Aaliyah Edwards

Aaliyah Edwards (born July 9, 2002) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball at UConn. Edwards played high school basketball at Crestwood Preparatory College, in Toronto, Ontario, where she led her school to three championships and played for Canadian national U16, U17 and senior FIBA Cup teams. Recruited by UConn's Geno Auriemma and the Huskies, Edwards excelled in her junior and senior seasons, both years appearing on NCAA women's All-America teams.

College career
Edwards graduated after playing with the UConn Huskies women's basketball team for four seasons. As a junior, she averaged double-double of 18.3 points and 11 rebounds per game, an improvement from her sophomore season, when she averaged 7.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. The sturdy junior forward became the first UConn player with 20 points and 20 rebounds since Maya Moore in 2010. Edwards was selected first-team All-Big East and second-team All-America as a senior, a season in which UConn narrowly lost against Iowa in the Final Four after playing to a record-breaking 14.4 million ESPN basketball viewers.

National team career
Edwards has won silver at the 2017 FIBA Under-16 Women's Americas Championship as part of the junior team, and then silver with the senior team at the 2019 FIBA Women's AmeriCup.

In July 2021, Edwards was named to Canada's 2020 Olympic team.

Personal life
Aaliyah Edwards was born in Kingston, Ontario, to parents Jacqueline and Stanford Edwards. She wears purple and yellow braids to pay homage to the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant.

College

 * style="text-align:left;"| 2020–21
 * style="text-align:left;"| UConn
 * 29 || 6 || 21.8 || 68.9 || 0.0 || 63.6 || 5.7 || 0.9 || 1.0 || 1.0 || 2.0 || 10.7
 * 29 || 6 || 21.8 || 68.9 || 0.0 || 63.6 || 5.7 || 0.9 || 1.0 || 1.0 || 2.0 || 10.7


 * style="text-align:left;"| 2021–22
 * style="text-align:left;"| UConn
 * 36 || 26 || 24.9 || 52.1 || 40.0 || 74.0 || 5.1 || 1.4 || 1.1 || 0.5 || 2.1 || 7.9
 * 36 || 26 || 24.9 || 52.1 || 40.0 || 74.0 || 5.1 || 1.4 || 1.1 || 0.5 || 2.1 || 7.9


 * style="text-align:left;"| 2022–23
 * style="text-align:left;"| UConn
 * 37 || 37 || 32.7 || 58.9 || 100.0 || 77.3 || 9.0 || 2.4 || 1.2 || 1.1 || 3.0 || 16.6
 * 37 || 37 || 32.7 || 58.9 || 100.0 || 77.3 || 9.0 || 2.4 || 1.2 || 1.1 || 3.0 || 16.6


 * style="text-align:left;"| 2023–24
 * style="text-align:left;"| UConn
 * 37 || 37 || 30.3 || 59.3 || 0.0 || 74.7 || 9.2 || 2.1 || 1.7 || 1.0 || 2.5 || 17.6
 * colspan=2; style="text-align:center;"| Career
 * 139 || 106 || 27.8 || 59.3 || 33.3 || 73.6 || 7.3 || 1.8 || 1.3 || 0.9 || 2.4 || 13.4
 * }
 * 139 || 106 || 27.8 || 59.3 || 33.3 || 73.6 || 7.3 || 1.8 || 1.3 || 0.9 || 2.4 || 13.4
 * }

Awards and honors

 * Big East All-Tournament team (2023)
 * AP Third Team All-American (2023)