Chicago’s Quigley to Defend Three-Point Contest Title; Griner Highlights Skills Challenge Participants


NEW YORK, July 24, 2019 – Chicago Sky guard Allie Quigley will defend her title at the WNBA Three-Point Contest presented by MTN DEW and Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner leads the list of participants in the Skills Challenge at AT&T WNBA All-Star Friday Night 2019, which will take place on July 26 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

ESPN will provide live coverage of both events beginning at 7 p.m. ET.  While the two most recent WNBA All-Star Games have included a Three-Point Contest at halftime, this marks the first time since 2006 that the long-distance shooting competition and the Skills Challenge will be paired together at WNBA All-Star.

AT&T WNBA All-Star Friday Night 2019 precedes AT&T WNBA All-Star Game 2019, which will be played on Saturday, July 27 at 3:30 p.m. ET at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.  The 16th WNBA All-Star Game will be televised live by ABC.

Quigley is the two-time reigning Three-Point Contest champion, having won the event at the 2018 All-Star Game in Minneapolis and the 2017 All-Star Game in Seattle.  She will be joined in this year’s field by Las Vegas Aces guard Kayla McBride, Los Angeles Sparks guard Chelsea Gray, New York Liberty guard Kia Nurse, Connecticut Sun guard/forward Shekinna Stricklen and Indiana Fever guard Erica Wheeler.

In the Skills Challenge, the seven players who will be competing against Griner include Chicago guards Diamond DeShields and Courtney Vandersloot, Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier and guard Odyssey Sims, Connecticut forward/center Jonquel Jones, Seattle Storm guard/forward Sami Whitcomb, and Atlanta Dream center/forward Elizabeth Williams.

The Three-Point Contest presented by MTN DEW is a two-round, timed competition.  Five shooting locations are positioned around the three-point arc.  Four racks contain four WNBA balls (each worth one point) and one “money” ball (worth two points).  The fifth station is a special “all money ball” rack, which each participant can place at any of the five locations.  Every ball on this rack is worth two points.  Players have one minute to shoot as many of the 25 balls as they can.  The two competitors with the highest scores in the first round advance to the championship round.  The player with the highest score in the championship round is the winner.

The Skills Challenge is a head-to-head, bracket-style tournament.  The three-round event features two players competing simultaneously on identical obstacle courses that test ball handling, passing, agility and three-point shooting skills.  The fastest finisher in each matchup advances to the next round.  The four first-round winners reach the second round, and the two second-round winners advance to compete for the title in the championship round.  First-round matchups will be determined at a later date.

In addition to the WNBA Three-Point Contest presented by MTN DEW and Skills Challenge, the event schedule on July 26 will feature a Fan Fest from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. PT and the WNBA All-Star Beach Concert & Party after the two on-court competitions.  Fan Fest, which will be open to the public free of charge, will also take place on July 27 from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. PT.

Tickets to WNBA All-Star Friday Night are free with the purchase of tickets to the AT&T WNBA All-Star Game but may also be purchased separately.  For information about tickets to WNBA All-Star Friday Night, the AT&T WNBA All-Star Game and the Beach Concert & Party, fans can visit http://bit.ly/WNBAallstar.

Below is the roster for the 2019 WNBA Three-Point Contest presented by MTN DEW.

2019 MTN DEW THREE-POINT CONTEST PARTICIPANTS
        *2019 Season*
Player Team Pos. Ht. 3PM 3PA 3P%
Chelsea Gray Los Angeles Sparks G 5-11 23 64 35.9
Kayla McBride Las Vegas Aces G 5-10 36 76 47.4
Kia Nurse New York Liberty G 6-0 39 106 36.8
Allie Quigley Chicago Sky G 5-10 51 107 47.7
Shekinna Stricklen Connecticut Sun G-F 6-2 44 110 40.0
Erica Wheeler Indiana Fever G 5-7 35 82 42.7
Stats through July 23

Below is the roster for the 2019 WNBA Skills Challenge.

2019 SKILLS CHALLENGE PARTICIPANTS
Player Team Pos. Ht.
Napheesa Collier Minnesota Lynx F 6-1
Diamond DeShields Chicago Sky G 6-1
Brittney Griner Phoenix Mercury C 6-9
Jonquel Jones Connecticut Sun F-C 6-6
Odyssey Sims Minnesota Lynx G 5-8
Courtney Vandersloot Chicago Sky G 5-8
Sami Whitcomb Seattle Storm G-F 5-10
Elizabeth Williams Atlanta Dream C-F 6-3