Four members of the Ogwumike family play basketball, including sisters Erica and Olivia, who currently play for the Pepperdine women’s basketball team.
When asked if any legendary backyard hoops battles or two-on-two games led to fisticuffs, Erica, the youngest member of the quartet, replied that there was none of that.
“Honestly, it was not as competitive as people think,” the 18-year-old Pepperdine freshman said. “We all play basketball, but outside of it, we are all very busy individuals. When we are together we do everything but play basketball.”
Erica is one of two Ogwumike sisters from Cypress, Texas who are scoring baskets and pulling down rebounds for the Waves women’s basketball team this season. Erica is the team’s leading scorer and rebounder, and her older sister, Olivia, is second and third, respectively, in those categories.
Erica and 20-year-old sophomore Olivia are the younger sisters of Nneka and Chiney, former stars on the Stanford Cardinal women’s hoops team and number one picks in the WNBA draft, two years apart.
The sisters originally all did gymnastics growing up in Texas, but once Nneka and Chiney sprouted to over six feet tall, hoops became the family focus.
Olivia said that she and Erica would consistently go to their sisters’ basketball games.
“At the beginning, they weren’t too serious about basketball, and we weren’t either,” the 5-foot-11 forward said. “But slowly, it became something our family did, and we happened to be pretty good at it.”
Nneka and Chiney won a state title in Texas before reaching the Final Four with Stanford multiple times. Nneka was the top selectee in the 2012 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks. Chiney was the number one selection by the Connecticut Sun in 2014.
Olivia said that she and Erica feel no pressure to be exactly like their older sisters.
“Basketball is very important to us, but it hasn’t been the number one priority to our family,” she said. “Family and God come first, education, then basketball, the means to getting an even better education in college.”
Olivia believes Nneka and Chiney have been so successful because basketball never monopolized their lives.
“They set the best example for us,” she said.
Erica said the family’s professional players have provided her and Olivia with a blueprint.
“If we have a question, we can just call them,” she said. “They have done everything we hope to do.”
In recent contests at Pepperdine, the two sisters have had a strong impact on the court for the 5-15 Waves. The 5-foot-9 guard Erica rang up 16 points and snatched seven rebounds in Pepperdine’s 69-64 road loss to BYU on Jan. 23. Olivia had eight points and four rebounds during the contest.
Erica had 17 points and seven rebounds in the Waves 74-55 loss to San Diego on Jan. 21. Olivia had seven points and two rebounds.
Erica is averaging 16.9 points and 7.2 rebounds for Pepperdine. She said preparation has led to her success.
“Before the season started, I tried to work on things that I wanted to get better at from AAU and high school basketball,” she said. “I’m trying to do whatever is possible to make this team successful.”
Olivia is averaging 9.3 points and 4.2 rebounds a game for Pepperdine after averaging five points and 3.2 rebounds last season en route to being named to the WCC All-Freshman squad. She credited her improvement to having more confidence and working on her jump shot.
“I can shoot outside, I can drive, I can finish at the rim,” she shared. “Mentally, I have become more confident and offensively, it shows.”
Waves coach Ryan Weisenburg said the sisters are great to have on his roster. He noted Olivia’s strong defensive performance against BYU’s top player, Lexi Rydalch. Weisenburg said Olivia’s ability to guard post and perimeter opponents brings a different dynamic to the Waves.
There is also what they call “sister telepathy.”
“There are definitely times when I don’t need to see where she is, but I know what she is doing and vice versa,” said Olivia.
Weisenburg said the two sisters mesh well on and off the court.
“They are connected at the hip,” he said.
Pepperdine’s squad is composed of 11 underclassmen and four upperclassmen. “We are a very young team, but we have a lot of talent and a lot of passion,” Erica said. “We are trying to start something new here at Pepperdine and change the culture.”