Sports
Ruth Riley
born 1979
· basketball player, center
Notre Dame national champion who became the first person to win Most Outstanding Player honors in both the NCAA and WNBA championships, leading the Detroit Shock to its first WNBA title in 2003.
- Born
Ransom, Illinois
age 47- Birth name
- Ruth Ellen Riley
- Detroit years
- 2003
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Riley won an NCAA women's championship with Notre Dame in 2001, and after the Detroit Shock earned the first pick in a special dispersal draft by virtue of having the WNBA's worst record, the team selected her. In 2003 she helped the Shock complete one of the most dramatic turnarounds in league history, upsetting the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Sparks in the Finals to win Detroit's first WNBA title, and she was named Finals MVP, making her the first player ever to win the top individual award in both an NCAA and a WNBA championship series. She later played on U.S. Olympic gold-medal teams and, after retiring, worked in WNBA and NBA front offices, including as general manager of the San Antonio Stars and in the Miami Heat's front office.
Highlights
- Selected first overall in the Detroit Shock's dispersal draft
- Led Detroit to its first WNBA championship in 2003
- Named 2003 WNBA Finals MVP
- First player to win MVP honors in both an NCAA and WNBA championship series
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Played here · 2003
The Palace of Auburn Hills
Demolished · 1988–2020
Home arena of the Detroit Shock during her championship season; demolished in 2020.