Jana El-Alfy

Jana El-Alfy
No. 24 – UConn Huskies
PositionCenter
Personal information
Born20 September 2005
Cairo
Listed height6 ft 5[1] in (1.96 m)
Career information
CollegeUniversity of Connecticut[2]

Jana El-Alfy (born 20 September 2005)[3] is an Egyptian basketball player who plays for UConn Huskies women's basketball and Egypt Women's National Team. In 2022, She became the first African woman and second-ever woman to be invited to attend the NBA Global Academy in Australia.[4]

Early life

El-Alfy was born in Cairo, Egypt to Dina Gouda and Ehab El-Alfy, the head coach of the Egypt women's national basketball team.[5][6][7]

Career

El-Alfy was introduced to both basketball and volleyball when she was three years old; she began playing for organized teams some years later while following her dad around.[8] In 2022, she was awarded the MVP honor alongside Thierry Darlan by the NBA's Golden State Warriors' coach Steve Kerr at the NBA's Basketball Without Borders Camp's first-ever event held in Cairo.[9][10]

College career

In January 2023, El-Alfy joined the UConn Huskies women's basketball[11][12] but was forced to redshirt her first year because of an injury suffered during international play.[1]

National team career

She started her global basketball career at the age of 15 when she represented Egypt at the U16 African Championships. She went on to represent her country at the 2021 FIBA U16 African Championship, the 2022 FIBA U17 World Cup, and the 2022 FIBA U18 African Women's Championship.[13] In 2021, she led her country to gold at the U17 African Championship. At the 2022 FIBA U18, she led Egypt to a silver medal where she averaged 24.7 points and 11.5 rebounds per game.[4]

In 2023, she represented Egypt at the FIBA U19 Women's Basketball World Cup 2023 that was held in Madrid where she scored 29 in her first game. Her performance contributed to Egypt beating China for the first time at the women's youth level.[14][15] El Alfy suffered a knee injury in the Madrid series.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c Fanta, John (2023-07-25). "UConn's latest injury: Jana El Alfy to miss 2023-24 season with torn Achilles". FOX Sports. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  2. ^ "Jana El Alfy Stats, WNCAAB News, Bio and More". USA TODAY. 2024-04-17. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  3. ^ "Jana ELALFY at the FIBA U16 Women's African Championship 2021". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  4. ^ a b Vanoni, Maggie (2022-12-26). "UConn women's basketball recruit Jana El Alfy will come to CT from Egypt next year. Meet the future Husky". CT Insider. Archived from the original on 2023-03-29. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  5. ^ Smith, Alex (2023-07-25). "UConn's Jana El Alfy to miss 2023-24 season due to ruptured Achilles". SNY. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  6. ^ Weekly, UConn WBB. "Jana El Alfy has "a great future" with UConn, even if she won't play this season". UConn WBB Weekly. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  7. ^ "Jana El Alfy - Women's Basketball". University of Connecticut Athletics. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  8. ^ Amore, Dom (2022-11-15). "Dom Amore: 'Oh, my gosh. It's real;' Jana El Alfy follows her dreams from Egypt to UConn". Hartford Courant. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  9. ^ "Highly sought-after NBA Academy talents star at BWB Africa camp in Cairo". ESPN.com. 2022-09-01. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  10. ^ "Egyptian Elalfy and Darlan of CAF named BWB Africa camp MVPs". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2024-04-23.
  11. ^ Connolly, Daniel (2022-11-09). "UConn women's basketball signs Egyptian forward Jana El Alfy". The UConn Blog. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  12. ^ Gauer, Megan (2023-01-21). "UConn women's basketball 2023 signee Jana El Alfy enrolls early". The UConn Blog. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  13. ^ "Ibrahim and Elalfy charting their own paths with Egypt U18 Women's team". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  14. ^ "Five reasons Egypt star Elalfy can be Africa's number one baller". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  15. ^ Weekly, UConn WBB. "Jana El Alfy remaining positive despite season ending injury". UConn WBB Weekly. Retrieved 2024-04-23.