Mitchell Cutcher
Sports Editor
In a game that was supposed to occur almost a month before it did, Elena Pilakouta became the fourth Maverick woman to score 1,000 career points in the Division I era. Pilakouta also grabbed her 500th rebound earlier this season, becoming the second Maverick to score 1,000 points and have 500 rebounds in Division I.
Pilakouta is a graduate student who is in her fifth year with the women’s basketball program. During her time with Omaha, she has played in 114 games, 85 of those being games that she started in. She also wasted no time getting her career started, as she started all 27 games her freshman season.
Points scored may not be the only area in which Pilakouta will see her name pop up in the record book when her collegiate career comes to an end. The Cypriot international has the chance to finish in the top 10 in field goal percentage at Omaha. Pilakouta’s field goal percentage in her career is 52.1%, which would put her at sixth all time for Omaha.
The Omaha center has proven the ability to score in bunches and has done that in several games during her Maverick career. Earlier this season, Pilakouta finished with 25 points en route to a win over Weber State. Her career high came last season against UIC, where she finished with 32 points in an Omaha 12-point victory.
This season, when Pilakouta has scored 15 points or more, it has been a recipe for success for the Mavericks. When the Omaha center has reached 15 points, the Mavericks are 6-3. Pilakouta has scored in double figures in all but four of Omaha’s games this season.
Prior to her time at Omaha, Pilakouta was a two-time Cyprus women’s basketball player of the year and represented her country at several high-level international competitions. She played in both the U16 and U18 tournaments for Cyprus and led them to the 2017 FIBA U18 Women’s European Division C championship. Pilakouta says she decided to come to Omaha because in the United States, you do not have to sacrifice basketball or your education.
“It’s the best of both worlds,” said Pilakouta.
