WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert poses for photos with former Ole Miss guard Cotie McMahon after announcing McMahon's draft selection by the Washington Mystics. | Ole Miss Athletics
WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert poses for photos with former Ole Miss guard Cotie McMahon after announcing McMahon's draft selection by the Washington Mystics. | Ole Miss Athletics

Cotie McMahon Leads Historic WNBA Draft Night for Ole Miss Women’s Basketball

BY Taylor Hodges

Cotie McMahon waited her whole life for a moment like Monday night, and it showed. When her name came off the board at No. 11 to the Washington Mystics, she lit up in a way that felt bigger than a draft pick.

This was one of the reasons she came to Ole Miss in the first place. She wanted a stage that could get her to the WNBA, and she made the most of her one season in Oxford. Seeing that pay off in real time was pretty special.

It was a good fit too. Washington already has two familiar faces in Shakira Austin and Madison Scott, so McMahon walks into a locker room with built‑in support.

For a rookie, that matters. For Ole Miss fans, it is even better. Three Rebels on the same roster is not something the program could have imagined a few years ago.

McMahon’s resume speaks for itself and its be retold several times. She stacked up national honors all season, from the Cheryl Miller Final Five list to the Wooden Award ballot. She was SEC Newcomer of the Year, First Team All‑SEC and an All‑American several times over.

On the floor, she averaged 19.5 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists, then bumped those numbers even higher once SEC play hit. Her 703 points were the fourth most in a single season in program history, and she set a new school record with 34 double‑digit scoring games.

She was as advertised from the moment she arrived.

And she was not the only Rebel celebrating. Latasha Lattimore heard her name called too, going 21st overall to the Chicago Sky. Her one season at Ole Miss was full of impact plays and steady improvement.

She averaged 10.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks, and her 74 blocks ranked third in the SEC and 11th nationally. She was on the Katrina McClain Award watch list and the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year watch list, and she gave Ole Miss a defensive anchor all season.

So, Monday ended up being a milestone night for the program.

Two players drafted for the first time in school history, one of them in the first round and joining a franchise already full of Ole Miss ties.

Coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin has talked for years about building something sustainable in Oxford. Nights like this are the payoff.

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