Wolves add South American star!

Oaklands are pleased to announce Maria Lopes Albiero as the 7th signing for the 2024/25 season.

The 5’8 guard will join the Hertfordshire based franchise after a successful summer of national team representation. A stand out for the Brazil national team, Albiero played in the World Cup pre-qualifying tournament in Rwanda earlier this summer where she averaged 8.7 points and 2.7 assists in tournament play. Not done there, Brazil have been in the South American Championship in Chile and have made it all the way to the final on Sept 8th vs rival nation Argentina!

A graduate of BYU in 2022, Albiero ended an outstanding college career as the all time appearance maker for the cougars with 146 games played. Currently ranked 7th in assist to turnover ratio with 1.79/1 and 18th in program history with 346 career assists.

Following her time at BYU, Albiero has been playing in the Brazilian LBF. Last season she played with Ituano Basquete,who finished runners up in the championship and averaged 8.5 points, 2.7 assists in 27 minutes of action.

Coach Ryan explained what Albiero will bring to the team, saying “Maria has great experience that will really help our team progress in the SLB. A career full of consistent numbers, she will come in and be a leader in our game model. With the ability to run the team but also play off the ball as a scorer, we see Maria as a piece that can connect a lot of the many exciting dots we have in this roster. She is a winner, a leader and comes with a South American playing style that I think will make her a fans favourite.”

You can watch the South American final at 1am tonight at this link https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCXERy73Oiz9CBGZof5mbByOx0lNE9g5C