Monika Czinano drafted in the third round by the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks

IOWA CITY — When she came to the University of Iowa, Monika Czinano was a raw post who invited contact and needed her shot overhauled.

She blossomed into one of the most efficient shooters in NCAA history. And Monday night, she became a WNBA Draft pick.

The Los Angeles Sparks selected Czinano in the third round, as the 26th overall pick.

Czinano becomes the 14th Hawkeye to go in the draft, the first since Kathleen Doyle went 14th in 2020.

“When we recruited her, she was somebody that embraced physical contact, somebody that ran the floor fairly well,” Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said as Senior Day approached in February. “We thought, ‘We can work with that.’”

Czinano completed her five-year career with 2,413 points (third all-time at Iowa) and 787 rebounds (13th).

Six-foot-3 and a native of Watertown, Minn., Czinano averaged 17.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per contest in the season just completed as the Hawkeyes (31-7) advanced to the NCAA championship game. They were Big Ten tournament champions for the second straight year.

“If I’ve given back a quarter of what this place has given me, I’ve done my job,” Czinano said after the Hawkeyes’ second-round win over Georgia.

Megan Gustafson, a 2019 Iowa grad and a second-round WNBA draft pick, called Czinano “the engine to this team,” who “deserves so much more credit than she gets.”

Czinano was the NCAA Division-I leader in field-goal percentage in 2021 (.668) and 2022 (.679) She was fourth this season (.674) and finished her career at 67.1 percent (1,031 of 1,537).

She played 162 games at Iowa, starting 127.

“Monika put in the work, and (associate head coach) Jan (Jensen) put the belief in her,” Bluder said.

Iowa State’s Stephanie Soares was picked fourth by the Washington Mystics, and was traded immediately to the Dallas Wings. Dallas snagged ISU’s Ashley Joens — an Iowa City native — at No. 19.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com