UCLA Professional Athletes

It was a banner week for Bruins across the league, with Kennedy Burke, Kiki Rice, and Jordin Canada each turning in performances that went well beyond a box score line.

Burke's Defensive Masterpiece

The headliner was Kennedy Burke's Tuesday outing for Connecticut. In an 87-81 Sun win over the Sky, Burke finished with 19 points and an eye-popping 5 steals — the kind of two-way performance that doesn't show up on highlight reels but absolutely changes games. She also pulled down 5 rebounds. It was a sharp contrast to her quiet 2-point night the following Wednesday in a loss to the Valkyries, but that Tuesday showcase was the story of her week.

Her Sun teammates Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens were active throughout the stretch as well. Leger-Walker had a quietly productive week — 17 points in Wednesday's loss to Golden State and a 4-assist showing Tuesday against the Sky — while Kneepkens contributed steady minutes across multiple appearances.

Rice Hits a Season High

In Seattle on Thursday, Kiki Rice dropped a season-high 24 points for the Tempo in a 90-78 loss to the Storm, adding 5 assists, 3 rebounds, and a steal. The rookie out of UCLA is showing she belongs, even when the team around her comes up short. She followed with 10 points and 4 assists in Saturday's loss to the Aces, bookending a week that established her as a genuine scoring option in Golden State's offense.

Canada Helps Atlanta Clinch

Jordin Canada's week carried the biggest stakes. On Saturday night, she scored 12 points and helped the Dream hold off the Phoenix Mercury 99-89 — a win that clinched Atlanta a playoff berth. The Dream are now 24-13 and have won five of their last six. Angel Reese stole the headline with a career-high 31 points and 14 rebounds, but Canada's steady floor play — she also had 6 assists in a Friday loss to Chicago — has been a fixture in a Dream run that's now officially postseason-bound.

Canada's Tuesday contribution against the Sparks (9 points, 4 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal in a 78-71 win) was another reminder of her value as a connector guard in Atlanta's rotation.

The Mystics Trio

Lauren Betts, Michaela Onyenwere, and Angela Dugalic kept Washington's UCLA pipeline busy. Betts was the standout: 10 points and 8 rebounds in Wednesday's win over Phoenix, followed by 6 points and 6 boards in a Friday rematch against the Mercury. The second-year big is trending toward reliable starter production. Onyenwere had her best night Wednesday against Phoenix (10 points, +15), while Dugalic played spot minutes throughout.

Gardner and Jaquez

Rebekah Gardner posted 11 points, 2 steals, and a block in a blowout Liberty win over the Sky on Saturday (+19), showing well in expanded minutes. Gabriela Jaquez had a rough Saturday — 4 points and a -16 in the same game on the other side of that ledger — in a 19-point Sky loss.

A deep, productive week for the Bruin diaspora, with the Dream's playoff clinch serving as a fitting capstone.

The buzz around UCLA rookie Kiki Rice isn't hype — it's a highlight reel. The Toronto Tempo guard dropped 19 points in back-to-back games this week, and the national conversation has officially caught up to what Tempo fans have been watching all season: a franchise cornerstone in the making.

Rice's week opened Tuesday (Aug. 19) against the Washington Mystics, where she scored 19 points and added two assists in a 93-82 Tempo loss. She answered again Saturday against the Chicago Fire, putting up another 19 — this time with four assists — in a narrow 82-79 Toronto win. CBS Sports' rookie rankings took notice, flagging Rice as showing "glimpses of being the Tempo's franchise player." The eye-test stuff matters too: Sportsnet captured a coast-to-coast, left-handed off-the-glass buzzer-beater against the Indiana Fever that's been making the rounds all week.

Rice's consistency at 19 points in consecutive outings, combined with her playmaking and athleticism, is exactly the kind of evidence that turns prospect chatter into genuine franchise-cornerstone conversation.

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The Rest of the Bruins

While Rice grabbed the headlines, several other UCLA alumni had notable weeks across the league.

Jordin Canada (Atlanta Dream) was quietly one of the best players in the league this week. Against the Las Vegas Aces on Wednesday, Canada exploded for 17 points, 5 assists, 6 rebounds, and 3 steals in a convincing 97-82 Dream win, finishing with a +19 plus-minus. Her floor general instincts — and that plus-minus — made her the engine of Atlanta's most complete performance of the week.

Kennedy Burke (Connecticut Sun) continued to produce in a tough week for the Sun. She dropped 17 points on Tuesday in Connecticut's 85-77 win over the LA Sparks, then added 11 points and 2 steals on Friday in a 101-78 blowout loss to the Aces. The Sun (9-25) are playing out the string, but Burke has given the fanbase something to watch.

Michaela Onyenwere (Washington Mystics) put together back-to-back 14-point performances — against the Tempo on Tuesday and the Minnesota Lynx on Friday — flashing the scoring punch that made her a first-round pick. Washington fell in both contests, but Onyenwere was a bright spot both nights.

Charlisse Leger-Walker (Connecticut Sun) had a mixed bag: a solid seven-point, eight-rebound, six-assist outing against the Sparks on Tuesday, followed by a rough Friday against Las Vegas where the Sun were routed by 23 and she finished at -26.

Lauren Betts (Washington Mystics) chipped in seven points and two blocks against Toronto on Tuesday in limited minutes, still working her way into a larger role. Teammate Angela Dugalic logged minutes in both Mystics games without registering notable stats.

