Yuko Oga

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Yuko Oga (大神雄子, Ōga Yūko^?, born October 17, 1982 in Yamagata city, Japan) is a Japanese professional basketball player. She currently plays the point guard position for the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA.^[1] Her nickname is Shin.

1 Career
2 Vital statistics
3 External links
4 References

[edit] Career

She started playing basketball influenced by her father who was a basketball coach. She was educated at and played for Nagoya Collage High School (current Ōka Gakuen High School). While at the high school, she helped the school club win national titles 7 times. After the graduation in 2001, she joined Japan Energy basketball club. In the same year, she received the 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 who played for an Olympic game.

In 2007, she became the first Japanese female player who signed 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 who plays in the WNBA after Mikiko Hagiwara who also played for the Mercury from 1997 to 1998. She made a WNBA debut on May 17, 2008 in the season opener against the Los Angeles Sparks and recorded 4 points and 1 assist. The team lost 94-99.