LEXINGTON, Ky — Former University of Kentucky women’s basketball guard Jennifer O’Neill shined last week playing for Puerto Rico in the 2019 Pan-American Games in Lima, Peru, leading Puerto Rico to a bronze medal finish.
O’Neill started her strong play in the event with 14 points, six assists, five rebounds and three steals against Paraguay, before a game-high 23 points with three rebounds against Brazil, which defeated the United States for the gold medal. In Puerto Rico’s final preliminary round game, O’Neill scored nine points with four rebounds, four assists and three steals against Canada.
Puerto Rico faced off against the United States in the semifinals, falling 62-59. O’Neill was amazing in the game scoring a game-high 19 points with three rebounds and three assists. O’Neill continued her strong play in the bronze-medal match against Colombia with eight points, three assists and four rebounds.
A 5-foot-6 guard from the Bronx, O’Neill ended her playing career at Kentucky as one of the most prolific scorers in program history. On top of ranking 14th on UK's all-time scoring list with 1,356 points, she hit 197 3-pointers during her career, which ranks third all-time. She scored in double figures 74 times in her career, including 11 games of 20 more points. One of the highlights of her career was a school-record 43-point output in Kentucky's four overtime win over ninth-ranked Baylor in 2013.
In 2014-15, O'Neill came off the bench to average 14.4 points per game, second on the team and seventh in the league. She was named to the All-SEC Second Team and voted the SEC Sixth Woman of the Year for the second straight season. O'Neill graduated from Kentucky in May 2015 with a degree in kinesiology.
O’Neill appeared in 13 games for the Minnesota Lynx in 2015, and marked career highs of 12 points, five rebounds and three assists. O’Neill represented Puerto Rico at the 2012 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Ankara, Turkey, and averaged 7.0 points and 2.6 rebounds per game at the 2012 Centrobasket Championship in Morovis, Puerto Rico. O’Neill is currently playing professionally overseas.
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