Remembering Candace Parker’s Women's NCAA milestone dunk on the 20th anniversary
On the 20th anniversary of the historic dunk, a new generation of women's college basketball players reflect on the dunk’s significance.
CHAPEL HILL, NC ― Candace Parker made history as the first woman to dunk in an NCAA Tournament game on March 19, 2006 . About 20 minutes later, she did it again. “You’re thinking about a dunk… there it is!
” announcer Sean McDonough exclaimed on the broadcast. On the 20th anniversary of the historic dunk against Army, and eve of the Women’s NCAA Tournament, a new generation of women's college basketball players, many of whom weren’t alive to see it or too young to remember it, reflected on the dunk’s significance. “It says a lot for women's basketball, because, you know, it shows women are capable of what men can do as well,” North Carolina center Blanca Thomas said.
It was impossible to watch SportsCenter that day without seeing Parker slam the ball down. Thomas’ teammate, starting forward Nyla Harris, commented on the two-time national champion’s impact on basketball as a whole, and the dunk captured the attention of audiences around the world. “It's huge to give her her flowers,” Harris said.
Maryland starting guard Saylor Poffenbarger recognized the importance of this moment. “It was just the start to showing the abilities that women have too,” Poffenbarger said. The presence of dunking in the men's game has often been used as an argument for it being more entertaining than the women’s.