Olivia Vukoša
| Christ the King Royals | |
|---|---|
| Position | Center |
| Personal information | |
| Born | September 7, 2008 Whitestone, New York, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Christ the King (Middle Village, New York) |
| College | UConn (commit) |
| Career highlights | |
Olivia Vukoša (born September 7, 2008) is a Croatian basketball player who attends Christ the King Regional High School. She is considered the No. 3 recruit in the class of 2026 by ESPN.
High school career
Vukoša attends Christ the King Regional High School. During her junior year she averaged 19.4 points, 17.9 rebounds, 5.5 blocks and 3.8 assists per game. She led Christ the King to a Catholic High School Athletic Association Tier 1 New York City Tournament title. Following the season she was named the New York Gatorade Player of the Year.[1]
On February 2, 2026, she was selected to play in the 2026 McDonald's All-American Girls Game.[2] During her senior year she averaged 17.8 points, 18.1 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 4.4 blocks per game, and led Christ the King to the Catholic High School Athletic Association state championship game. Following the season she was named New York Gatorade Player of the Year for the second consecutive year and the Gatorade National Player of the Year.[3]
Recruiting
Vukoša's top five choices included UConn, South Carolina, LSU, Texas and Ohio State.[4] On October 21, 2025, she committed to play college basketball at Uconn, and signed her National Letter of Intent on November 12, 2025.[5][6]
National team career
Vukoša made her national team debut for Croatia at the 2023 FIBA U16 Women's European Championship where she averaged 22.6 points and 17.1 rebounds per game and was named to the All-Star 5.[7]
She represented Croatia at the 2024 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup where she averaged a double-double of 19.4 points, 15.6 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 2.6 assists per game. On July 13, 2024, in a game against Puerto Rico, she scored 21 point and 23 rebounds to help Croatia earn their first FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup win in history. Her 16 defensive rebounds were the most ever in the history of the competition, while her 23 rebounds was tied for second-most in the tournament's history. She became the sixth player to record at least 20 rebounds in a single Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup game.[8] On July 21, 2024, during the ninth place game against Chinese Taipei, she posted a double-double of 31 points and 24 rebounds, along with six blocked shots, three steals and two assists. She became the first player to achieve a performance efficiency valuation of 50, surpassing the previous record of 46 set by Toby Fournier during the 2022 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup.[9][10] Following the tournament she was named to the FIBA U17 World Cup All-Second Team and Best Defensive Player.[11][12]
She represented Croatia at the 2025 FIBA U20 Women's EuroBasket Division B at 16 years old and averaged 15.6 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.[13] During the bronze medal game against Buglaria she scored 35 points and 22 rebounds in 23 minutes in an 82–78 victory. With the win, she helped Croatia get promoted to Division A for the 2026 FIBA U20 Women's EuroBasket.[14]
Personal life
Vukoša is the daughter of Damir and Jenny, and has three sisters, Mateja, Maddy and Gabby.[15] Both sets of her grandparents immigrated from Croatia to the United States. Her parents became Croatian citizens and helped their children also earn citizenship.[16]
References
- ^ "Christ the King High School Student-Athlete Named Gatorade New York Girls Player of the Year" (PDF). Gatorade. March 13, 2025. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ Vanoni, Maggie (February 2, 2026). "UConn women's basketball incoming freshman Olivia Vukosa named 2026 McDonald's All-American". CT Insider. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ Vanoni, Maggie (March 19, 2026). "UConn commit Olivia Vukosa is Gatorade National Player of the Year". CT Insider. Retrieved March 19, 2026.
- ^ Peterson, Mya (October 13, 2025). "The Queen of Queens: Class of 2026 Star Olivia Vukosa on Her Recruitment and Croatian Pride". Slam. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ Vanoni, Maggie (October 21, 2025). "UConn women's basketball picks up commitment from Class of 2026 top center Olivia Vukosa". CT Insider. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ Vanoni, Maggie (November 12, 2025). "UConn women's basketball signs top-3 Class of 2026 recruit Olivia Vukosa from Christ the King". CT Insider. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ "Eight standout players of #FIBAU16Europe". fiba.basketball. August 20, 2023. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ "Croatia make history with first-ever U17 Women's Basketball World Cup win". fiba.basketball. July 13, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ "Record-Breaking Vukosa first ever player to hit 50 in efficiency". fiba.basketball. July 21, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ Kovačević, Davor (July 26, 2024). "Najveći biser hrvatske košarke: 'Rodila se i živi u New Yorku, ali odbila je poziv Amerikanaca'". 24sata (in Croatian). Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ "FIBA U17 WWC: All-Second Team, Best Coach and Best Defensive Player Awards". fiba.basketball. July 22, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ "U17 (ž) na SP: Hrvatska deveta na svijetu, Olivia Vukoša sa svjetskim rekordom!". hks-cbf.hr (in Croatian). July 22, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ Katušić, Mario (August 11, 2025). "16-godišnjakinja vratila Hrvatsku u košarkašku elitu: Dominantna partija djevojke koja je odbila rodni SAD". gol.dnevnik.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ "Hrvatice se vratile u diviziju A, Vukoša za 23 minute zabila 35 poena uz 22 skoka". basketball.hr (in Croatian). August 10, 2025. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ "UConn Signs Olivia Vukosa to Class of 2026". uconnhuskies.com. November 12, 2025. Retrieved February 2, 2026.
- ^ Vanoni, Maggie (October 23, 2025). "Meet top recruit Olivia Vukosa: Why she picked UConn and her high school link to Husky legends". CT Insider. Retrieved February 2, 2026.