Bella Murekatete signs WNBA Contract with Phoenix Mercury

Congrats, Bella!

Good afternoon, Coug fans!

Yesterday, our very own Washington State women’s basketball player, and personal favorite of mine, Bella Murekatete signed a contract with the Phoenix Mercury! Or, the MUREKury… I’ll workshop that.

The nature of these contracts are probably familiar, but we’ll talk it through anyway. Essentially she’s signed through to practice with the team, and will look to earn an extended contract to play for real. If you check the roster, there she is!

Training camp begins on April 28th, preseason games begin May 3rd, and May 13th is the final roster cutdown date, as the regular season kicks off on May 14th.

Murekatete was an integral part of the program- averaging 11.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks in all 36 games, along with accumulating a program record of 990 rebounds, played in 153 games, and started in 145.

I’m going to use this time now to plug WNBA expansion teams! The talent pool for the W has always been there, and as attention has increased, it’s time to give more talented players opportunities! I’m sure I’m preaching to the choir. But if the Mercury doesn’t work out, perhaps there’s an expansion team coming to the Pacific Northwest located down I5 from Seattle (let me dream).

Congrats Bella! We’re always rooting for you. Go Cougs!