There was a sizzling LSU takeover in Recent York City this past week.
LSU basketball phenom Angel Reese and star Lady Tigers gymnast Olivia Dunne turned heads at the discharge party of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit’s 2023 issue on the Hard Rock Hotel on Thursday.
“LSU’s finest,” the 21-year-old Reese wrote on Twitter, where she posted a photograph of herself with Dunne on the starry event.
Dunne, 20, also reposted Reese’s tweet.
Reese, who led LSU to its first national championship in program history last month, stunned in a red cutout dress from FashionNova while Dunne, the NCAA’s highest-earning female athlete, rocked a black lace gown.
Reese and Dunne made their SI Swimsuit debuts on this 12 months’s issue — and are the primary college athletes to be featured in the long-lasting publication.
Dunne traveled to Puerto Rico in January for the shoot and posed for quite a lot of sultry shots on the beach.
As for Reese, she modeled numerous daring styles and colours in her shoot, which took place at an art deco-style house in Los Angeles.
Beyond their athletic prowess, Reese and Dunne have capitalized on their massive social media followings within the wake of the NCAA’s ruling in 2021, enabling student-athletes to cash in on their name, image, and likeness.
Reese — who was named “Most Outstanding Player” of the Final 4 during this 12 months’s March Madness tournament — has two million followers on each Instagram and TikTok.
Recent Jersey native Dunne boasts greater than 11 million followers between her Instagram and TikTok pages.
SI Swimsuit Editor-in-Chief MJ Day told People she desired to feature Dunne, who has handled criticism during her rise to fame for “owning” her price as an athlete and a lady.
Dunne’s NIL valuation is at $3 million, On3 Sports reported in January, because the gymnast has brand deals with American Eagle, Without end 21, and Vuori.
Reese is one in every of the top-earning college athletes with $1.3 million in endorsement deals for brands comparable to Coach, McDonald’s, and Amazon.
Reese, nickamed the Bayou Barbie, is currently featured on the May/June 2023 cover of Sports Illustrated together with her cousin, UConn guard Jordan Hawkins.
Reese, a Maryland native, grew up with Hawkins, who helped the Huskies defeat the San Diego State Aztecs 76-59 to win the NCAA Tournament in April.
