CHICAGO (July 9, 2022) --- On Saturday afternoon, in front of a home crowd, Joliet, Illinois native Allie Quigley won her fourth consecutive WNBA 3-point contest.
Quigley opted to shoot last in a shacked crowd that included 2019 WNBA champion Ariel Atkins and two-time Rookie of the Month Rhyne Howard. The reigning champ and DePaul alum tallied 26 points in the opening round to advance to the final against Atkins and Howard. In the final, Quigley scored 30 total points to win what she says will be her last 3-Point Contest.
We've heard this before from Quigley. After her third consecutive win in the 2019 WNBA All-Star Weekend in Las Vegas, Quigley said she was done.
"I promise this is the last time I’m doing this,” Quigley said in 2021. “I’m so thankful for Chicago, my home, and just so happy to be there.”
The crowd at Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort booed.
"I wasn't expecting that. I thought everyone was in agreement that okay, you've done this enough, someone else's turn," Quigley said during a post-event press conference. However, she added it was probably the first time in her 14 WNBA seasons she heard a crowd boo her. I, for one, think they were booing the mere idea of a 3-point contest without Allie Quigley.
Whether or not the booing motivated Quigley or not, she ultimately made her decision about three weeks ago. "I was like, Okay if they ask, I'll do it. I'm tired of everyone telling me like you got to do it," she told me during her press conference Saturday afternoon.
Sadly, Quigley confirmed twice that this would be her last 3-Point contest. "I'm retired. I retired in my hometown. It's a good storybook ending, I'd say."
With her fourth career win, Quigley became the only player in the WNBA – of the (M)NBA for that matter – to win four 3-Point Contests. Quigley has done the stuff of legends. Not since the Houston Comets won the first four WNBA Championships have we seen this level of domination.
"It's amazing," said New York Liberty Guard Sabrina Ionescu. "Her poise, her ability to make those shots look easy, is quite incredible. I mean, I feel like that contest should be named after her. She's won it so many times," Ionescu added.
Indeed, the Allie Quigley 3-Point Contests has a unique ring to it. Although Quigley will never step to the arc and drain shots during All-Star Weekend again, there is no shortage of lights-out shooters in the league. Ionescu is a candidate, according to Quigley.
"She's a good shooter. A good young talent," Quigley said. "Her competitiveness, her fearlessness to you know, just get buckets and big moments. She wants to take the shot. She wants to make the big pass. And I'm impressed with her rebounding. Not many guards can get that many rebounds per game," Quigley said about Ionescu.
The Rookie of the Year frontrunner might also be a contender for the Allie Quigley 3-Point Contest.
"Her jumper is just real smooth. And I think before this competition, Courtney (Vandersloot) and I were talking and we said, 'Okay, Rhyne Howard is going to be, she's gonna be the main competition probably because she just has such a smooth jumper and I see a big future for her, especially from the outside," Quigley said.
Black Rosie Media is in Chicago at the 2022 WNBA All-Star Weekend! We have a team of three ready to bring you coverage from the home of the Chicago Sky. Here are photos from Michael Hicks for Black Rosie Media.
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