Name Yuko Oga Role Basketball Player | Height 1.70 m Weight 63 kg | |
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OQTW - Yuko Oga: Our strong motivation will help us tomorrow
Yuko Oga (大神 雄子, Ōga Yūko, born October 17, 1982 in Yamagata city) is a Japanese professional basketball player. She is a point guard currently playing for JX Sunflowers of the Women's Japan Basketball League. She formerly played for Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA. Her nickname is Shin.
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Career
She started playing basketball influenced by her father who was a basketball coach. She was educated at and played for Nagoya College High School (currently Ōka Gakuen High School). While there, she helped the school win 7 national titles. After graduation in 2001, she joined Japan Energy basketball club. In the same year, she received her first call-up for the national team.
In 2004, she represented Japan at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens and became the youngest Japanese female basketball player at the Olympics ever.
In 2007, she became the first Japanese female player to sign a professional contact in the domestic leagues. In 2008, she signed a training camp contract with Phoenix Mercury. The club announced on May 16, 2008 that she made the opening day roster. She is the second Japanese player to play in the WNBA after Mikiko Hagiwara who also played for the Mercury from 1997–98. She recorded 4 points and 1 assist in her WNBA debut on May 17, 2008 in the season opener, a 94-99 loss against the Los Angeles Sparks.