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Saniya Rivers

Saniya Rivers
Rivers with the Connecticut Sun in 2025
No. 22 – Connecticut Sun
PositionGuard
LeagueWNBA
Personal information
Born (2003-03-04) March 4, 2003 (age 22)
Wilmington, North Carolina, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Career information
High schoolAshley (Wilmington, North Carolina)
College
WNBA draft2025: 1st round, 8th overall pick
Drafted byConnecticut Sun
Playing career2025–present
Career history
2025–presentConnecticut Sun
Career highlights
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Saniya Rivers (born March 4, 2003) is an American professional basketball player for the Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the NC State Wolfpack of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). She previously played for the South Carolina Gamecocks. Rivers was selected eighth overall by the Sun in the 2025 WNBA draft.

High school career

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Rivers played basketball for Eugene Ashley High School in Wilmington. She was a three-time North Carolina Gatorade player of the year and a four-time NCBCA All-state selection. [1]

In her senior year, she averaged 34.3 points, 12.1 rebounds, 6.1 steals, and 5.8 assists per game and lead Ashley to a 2021 Mideastern Conference title. She was also the 2021 Gatorade National Player of the Year and a McDonald's All-American. [2] [3] Rivers was rated a five-star recruit, the number three player and the number 2 guard in the class of 2021 by ESPN. [4] On May 30, 2020, she committed to South Carolina. [5]

College career

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Rivers played as a reserve at South Carolina as the team won a national championship, appearing in 27 games and averaging 2.3 points and 1.4 assists. She scored a season-high eight points against Alabama shooting 4-7 and had a season-high five assists against Auburn. In May 2022, Rivers transferred to NC State. [6]

In her sophomore season, Rivers played in 31 games, averaging 8.6 points and 5.2 rebounds. [7] She led the team in rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks per game. [8] She scored a season-high 22 points, a career high 5 assists, and a career-high 4 steals against Iowa. [9] She later had 6 assists against Princeton in the first round of the NCAA tournament. [10] Rivers was named as the ACC Sixth Player of the Year. [11]

As a junior, Rivers was a First-team All-ACC and All-Defensive team selection. She was also an AP All-American Honorable Mention.[12] She averaged 12.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 2.1 steals, and 0.9 blocks, starting all 35 games.[13] She led the team in assists and steals per game.[14] In the postseason, Rivers was named to the Portland 4 Regional All-Tournament Team, as she helped the team to the Final Four.

Professional career

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Connecticut Sun (2025–present)

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Rivers was selected eighth overall by the Connecticut Sun in the 2025 WNBA draft.[15] She missed most of training camp, all of preseason, and the season opener to spend time with her family after her mother passed away. She made her debut on May 20, in a 62–87 loss to the Las Vegas Aces, scoring 11 points in 25 minutes off the bench.[16]

Personal life

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In April 2024, Rivers attended Kelsey Plum's second annual Dawg Class, a 3-day camp with the purpose of helping top women college athletes transition from collegiate to professional basketball.[17] The 2024 camp was held at the IMG Academy and sponsored by Under Armour.[17]

On 30 April 2025, her mother Demetria died of congestive heart failure.

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 TO  Turnovers per game  FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 Bold  Career best ° League leader
* Denotes season(s) in which Rivers won an NCAA Championship

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2021–22* South Carolina 27 0 13.0 24.5 3.2 50.0 1.6 1.4 0.5 0.5 1.0 2.3
2022–23 NC State 31 12 28.0 43.9 21.5 62.5 5.2 2.9 1.8 1.0 2.3 8.6
2023–24 NC State 35 35 35.2 38.2 26.0 73.5 6.1 3.7 2.1 0.9 2.6 12.5
2024–25 NC State 35 35 34.1 41.9 27.2 67.4 6.6 3.8 1.6 1.3 1.9 11.9
Career 128 82 28.5 39.5 22.9 67.9 5.1 3.1 1.6 1.0 2.0 9.2
Statistics retrieved from Sports-Reference.[18]

References

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  1. ^ "Saniya Rivers is 1 of the Best to Ever Wear the Red & White at NC State". PackInsider. April 1, 2025. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  2. ^ "Staley's 2021 Class Features Four McDonald's All-Americans". Gamecocks Online. February 23, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  3. ^ "Saniya Rivers". Gatorade. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  4. ^ "Saniya Rivers 2021 High School Girls' Basketball Profile". ESPN. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  5. ^ "No. 3 prospect Saniya Rivers commits to South Carolina Gamecocks". ESPN. May 30, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  6. ^ "NC State welcomes former USC basketball 5-star Saniya Rivers 'back home' as transfer". The State. October 14, 2022. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  7. ^ "Charlotte Women's Basketball Opens at NC State on Tuesday". Charlotte 49ers. November 6, 2023. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  8. ^ "NC State Wolfpack Stats 2022-23". ESPN. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  9. ^ "Iowa's Caitlin Clark: 'Whenever I score 40 points, we lose'". Just Women's Sports. December 2, 2022. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  10. ^ "How NC State women's basketball lost a heartbreaker to Princeton in March Madness". The Fayetteville Observer. March 18, 2023. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  11. ^ "ACC Women's Basketball Announces 2022-23 Award Winners". ACC. February 28, 2023. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  12. ^ "Saniya Rivers Earns AP All-America Honorable Mention". NC State Athletics. March 20, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  13. ^ "Women's Basketball Projected to Finish Second; Three with Preseason All-ACC Honors". NC State Athletics. October 15, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  14. ^ "NC State Wolfpack Stats 2023-24". ESPN. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  15. ^ "The Connecticut Sun Select Saniya Rivers". sun.wnba.com. Retrieved 2025-04-28.
  16. ^ "Sun rookie Saniya Rivers shines in WNBA debut after mother's passing". NBC Sports Boston. 2025-05-21. Retrieved 2025-05-27.
  17. ^ a b "(Dawg) Class Is Back in Session". Under Armour. April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  18. ^ "Saniya Rivers College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
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