Vanessa de Jesus
De Jesus with Duke in 2025 | |
| No. 2 – Notre Dame Fighting Irish | |
|---|---|
| Position | Point guard |
| League | Atlantic Coast Conference |
| Personal information | |
| Born | January 17, 2002 Northridge, California, U.S. |
| Nationality | Filipino / American |
| Listed height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Sierra Canyon (Los Angeles, California) |
| College |
|
Vanessa Ongkeko de Jesus[1] (born January 17, 2002) is a Filipino-American college basketball player who is plays for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Early life and education
Vanessa de Jesus was born on January 17, 2002, in Northridge, California, with Valencia considered as her hometown.[1] Her parents Phillip and Maria de Jesus,[1] are both Filipinos.[2] She would attend Sierra Canyon School in Los Angeles before entering Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, for her collegiate studies.[1] She transferred to the University of Notre Dame on April 9, 2025.[3]
Career
College
De Jesus committed to play for the Duke Blue Devils in the NCAA Division I in May 2019 which was then under coach Joanne P. McCallie. De Jesus would only be the player who had committed to remain with the Blue Devils after McCallie left.[4]
She debuted for the team now coached by Kara Lawson[4] in November 2020, becoming the first Filipino in Duke University's women's basketball program.[5][6][7]
In April 2025, De Jesus announced that she will transfer to Notre Dame and play for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.[8]
National team
De Jesus has expressed interest to suit up for the Philippines national team as early as 2020.[9] She would obtain her Philippine passport in May 2023 at age 21, making her eligible to play as a "naturalized player" according to FIBA eligibility rules.[10] She debuted for the Philippines at the 2023 FIBA Women's Asia Cup.[2][11][12]
Career statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
College
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | Duke | 4 | 4 | 33.3 | 54.5 | 50.0 | 60.0 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 12.0 |
| 2021–22 | Duke | 30 | 13 | 19.5 | 36.7 | 27.1 | 62.1 | 2.3 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 1.6 | 4.2 |
| 2022–23 | Duke | 32 | 1 | 15.5 | 42.7 | 34.8 | 89.2 | 2.1 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 1.3 | 5.0 |
| 2024–25 | Duke | 36 | 0 | 12.4 | 47.6 | 36.1 | 68.0 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 3.1 |
| Career | 102 | 18 | 16.3 | 42.8 | 33.8 | 73.3 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.3 | 4.4 | |
| Statistics retrieved from Sports-Reference.[13] | |||||||||||||
References
- ^ a b c d "Vanessa de Jesus - 2022-23 - Women's Basketball". Duke University. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ a b Fuertes, Rommel Jr. (June 14, 2023). "Vanessa De Jesus commits to play for Gilas Women with 'family and basketball' in mind". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
- ^ Anzures, Rom (April 20, 2025). "Gilas' Vanessa de Jesus leaves Duke, commits to Notre Dame". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
- ^ a b Reyes, Kate (November 26, 2020). "Gilas Women's prospect Vanessa de Jesus makes a splash in US NCAA debut". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ Reyes, Kate (September 17, 2020). "Fil-Am De Jesus' Duke gig will open doors for Pinay ballers, says Aquino". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ Morales, Luisa (November 30, 2020). "Gilas women prospect de Jesus earns high praise from Duke coach". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ Morales, Luisa (October 22, 2021). "Duke's Vanessa De Jesus raring to represent Filipinos in US NCAA". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "De Jesus Joins Notre Dame For Graduate Season". Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website. April 22, 2025. Retrieved April 26, 2025.
- ^ Lozada, Bong (September 18, 2020). "Duke recruit Vanessa de Jesus willing to play for Gilas women". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ "Duke's Vanessa de Jesus gets PH passport, can play for Gilas Women". ABS-CBN News. May 17, 2023. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ Anzures, Rom (June 14, 2023). "De Jesus hopes to bring winning experience, relentlessness to Gilas". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
- ^ "Vanessa De Jesus savors Gilas Women debut, hopes to come back stronger vs Japan". GMA News. GMA Integrated News. June 26, 2023. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
- ^ "Vanessa De Jesus College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved April 14, 2024.