Jason Cruz
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Welcome to another edition of The Layup Drill. This time around, we look at a college women’s basketball standout, the return of Chloe Kim, and a Super Bowl champion.
Chen paces Princeton basketball
It is March Madness and Princeton women’s basketball player Kaitlyn Chen is having another outstanding year. While Iowa’s Caitlyn Clark has dominated headlines for women’s college basketball, Chen has had an outstanding year. The 2023 Ivy League Player of the Year will be moving on for one more year of college basketball.
Princeton guard Kaitlyn Chen (20) (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Chen was a standout in high school in San Marino, California. She held the high school record for career points, rebounds, and assists. She was named the Los Angeles Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year. She also was an AP Scholar. As a true student athlete, the Ivy League would be an ideal place.
Chen is now a senior that chose to head to New Jersey to play for the head coach that recruited her. However, her coach, Courtney Banghart, left to coach at the University of North Carolina. Instead of following her coach, she decided to stay.
Staying at Princeton has proven to pay off. This year, the team is 22-4 and in first place in the Ivy League. The Tigers should make it into the women’s NCAA Tournament. She has 1,000 points overall in her college playing career at Princeton and is an outstanding student. She is working on her senior thesis on sports and meritocracy.
Chen can still participate as a graduate student to play college basketball for one more year, but not in the Ivy League as rules prevent her from playing past her 4 years. So, she can transfer to another school and is fielding multiple offers including California schools and the University of Connecticut, a perennial women’s college powerhouse.
Chloe Kim during Beijing Olympics. Picture via Instagram @ChloeKim
Kim lands major first in X Games
Chloe Kim returned to snowboarding competition in the X Games and returned to the top of the podium with her record-tying 7th gold medal. Kim tied Kelly Clark for the most in the women’s Superpipe competition at the X-Games.
It was Kim’s first major competition since the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
The 23-year-old Kim is the first woman to land a 1260 in organized competition. The 1260 is 3 and ½ rotations in the air. It was done on a victory lap, after she mathematically secured the victory, but it was still in competition. She originally attempted the move at the Beijing Olympics but did not land it.
Having competed at the X Games since age 14, Kim says she is trying to enjoy the competition more as she believes her competitive career is ending soon. Kim will be 25 years old when the 2026 Olympics in Milan-Cortina take place. Unless she decides earlier, it will likely be her last time competing.
Remigio wins Super Bowl ring with Chiefs
Wide receiver Nikko Remigio won a Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs last month. The 24-year-old was born in Seattle, but was raised and went to school in southern California. He attended the University of California, Berkeley to play his final year of college football. He was not drafted but was signed as a free agent by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Nikko Remigio via Instagram @nikkoremigio
He then transferred to Fresno State. Remigio’s father is second generation Filipino, and his mother is part white and part African American.
Remigio suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in practice and was sidelined the whole season but was still with the team as it defeated the San Francisco 49ers.
He became the first Asian American to win a Super Bowl since Taylor Rapp with the Los Angeles Rams in 2022.
Jason can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.