Rebecca Rose Lobo-Rushin (born October 6, 1973) is an American television basketball analyst and former professional women's basketball player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 to 2003. Lobo, at 6'4", played the center position for much of her career. She played college basketball at the University of Connecticut, where she was a member of the team that won the 1995 national championship, going 35–0 on the season in the process. She was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. In April 2017, she was one of the members of the 2017 class of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, alongside Tracy McGrady and Muffet McGraw.

Early life

Lobo was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the youngest daughter of RuthAnn (née Hardy) and Dennis Joseph Lobo. Lobo was raised a Catholic.

USA Basketball

Lobo was named to the USA U18 team (then called the Junior World Championship Qualifying Team) in 1992. The team competed in Guanajuato, Mexico in August 1992. The team won their first four games, then lost 80–70 to Brazil, finishing with the silver medal for the event, but qualifying for the 1993 world games. Lobo averaged 6.8 points per game during the event. In her first season, the Liberty fell to the Houston Comets in the WNBA Finals.

Lobo remained a centerpiece of the Liberty in the 1998 season, averaging 11.7 points and 6.9 rebounds as the Liberty finished 18 - 12. Although they had a great record, the Liberty would not make the playoffs in 1998 due to being 5th in the league standings and only the top 4 teams made the playoffs. The Charlotte Sting also had a 18 - 12 record, but made it in the playoffs over the Liberty due to having a better Conference record (11 - 5 to New York's 8 - 8).

Lobo suffered a setback in 1999, tearing her left anterior cruciate ligament and her meniscus in the first game of the season. In 1999, she was selected to the inaugural WNBA All Star team but could not play because of the injury.

Lobo returned during the 2001 season but played sparingly, only 85 minutes in total.

In January 2002, during the WNBA offseason, Lobo joined the Springfield Spirit in the National Women's Basketball League.

On April 3, 2002, the Liberty traded her to the Houston Comets in exchange for Houston's second-round selection (26th overall) in the 2002 WNBA draft (the Liberty would use the pick to draft Linda Fröhlich).

During the WNBA offseason, Lobo returned again to the Spirit. In her first game of the season in February 2003, she had 25 points and 14 rebounds.

On February 14, 2003, Lobo was traded to the Connecticut Sun for a 2003 second-round pick (which the Comets used to select Lori Nero). Lobo played in 29 games for the Sun, averaging 2.4 points and 2.1 rebounds. Her final WNBA game ever was played in Game 2 of the 2003 Eastern Conference Finals against the Detroit Shock on September 7, 2003. Lobo recorded 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks but the Sun lost the game 73 - 79 and would be eliminated from the playoffs. Lobo would announce her retirement on September 23, 2003.

Lobo also played two seasons in the National Women's Basketball League with the Springfield Spirit from 2002 through 2003.

Awards and honors

thumb|150px|The retired #50 worn by Rebecca Lobo at UConn in 2022

1994

  • Kodak First team All-America

1997

  • All WNBA Second team

2017

  • Basketball Hall of Fame

2019

  • UConn jersey No. 50 retired

Women's Basketball Hall of Fame

Lobo was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2010. Lobo has since apologized to the city of Albany.

Breast cancer advocate and health spokesperson

In 1996, Lobo and her late mother, Ruth Ann Lobo, collaborated on a book entitled The Home Team,

Ball & Chain Podcast

Lobo and Rushin host the weekly Ball & Chain Podcast, where they discuss current events, sports and family life. They released its first episode on October 23, 2017.

See also

  • List of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball players with 1000 points
  • List of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball players with 1000 rebounds

Notes

References

  • Career information and statistics from Basketball-Reference.com
  • Rebecca Lobo's blog