UConn commit Kayleigh Heckel drops 2-word reaction for ex-teammate Kiki Iriafen's latest achievement as a WNBA rookie

Kayleigh Heckel and Kiki Iriafen were teammates last year on a USC Trojans team that was in contention to win the national championship. While the team was eliminated in the Elite Eight by the eventual champion UConn Huskies, it was still a strong season for the Trojans. Unfortunately for the Trojans, neither Heckel nor Iriafen will be back next season.

Iriafen has started her WNBA career and Heckel entered the portal and committed to the Huskies. Despite both players leaving USC, it does not mean they no longer support each other. On Saturday morning, Kayleigh Heckel reposted a post from the WNBA Instagram account showcasing Iriafen's impressive stats from early in her career.

The post highlights the fact that Iriafen became the fourth rookie since 2020 to record three consecutive double-doubles.

"With 17 PTS & 13 REB vs. the Aces, Kiki Iriafen joins Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Satou Sabally as the only rookies since 2020 to record three consecutive double-doubles! She is also the first Washington Mystics rookie to achieve this feat in franchise history."

Heckel had a two-word reaction to celebrate her former teammate's achievement.

"That girl."

Image via Kayleigh Heckel's Instagram story.

Kiki Iriafen was drafted by the Washington Mystics with the fourth pick in the 2025 WNBA draft. She has thrived through her first four professional games, averaging 14.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game.

Kayleigh Heckel is transferring to UConn after one season at USC

With her friend Kiki Iriafen leaving the Trojans for the WNBA, Heckel also decided to leave the team. She entered the transfer portal after the season but did not commit to a team until recently. She announced on Tuesday that she is committed to the UConn Huskies next season.

The Huskies won the national championship this past season and are looking to rebuild and contend again next year. The biggest loss for the Huskies this offseason was Paige Bueckers, who was the first pick in the 2025 WNBA draft.

While Heckel will not be expected to replace Bueckers' production, she did show flashes of excellence in her freshman year. This past season, she started seven of 34 games while averaging 6.1 points, 1.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game. She was a five-star recruit in the 2024 recruiting class, according to ESPN.

Heckel is the second transfer to sign with UConn this offseason. She is joining Wisconsin transfer Serah Williams, who is entering her senior year.

About the author

Alexander O'Reilly is a journalist at Sportskeeda from Kingston, Ontario with over seven years in the field at companies including SenShot, RVBlogger, Monarch Media, WordAgents, GSeC LLC, and IGC.

His favorite college team is Duke, and his favorite sporting memory was Duke winning March Madness in 2010. JJ Redick was Alex's favorite college player when he was young but more recently, Caleb Williams gets the nod. As the Chicago Bears are Alex's favorite NFL team, this was a perfect match.

Alex's proudest moment came when he was interviewed by a radio station in Ottawa on his opinion on recent moves by the Ottawa Senators, which gave him a confidence boost and the knowledge that he could succeed as a writer.

Aside from sports, Alex likes to spend his time playing games. He is also very passionate about running and strives to improve at the half and full marathon distances.

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Edited by Alexander O'Reilly