GAMECOCKS IN THE WNBA: Gray Makes WNBA History, Cooke Heats Up as League Heads Into World Cup Break / sportsearchers.com

Former South Carolina stars had a notable week across the WNBA, headlined by a historic performance from Allisha Gray and a career-caliber stretch from Zia Cooke, as the league pauses for roughly two weeks to accommodate the FIBA World Cup.

Atlanta Dream (26-14)
Allisha Gray etched her name into the league’s record books during a win over Minnesota. She became the 25th player in WNBA history to reach 500 career three-pointers, and even more remarkably, became just the second player ever — and the first since 1997 — to record at least 10 rebounds, six threes, and three steals in a single game. Across her three games last week, Gray averaged well above her season norms, including a 23-point, 11-rebound, three-steal outburst in that Minnesota win. On the season, she’s putting up 19.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. Atlanta also debuted newly added veteran forward DeWanna Bonner against Minnesota, though it remains unclear how her arrival will affect the roles of Madina Okot and Te-Hina Paopao going forward. A rough loss to Portland dropped Atlanta into a standings tie with Indiana, though Atlanta holds the tiebreaker.

Chicago Sky (15-25)
Kamilla Cardoso continued producing at a high level individually — including a 24-point, 13-rebound game against Connecticut — but Chicago wasted the effort in a loss, then followed with a lackluster showing against New York. Cardoso’s season averages remain strong at 14.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game on 54.8% shooting.

Golden State Valkyries (29-11)
Laeticia Amihere’s minutes fluctuated across four games last week, but the results spoke for themselves — Golden State went a perfect 4-0, highlighted by an 8-point, 2-steal performance in a win over Portland. The Valkyries now sit just two games behind Minnesota for the league’s top playoff seed, a gap described as “still a long shot, but just a week ago it looked impossible.”

Indiana Fever (26-14)
Aliyah Boston and the Fever cruised into the World Cup break with an easy win over Connecticut, with Boston posting 14 points, three blocks, and two steals. She now heads to Germany for her first career World Cup appearance. On the season, she’s averaging 16.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.0 assists while shooting an efficient 40.8% from three.

Las Vegas Aces (27-13)
A’ja Wilson also coasted into the break with a routine 27-point, 8-rebound, 2-block performance in a win over Toronto, keeping her season averages at an elite 26.0 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks per game.

Seattle Storm (8-32)
Zia Cooke was the week’s breakout story on a struggling Storm team, stringing together what’s described as “arguably one of the best stretches of her career.” She followed a 10-point, 5-assist, 2-steal game against Toronto with 14 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists, and a block against Los Angeles. With her situation for next season still uncertain, the note that “Cooke might be playing for a contract for next season” underscores just how much these performances could matter for her future.

Portland Fire (16-24)
Sania Feagin remains sidelined for the season after tearing her left ACL, an injury that required surgery on July 22.