Former Gamecock Mikiah Herbert Harrigan back in WNBA after 3 seasons away

Mikiah Herbert Harrigan is officially back in the WNBA after three seasons away.

After the Minnesota Lynx selected Herbert Harrigan with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2020 Draft, the 6-foot-2 forward kicked off her first full-length season Tuesday with the Phoenix Mercury. She is one of 10 Dawn Staley products in the league this season.

Herbert Harrigan appeared in 21 games during the 2020 “Wubble” season, averaging 3.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 11.1 minuted per contest. She was traded to the Seattle Storm in February 2021 and sat out the season when she became pregnant with her son Stanford Samuels IV.

She returned to Seattle in 2022 but was waived the day after the opening roster cut-down deadline. She signed a training camp contract with the Connecticut Sun last season but was waived before preseason games started.

On Feb. 8, Herbert Harrigan signed a training camp contract with Phoenix. And on Monday, it was announced she made the Mercury’s season-opening roster.

Herbert Harrigan was part of South Carolina’s first national championship team in 2017 and subsequently helped the Gamecocks to the 2018 Elite Eight, 2019 Sweet 16 and three SEC Tournament championships. She earned the nickname “Mad Kiki” because of her on-court intensity, particularly on the defensive end.

She averaged 13.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and shot over 50% from the field her college senior season. Today, she is one of four Gamecocks to score at least 1,000 points and block 200 shots in their careers (along with A’ja Wilson, Alaina Coates and Aliyah Boston).

During her time away from the WNBA, Herbert Harrigan played EuroCup basketball for the London Lions in 2023 and the Galatasaray Cagdas Factoring in 2024. In 2023 she appeared in eight games, averaging 17.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists. In 2024 she played 12 games, averaging 7.7 points and 5.1 rebounds.

Herbert Harrigan impressed in Phoenix’s second preseason game last week. Despite the 98-85 loss to Los Angeles, she had a well-rounded statline of nine points, three assists and two rebounds.

In her regular season opener, Herbert Harrigan and the Mercury faced off against A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces. The two-time defending WNBA champs walked away with an 89-80 victory powered by Wilson’s 30 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. The former teammates shared a hug in the handshake line after the game, with Wilson rocking Herbert Harrigan side to side as they embraced.

Herbert Harrigan and Phoenix return home to take on the Atlanta Dream at 10 p.m. Saturday ET. The game will be available to stream on WNBA League Pass.