Rebekah Gardner (New York Liberty) contributed modestly in a 109-102 Liberty win over Indiana on Saturday, while Gabriela Jaquez (Chicago Sky) saw limited scoring chances across her two appearances this week.

The week's throughline: Rice is the story, but this is a deep UCLA cohort quietly making its mark across the league.

The WNBA stretch run has two Bruins making noise — and if you haven't been tracking Jordin Canada and Kiki Rice, now's the time to start.

Canada Turns In a Statement Night

Atlanta Dream guard Jordin Canada delivered the week's marquee UCLA performance on Aug. 11, scorching the Golden State Valkyries' Tempo with 20 points, 9 assists, and 6 rebounds in a 107-95 Dream win. The near-triple-double effort was the kind of floor-general showcase that has defined Canada's career, and the +8 plus-minus understates how thoroughly Atlanta controlled the game. She followed it up with 9 points and 4 assists two days later as the Dream rolled the Connecticut Sun 104-69 — a blowout so complete it's the sort of result that turns heads in playoff seeding races.

Rice Answers Back Across the Court

The Canada-vs.-Rice matchup on Aug. 11 was must-see for UCLA alumni: the two Bruins squared off as opponents, with Rice's Tempo hosting Canada's Dream. Rice didn't back down, posting 18 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, a steal, and a block in defeat. Then, on Aug. 13 against the Dallas Wings, Rice kept the momentum alive with 13 points and 5 assists in a narrow 94-88 loss. Back-to-back outings of 18 and 13 points, both with playmaking volume, signal a player locked in at the right time — even if the Tempo's win column hasn't caught up.

The Rest of the Bruin Roster

The week's other notable UCLA contributor was Charlisse Leger-Walker of the Sun, who turned in 14 points, 4 assists, and 2 blocks in Saturday's 82-75 loss to the Liberty — her best outing of the week after a rough 8-point night in that lopsided Dream blowout. Rebekah Gardner bookended the week nicely for New York: she posted 11 points and 7 rebounds in a Liberty rout of the Aces on Aug. 9, adding steady if unspectacular minutes through the stretch.

Michaela Onyenwere contributed 13 points and a +28 plus-minus in Washington's 95-75 win over Phoenix on Aug. 9, though her numbers dipped across the following two games. Lauren Betts has been a consistent, if quiet, presence for the Mystics — logging 8 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 blocks in Saturday's 80-70 win over the Sparks — as Washington rides a seven-game winning streak into the final weeks of the regular season.

Kennedy Burke (Sun) chipped in 7 points in each of her two tracked appearances, while Gabriela Jaquez has seen limited impact off the bench for Chicago.

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The big picture for UCLA fans: Canada and Rice are the clear headliners, and the fact that they already squared off this week means another potential matchup down the stretch isn't out of the question. Two Bruins, two teams hunting wins — mark the schedule accordingly.

Kennedy Burke was the story of the week for UCLA alumni in the WNBA — and she saved her best for when it mattered most.

The Connecticut Sun forward delivered 15 points off the bench Friday night as the Sun rallied from 16 points down to stun the Phoenix Mercury 75-72, sealed by Brittney Griner's buzzer-beating block on Kelsey Plum's desperate 3-point attempt. Burke finished with two rebounds, a steal, and a block, posting a +5 plus/minus in a performance that embodied the Sun's never-quit effort.

It wasn't a one-game flash, either. Burke had scored 14 points — with seven boards, two steals, and three blocks — in Sunday's loss to the Wings, meaning she racked up back-to-back double-digit scoring games to close the week. The two-game stretch positions her as one of the more quietly productive bench contributors in the league right now.

Her Sun teammate Charlisse Leger-Walker also featured in Friday's win, contributing 6 points and 5 assists with a +5 rating, though she was held scoreless with only two assists in Sunday's loss. Fellow Bruin and Sun teammate Gianna Kneepkens saw limited statistical impact across the week.

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Canada Catches Fire, Betts Hauls Glass for Washington

Jordin Canada had the week's most explosive individual game among UCLA alums not named Burke. The Dream guard erupted for 17 points and 4 assists in a 96-82 blowout win over the Mercury on Wednesday — her best offensive outing of the stretch. She followed it with 9 points and 7 assists in Friday's loss to the Mystics, though her -10 plus/minus in that game reflected Atlanta's rough night overall. Canada averaged 13 points and 6 assists across her two appearances this week, reaffirming her value as a playmaker.

Lauren Betts quietly put together a steady week for Washington. The Mystics center grabbed 11 rebounds and added 5 points with 3 blocks in Friday's win over the Dream, then totaled 7 boards and 6 points in Wednesday's narrow win over the Wings. She's becoming a reliable double-double threat in the making.

Michaela Onyenwere had her best outing Wednesday — 10 points, a steal, and a remarkable +21 plus/minus — before going quiet Friday.

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Elsewhere Around the League

Kiki Rice had a quietly mixed week for the Tempo. She torched for 16 points Monday in a loss to the Valkyries, then managed just 5 in a Friday loss to the Fire. The sophomore is showing flashes but still ironing out consistency.

Gabriela Jaquez logged modest minutes across three games for the Sky, highlighted by a 9-point effort Tuesday against the Mercury and a two-steal, one-block night Saturday against the Fever.

Rebekah Gardner contributed 6 points and a steal across two Liberty appearances, while Charisma Osborne did not appear in the game stats this week for Phoenix.

The headline, though, belongs to Burke — a Bruin turning a comeback into a signature moment.