Tuesday, Jun 30, 2020
Broncs' all-time leading scorer catches on with Sky
by Rider Sports Information
Stella Johnson '20 has signed with the Chicago Sky, the team announced on June 29. Johnson will get a chance with the Sky after the Phoenix Mercury, who'd drafted Johnson 29th overall in the third round of the 2020 WNBA Draft, waived her to get under the 12-player cap at the June 1 deadline without having the benefit of a training camp due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We are happy to announce we have signed Stella," said Sky General Manager and Head Coach James Wade in the team's official announcement of the agreement. "She is someone who we've followed closely. We feel that she is a young player with a lot of potential. We really liked that she is a physical guard, who can give us some guard depth at the point guard and off-guard positions."
Rider's all-time leading scorer with 2,167 career points, Johnson became the Broncs' first-ever All-American in women's basketball this season, being recognized as an Honorable Mention honoree by three different outlets – the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), the Associated Press (AP) and the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA). Johnson became Rider's first-ever Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association Player of the Year in women's basketball.
Johnson was also picked a Senior CLASS Award Second-Team All-American. She earned MAAC Player of the Year for the second-straight season, becoming the sixth player all-time to achieve the feat in back-to-back years. She was a finalist for both the Nancy Lieberman Award and Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year.
Johnson finished the year as the leading scorer in NCAA Division I at 24.8 points per game, more than a point ahead of the next-closest player. She was also the only active Division I player with 2,000 career points, 700 career rebounds, 400 career assists and 300 career steals.
In her final game of the season, Johnson set a new league record for a single game, scoring 37 points in the Broncs' MAAC Quarterfinal win over Niagara. All nine of her double-doubles came against conference opponents, including her Feb. 29 triple-double against Canisius. Besides scoring, she also led the MAAC in steals per game (2.9) and minutes per game (37.1).