EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Former UTEP and Irvin High School basketball star Kayla Thornton became a WNBA champion on Sunday night.
Thornton and the New York Liberty beat the Minnesota Lynx 67-62 in overtime in a winner-take-all Game 5 of the 2024 WNBA Finals at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
Thornton recorded two points, two rebounds, one steal, and one block in 21 minutes played in the Liberty’s Game 5 win on Sunday.
With the win, the Liberty claimed its first WNBA championship in franchise history.
This is the first WNBA championship of Thornton’s career, and she won it on her birthday.
Thornton — who went undrafted — has been playing in the WNBA the last eight seasons. Thornton spent 2017-2022 with the Dallas Wings and then spent the last two seasons with the New York Liberty.
During her two seasons with the Liberty, Thornton made two WNBA Finals appearances. In 2023, the Liberty were beat by the Las Vegas Aces. This year, Thornton and the Liberty got redemption after they beat the Minnesota Lynx in a WNBA Finals series that went five games.
During the Liberty’s championship season, Thornton played in 40 games, averaged 20.2 minutes per game, 5.5 points per game, and 2.6 rebounds per game.
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