Villanova star Maddy Siegrist, whose shooting style compares to Larry Bird, has WNBA decision to make

VILLANOVA, Pa. — Maddy Siegrist had her shooting style compared to Larry Bird and she has set or is closing in on so many Villanova records that the Guinness Book should just keep her statistics.

She’s been projected as a WNBA lottery pick.

In Villanova’s NCAA Tournament opener, a 76-59 win over Cleveland State, she scored 35 points on 15-of-28 shooting.

All that, and Siegrist still finds ways to let her teammates shine. Bella Runyan and Kaitlyn Orihel each hit three 3-pointers in their first March Madness win. Christina Dalce grabbed 16 rebounds.

Any advice to the rest of the bracket on how to slow the team President Joe Biden picked to win it all?

“Stay at the hotel,” Cleveland State coach Chris Kielsmeier cracked.

What does the future hold for Maddy Siegrist?Jessica Hill/Associated Press

Siegrist and the Wildcats already gave the Vikings an early checkout of the NCAA Tournament and they’ll try and bounce out Florida Gulf Coast Monday night. With a win against the Eagles (33-3) at the Pavilion, the Wildcats (29-6) would set a team record for wins in a season and reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2003. But is it really a Pavilion farewell for Siegrist?

The four-year star, 2023 first-team AP All-American and two-time Big East Player of the Year has — as do all athletes whose 2020-2021 season was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic — an extra year of eligibility. Throw in some NIL money and maybe it’s worth it for Siegrist to run it back with the Wildcats.

ESPN has Siegrist as the No. 4 pick of the WNBA draft to the Washington Mystics and CBS Sports projected her as a slam dunk first-round pick. The WNBA draft is April 10.

“I wish it was an easy decision either way,” Siegrist said Sunday. “When the time comes to make that, hopefully it’s in a few weeks, a lot more games. I’ll have to sit down with my parents and really think about it. Either way, I’m so grateful for all the opportunities Villanova has given me in the past bunch of years.”

Coach Denise Dillon insisted no decision on Siegrist's basketball future has been made.

“Maddy is staying focused in as taking this team as far as we can go,” she said. “When she steps on the floor, her full attention is to Villanova basketball. I guess that conversation will be had at some point in April.”