MADISON – The Wisconsin women’s basketball program is awaiting word on an NCAA appeal that if successful would give Gift Uchenna another season of eligibility.
Uchenna, a 6-foot-3 forward from Nigeria, came to UW before last season after one year at Southern Illinois. Prior to that she played two years at Shih Hsin University in Taipei, Taiwan.
The Badgers saved a spot on their 2026-27 roster in case the appeal is successful.
But coach Robin Pingeton and her staff have also moved on as if Uchenna won’t be with the team. One of their top offseason pickups from the transfer portal was 6-3 forward Kadidia Toure, who was the Northeast Conference player of the year at Long Island last season. The Badgers also return promising sophomore center Dorja Zaja.
Unchenna was the Badgers’ third-leading scorer with 9.1 points per game and leading rebounder with 6.9 per game.
“With the landscape of college athletics, you never know for sure,” Pingeton said. “I feel like we put together a pretty good waiver for her, so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.”
This story was updated to make a correction.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin women request another year of eligibility for top rebounder
Reporting by Mark Stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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By Mark Stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
