Finnish Guard Elina Aarnisalo Commits to UCLA Women's Basketball
Another international star has her sights set on Westwood.
Class of 2024 guard Elina Aarnisalo has verbally committed to UCLA women's basketball, the Finnish prospect announced Wednesday on Instagram. The 5-foot-9 Aarnisalo was also weighing an offer from Virginia.
Aarnisalo becomes the second player to join the Bruins' 2024 recruiting class, following in the footsteps of wing Kendall Dudley. The five-star prospect out of Sidwell Friends (DC) announced her decision live on ESPNU back on April 7.
International recruiting has recently become a large focus for UCLA under coach Cori Close, with Aarnisalo standing out as the staff's most recent hit. German forwards Emily Bessoir and Lina Sontag, Australian forward Izzy Anstey and Canadian forward Brynn Masikewich are all currently on the Bruins’ roster.
UCLA men's basketball, meanwhile, has joined in on the trend as well, adding Serbia native Ivo Simovic as an assistant coach last summer. Since then, the Bruins have successfully recruited Italian wing Abramo Canka and Serbian guard Lazar Stefanovic, and they are reportedly zeroing in on Spanish big man Aday Mara and multiple other international prospects.
Aarnisalo plays for HBA-Marksy, which competes in the Finland Korisliiga. Aarnisalo averaged 19.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.7 steals per game this season, up from 15.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.9 steals per game the year before.
In the 2022 FIBA European U18 Championships, Aarnisalo led her team with 17.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Aarnisalo played for the U16 Finnish squad in the year prior and led her country’s roster with 23.4 points and 4.0 assists per game.
Aarnisalo has shot below 30.0% from 3-point range at virtually every level, but she is a 71.3% free throw shooter between her club and international outings.
Masikewich, Charisma Osborne and Camryn Brown will all be gone by the time Aarnisalo arrives on campus in 2024, but the rest of the Bruins' current core will still make up the meat of the lineup. Aarnisalo will join the guard rotation alongside Kiki Rice and Londynn Jones, who just made the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team in March.
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PHOTO COURTESY OF ELINA AARNISALO/INSTAGRAM