Utah Women’s Basketball Pulls Back Curtain On Alissa Pili’s Return To Alaska

SALT LAKE CITY – There is no place like home, and Utah women’s basketball proved it by releasing an Instagram video highlighting Alissa Pili’s return to Alaska earlier in the year.

Pili has caused quite the craze in collegiate women’s basketball partially due to the fact she is one of the best WNBA prospects, partially due to being from an underrepresented state when it comes to athletics, and partially due to her Indigenous heritage which is also underrepresent in sports.

As the video showcases, there is a lot of pride not just from Pili’s family and teammates, but from the entire state of Alaska who was more than excited to welcome her and the Utes home.

 

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Utah Women’s Basketball Celebrates 1000th Program Win With Alumni

Pili and her current Utah women’s basketball teammates will one day be looked back on as cornerstones of the program that helped elevate its profile.

They, along with head coach Lynne Roberts know however, none of what they are doing now would be possible without those that came before them.

 

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During halftime of Utah’s game against Oregon on Sunday the Utes celebrated their 1000th program win (which happened against the Ducks a few weeks back in Eugene) with all of the women’s basketball alumni who came before them.

“Everything we do is going to be in the name of creating a culture of championships.”

Yesterday, joined by our Alumni, we celebrated our program’s achievement of reaching 1000 total wins. #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/5LgZy43Aot

— Utah Women’s Basketball (@UTAHWBB) February 12, 2024

It was an important reminder that it was not that long ago that women’s sports were not given the same thought or consideration as men’s collegiate sports and that while better now, we still have a ways to go.

Michelle Bodkin is the Utah Utes Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of both the Crimson Corner Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and The Saturday Show (Saturday from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.) on The KSL Sports Zone. Follow her on X, Instagram, and Threads: @BodkinKSLsports

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