Arike Ogunbowale
Arike Ogunbowale is the college basketball player who earlier this year helped her team make history.
The 21-year-old was catapulted into college basketball stardom and was named Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament after she marked the biggest comeback in women’s national championship game history.
Arike’s three-point buzzer lifted Notre Dame to a 61-58 win over Mississippi State earlier this month, giving the team its first championship title in 17 years. Now the Notre Dame Basketball hero will take on the dance floor as she will appear in the upcoming season of DWTS.
Arike whose name means “something that you see and you cherish” in her father’s native Nigeria –is the daughter of Yolanda and Gregory Ogunbowale. She has two older siblings, including brother Dare –who was a running back at the University of Wisconsin.
Ogunbowale graduated from Divine Savior Holy Angels High School in Milwaukee, WI, where she scored 2,240 points in her career, making her sixth on the Wisconsin all-time scoring list.
Other honors include Naismith Trophy Top-30, NCAA Regional Most Outstanding Performer, NCAA All-Regional Team, WBCA All-Region Team, ACC All-Tournament First-Team.
According to her Notre Dame page, both her parents played sports. Her mom was a softball pitcher at DePaul University; while her dad played soccer and rugby and later served in Nigerian Army.
It appears that Arike has been too busy on the court to have a boyfriend. The Milwaukee, Wis. Guard appears to be currently single. She is active on social media and often posts about basketball related stuff and family but seems too busy for boys these days. Will her new exposure on DWTS help her out get out there?
Check her out on Instagram here.
