Ezinne Kalu
Ezinne Kalu (born 26 June 1992) is an American-born Nigerian basketball player for Landerneau BB and the Nigerian national team.[1]
| No. 23 – Landerneau BB | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Point guard | ||||||||||||||||
| League | LFB | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | 26 June 1992 Newark, United States | ||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | American/Nigerian | ||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 80 kg (176 lb) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school | Science Park High School (Essex County, New Jersey) | ||||||||||||||||
| College | Savannah State (2015) | ||||||||||||||||
| WNBA draft | 2015 / Undrafted | ||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||
Medals
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Early life
She was born in Newark, New Jersey to Gwendolyn Covington and Joseph Kalu. Her mother was born and raised in Greenville, SC. Her father in Nigeria.
Ezinne Attended Science Park High School in Newark, New Jersey. She was the first woman in school’s history to score over 2,000 points. Her jersey was retired December 2017. Graduated in 2010. Ezinne received a full scholarship to HBCU Savannah State University in Savannah, GA. There the team won their first MEAC Championship in 2015. She was the first to score over 2,000 career points also. She graduated May 2015 with a Bachelors Degree in African Studies.[2]
Professional career
In 2019, she joined the french side Landerneau BB she averaged 15.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists.[3][4]
- 2020 Guard of the Year France 1st Division
- 2020 1st Team All-Imports France League
- 2020 1st Team All-French Player
- 2020 Qualified for the Tokyo Olympics (July 2021)
- 2020 All-Star top 5 of Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Serbia
- 2020 Voted Top 12 Best Player of Africa
- 2019 1st Woman to be Sponsored by AFA Sports
- 2019 Afro-Basket Tournament Champion (5-0 record)
- 2019 MVP of Afro-Basket Tournament
- 2019 Top 5 player of Afro-Basket Tournament
- 2018 Co-Captain of Nigerian Team
International career
Kalu played for the Nigerian's national team at the 2016 FIBA women's Olympic qualifying tournament. [5] She participated at the 2017 Women's Afrobasket, where she averaged 12 pts, 3 assists per game. The team won the tournament.[6][7] Kalu participated in the 2018 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Spain for the Nigerian national basketball team. She averaged 10.6 points, 3 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game during the tournament.[8]
Kalu participated in the 2019 Women's Afrobasket where she was named Most Valuable player of the tournament. She average 14 points and 3 assists during the tournament.[9]
- 2017 Defensive Player of the Year Budapest 1st Division
- 2017 Afro-Basket Tournament Champion (8-0 record)
- 2016-17 Captain of Nigerian National Team
- 2016 Guard of the Year Portugal 1st Division
References
- FIBA profile
- http://www.fiba.basketball/womensbasketballworldcup/2018/news/womens-world-cup-2018-a-chance-to-make-history-for-nigeria-says-point-guard-kalu
- "EZINNE KALU". proballers.com. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
- "LANDERNEAU ROSTER". proballers.com. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
- http://www.fiba.basketball/news/top-10-players-from-fiba-women-s-afrobasket-2017
- http://www.fiba.basketball/womensbasketballworldcup/2018/news/womens-world-cup-2018-a-chance-to-make-history-for-nigeria-says-point-guard-kalu
- 2017 Women's Afrobasket profile
- http://www.fiba.basketball/womensbasketballworldcup/2018/player/Ezinne-Josephine-Kalu
- http://www.fiba.basketball/womensafrobasket/2019/news/kalu-named-mvp-of-the-2019-fiba-womens-afrobasket
External links
- Ezinne Kalu at FIBA
