Revenge is a dish best served … with buckets.
When the women's USA basketball team was announced earlier this summer, much of the discussion centered on the fact that Caitlin Clark had been left off the roster. But the rookie sensation wasn't the only player who didn't make the cut yet had a case to do so — and given her proven track record, there's an argument to be made that Arike Ogunbowale had an even better argument to be on Team USA than Clark.
On Saturday night in Phoenix, Ogunbowale showed out as a member of Team WNBA, scoring 34 points to lead the WNBA All-Stars to a 116-109 victory over Team USA in the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game.
Ogunbowale took home the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game MVP honors for her epic performance as Team WNBA seized the victory as a +215 underdog. The US women had been 6.5-point favorites (-6.5) as well. The teams combined for 225 total points in the All-Star Game, easily clearing the over/under of 190.5 points.
Ogunbowale was anywhere from +1500 to +2000 to win the 2024 WNBA All-Star MVP. She was also between +800 and +900 to score 30+ points. Ogunbowale's 34 points led all scorers.
It's also important to note that the game wasn't nearly as close as the final score indicates. In fact, the WNBA All-Stars opened up a 20-point lead late on the strength of Ogunbowale's epic scoring in the second half.
The Dallas Wings' guard scoring 20+ points was one of our best bets of the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game, and we cashed that one with plenty of room to spare. We also cashed Angel Reese Under 13.5 points, but we missed on the game going under the total.
Breanna Stewart led the US in scoring with 31 points. Clark finished with four points on 2-for-9 shooting, but also tallied 10 assists.
The WNBA now enters a summer break as the USA prepares to head to Paris for the Summer Games later this month. The United States is a -1800 favorite at DraftKings to bring home the gold from the 2024 Games.
Even still, you can't blame them if they kind of wish Ogunbowale would be joining them abroad. C'est la vie.
