Sabrina Ionescu to return to Oregon for WNBA preseason game

University of Oregon fans will have another chance to watch Sabrina Ionescu play in Eugene after all.

Ionescu, an Oregon alumna whose senior season was cut short because of the COVID-19 pandemic, is returning to campus with the New York Liberty for a preseason game on May 12.

Ionescu, along with fellow Oregon alumna Nyara Sabally and the Liberty, will face off against the Toyota Antelopes of the Women’s Japan Basketball League in the exhibition. Tipoff is set for 10 p.m. (ET).

“I can’t wait to get back on the court in Eugene with the New York Liberty at Matthew Knight Arena,” Ionescu said in a statement. “I’ve got some great things in store throughout the weekend for my teammates: past and present, Oregon Women’s Basketball fans, the Eugene community and the SI20 Foundation.”

Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb said bringing the reigning WNBA champions to Eugene for a preseason game was a “natural next step” after the franchise’s first title.

At Oregon, Ionescu was a two-time John R. Wooden Award winner and made the All-Pac-12 team four times. She also is the first player in school history to score 2,000 career points, is the NCAA’s all-time triple-doubles leader and left Eugene as Oregon’s all-time leader in points, assists, 3-point field goals and double-figure scoring games. In 2019, she led the Ducks to their first Final Four.

Sabally returns to Oregon, where she received All-Pac-12 honors twice after sitting out her first two college seasons due to injury. She averaged 15.4 points and 7.8 rebounds during her final season on campus.

New York’s decision to play an exhibition at the alma mater of two of its star players follows a recent trend.

A season ago, the Las Vegas Aces played a preseason game at the University of South Carolina, which is A’ja Wilson’s alma mater. This spring, the Indiana Fever are playing a preseason game at Caitlin Clark’s alma mater, the University of Iowa. The Chicago Sky are returning to LSU, Angel Reese’s alma mater, for a preseason exhibition game in May.

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

New York Liberty, Oregon Ducks, WNBA

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