (second in Division I) and 9.2 rebounds per recreation as a junior. Siegrist was additionally named the Massive East Participant of the 12 months throughout her stellar junior marketing campaign whereas incomes All-American Third Workforce honors from each The Related Press and USBWA.

Coming into her senior season, Siegrist was named to a slew of nationwide participant of the 12 months award watch lists, together with the John R. Wood Award, Naismith Trophy and Wade Trophy. As anticipated, Siegrist was additionally named the Massive East Preseason Participant of the 12 months, and is at the moment on the watch record for the Katrina McClain Award, given yearly to the nation’s prime energy ahead.

Internationally, Siegrist not too long ago competed for Workforce USA in FIBA’s 3×3 Nations League, enjoying alongside Aaliyah Moore (Texas Longhorns), Alyssa Ustby (North Carolina Tar Heels) and Maddy Westbeld (Notre Dame Combating Irish).

Siegrist’s offensive versatility a luxurious for Villanova

As one would count on from her gaudy quantity statistics, Siegrist bears a heavy burden for the Wildcats. In keeping with Her Hoop Stats, as a junior she recorded a utilization charge of 33.5 p.c, which was twentieth amongst all Division I gamers. This season, it’s all the best way as much as 36.7 p.c — tenth in Division I.

Siegrist has been remarkably environment friendly contemplating how a lot of Villanova’s offense runs by means of her, although, scoring 1.17 factors per possession and taking pictures the ball at a 56.9 p.c efficient area objective proportion. Her worth metrics are much more ridiculous: Siegrist’s participant effectivity score of 49.4 and 10.2 whole win shares each rank second within the nation.

Siegrist’s versatile scoring package deal is a serious cause for this. The gifted ahead boasts a wide selection of offensive strikes that Wildcat head coach Denise Dillon makes use of to nice impact within the crew’s slow-paced, methodical half-court offense, adjusting the methods Villanova will get Siegrist the basketball relying on the opponent. Take Villanova’s latest win over DePaul, for instance: whereas Siegrist is at the moment taking pictures a career-high 40.5 p.c from 3-point vary, she shot only one lengthy ball towards the Blue Demons, as an alternative doing most of her injury within the submit and off the dribble towards a smaller DePaul lineup. Time after time, Siegrist rose as much as rating seemingly effortlessly over her defenders, one thing Massive East opponents have seen loads of through the years; the discharge level on Siegrist’s turnaround soar shot is just too excessive for many defenders to contest successfully, and, as demonstrated within the under spotlight reel, she additionally has a knack for shifting with out the ball and getting herself into positions to attain extra effectively (in response to Synergy Sports activities, 17.9 p.c of Siegrist’s possessions come on basket cuts, and she or he’s taking pictures 67.2 p.c on these photographs), making her an enormous matchup drawback towards nearly all of her opponents.

Highlights: Siegrist scores 32 towards DePaul

As for the remainder of Siegrist’s recreation, she’s recorded a steal charge of 1.9 p.c or larger in every of her final three seasons at Villanova, and she or he’s at the moment blocking photographs at a charge of three.1 p.c, which is a career-high. She received’t blow groups away in both division, however she makes use of her wingspan to her benefit when defending, as famous by Iowa State Cyclones head coach Invoice Fennelly, who stated that Siegrist is “lots higher defensively than she regarded on video” after the 2 groups met earlier this season. It actually helps that she not often fouls; Siegrist’s foul charge at the moment sits at 3.3 p.c (2.9 p.c final season), which is spectacular given what number of minutes she performs and the way necessary she is to her crew’s success.

It’s truthful to surprise simply how a lot of what makes Siegrist such a terrific collegiate participant will translate to the subsequent stage — one thing WNBA coaches and GMs are absolutely weighing as draft day approaches — as she received’t have the dimensions benefit she enjoys within the Massive East and would probably be requested to defend on the perimeter extra usually than she at the moment does.

However, although, Siegrist’s total offensive skillset is one which, in idea, would match on most WNBA rosters. Her three-level scoring capacity — significantly as a mismatch hunter and a stretch large in smaller lineups — could be of profit, and she or he actually wouldn’t have as a lot on her plate as she does at Villanova. Whichever WNBA crew drafts Siegrist will greater than probably envision her enjoying in a secondary or tertiary scorer position that may emphasize her particular person abilities with out asking her to do an excessive amount of with the basketball in her palms.

Watch her play

The Wildcats have but to face perennial Massive East powerhouse UConn this season; their matchups with the Huskies on Jan. 29 (CBS Sports activities Community) and Feb. 18 (FOX) will likely be must-see TV. Villanova additionally has nationally-televised video games towards Creighton (Jan. 20; FS1) and Marquette (Feb. 1; FS2) on its schedule, and can shut regular-season play on Feb. 27 towards Seton Corridor (FS1).

All statistics and crew information for the 2022-23 NCAA season are present by means of Jan. 14, 2023.