Maria McIlwain

Miracle is an understatement

‘It’s just an incredible tradition’: How Philly hoops shaped this WNBA coaching staff It hasn't been the easiest year for the Dallas Wings, with injuries to key players like Paige Bueckers, but first-year coach Chris Koclanes has his sister by his side — and a shared Big 5 background.

From @mkmcilwain.bsky.social, hitting the bulls-eye on the Koclanes family:

‘It’s just an incredible tradition’: How Philly hoops shaped the Dallas Wings' coaching staff

www.inquirer.com/wnba/dallas-... via @phillysport.bsky.social @inquirer.com

Lucy Olsen is carving out a role in the WNBA. Former Villanova teammate Maddy Siegrist showed her how. A smattering of former Big 5 players have faced each other in WNBA history, but Sunday's game between the Dallas Wings and Washington Mystics pitted Villanova players head-to-head for the first time.

@mkmcilwain.bsky.social was in Dallas yesterday for Maddy Siegrist vs. Lucy Olsen, the first time two former Villanova players have played against each other in a WNBA game:

www.inquirer.com/wnba/philly-...

Maddy Siegrist set to return for Dallas Wings on Friday The former Villanova star missed 17 games with a knee injury. She is averaging 9.4 points and 5.2 rebounds.

From @mkmcilwain.bsky.social:

(Yes, she's here, which means I need to be on good behavior)

Maddy Siegrist set to return for Dallas Wings on Friday
www.inquirer.com/sports/maddy...

Excuse me, what??? I’m so sorry to hear this, Sarah.

Meet the La Salle coaches bringing a ‘sisterhood’ to three new sports programs While all three coaches are new to the area and have never met, they share the common bond of pioneering brand-new sports programs at the university.

What does it take to build a program from the ground up? Let these La Salle coaches tell you.

www.inquirer.com/college-spor...

How former Spring-Ford and Villanova star Lucy Olsen built a family joke into a brand at Iowa To Olsen, the former Villanova star, "basketball is fun." If you ask her family and high school coaches, it's always been that way.

The Big 5 may have been shut out of the NCAA Tournament, but Philly-area players are starring across the country. That includes Iowa, where Lucy Olsen built "basketball is fun" into a brand:

www.inquirer.com/college-spor...

He’s ready to cover some Temple hoops!

A Temple gymnast went viral for her Kendrick Lamar and GloRilla-inspired floor routine. Here’s the story behind it. Kyrstin Johnson was inspired by other viral NCAA gymnasts, including Katelyn Ohashi: “She was just dancing her heart out. That’s the same thing that I wanted to do when it came to my routine."

Remember the Temple gymnast whose floor routine went viral? @gablcarroll.bsky.social has the story behind it:

www.inquirer.com/college-spor...

Baby’s first Wawa

So this is where the cool kids are