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Paige Bueckers will officially play her WNBA game on Friday night when the Dallas Wings meet the Las Vegas Aces at Notre Dame’s Purcell Pavilion.
The preseason matchup will serve as a special return for Wings star Arike Ogunbowale and Aces standouts Jackie Young and Jewell Loyd, three of the most decorated players in Notre Dame history. For Bueckers, it’s an experience she would love to mirror someday at her own college home.
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“I would love to play a game at Gampel and go back to UConn,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “I think it’s an amazing idea. Just seeing the support of women’s basketball grow — at the college level and at the WNBA level — it’ll be a great turnout wherever we go.”
Bueckers, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, enters the league after leading UConn to its 12th NCAA championship just eight days ago. She finished her career in Storrs as one of the program’s most efficient and prolific players, averaging 19.8 points per game — the highest in school history — while joining the exclusive 50/40/85 shooting club. Bueckers also leaves UConn as a three-time AP First Team All-American, a three-time Big East Player of the Year, and the 2025 Wade Trophy winner.
While Bueckers’ professional career is just beginning, the WNBA’s growing tradition of staging preseason games at notable college venues offers the possibility that she, too, could one day step back onto the Gampel Pavilion court as a pro. This week’s schedule features Angel Reese returning to LSU and Caitlin Clark leading the Indiana Fever into Carver-Hawkeye Arena, continuing the league’s push to bridge college and professional fan bases.
For now, Bueckers will open her Wings career alongside Ogunbowale, who returns to Notre Dame as the program’s all-time leading scorer. Ogunbowale guided the Irish to four consecutive Elite Eight appearances, three ACC titles, two Final Fours, and a 2018 national championship, delivering two of the most iconic game-winning shots in NCAA tournament history.
Apr 6, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; UConn Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) celebrates in the second half during the national championship of the women’s 2025 NCAA tournament against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Amalie Arena.Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Bueckers, who is experiencing her first days of professional training camp, said Friday’s game offers a valuable chance for team bonding as well.
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“It just provides another opportunity to be connected,” Bueckers told DallasHoopsJournal.com. “Road trips in themselves are very fun — bonding on the plane, going out to eat, just being together in that road environment. So yeah, it provides another opportunity.”
Bueckers will first take her place on a national stage, beginning Friday night, when the Wings and Aces tip off at Purcell Pavilion as part of the WNBA’s first-ever nationally broadcast preseason schedule.
Related: Caitlin Clark Issues Demand to Dallas Wings Before Paige Bueckers’ WNBA Arrival
