VIDEO: Kobe Bryant Surprises Notre Dame’s Hero Arike Ogunbowale on ‘Ellen’

Notre Dame star Arike Ogunbowale became an instant legend earlier this month when she hit back-to-back game-winning buzzer-beater shots.

After her first buzzer beater, Ogunbowale said that Kobe Bryant was her idol, and that she channeled her inner Mamba Mentality. Bryant wasted no time in giving her a shoutout and a follow on Twitter:

WOW! @Arike_O #lifecomplete #MambaMentality
— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) April 2, 2018

Now that Kobe follows me anytime I tweet or retweet something I think to myself, “I wonder if Kobe wants to see this on his timeline”. ?
— Arike Ogunbowale (@Arike_O) April 3, 2018

All of this led to today…Ellen Degeneres surprised Ogunbowale by bringing Bryant out to meet her on the ‘Ellen’ show. Bryant ended up gifting Arike a signed jersey, plus another one for her dog, who also happens to be named Kobe.

Check out their interaction here:

.@Arike_o had the world cheering for her in her incredible NCAA performance. Even @KobeBryant wanted to congratulate her. In person. @NDWbb pic.twitter.com/O8m7j9jJzQ
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) April 6, 2018

On a side note, I find it hilarious that Ellen had no clue that Kobe never played college ball. At the 1:16 mark, Ellen asks Kobe straight up “did you really not play college basketball”? I love you Ellen, but are you kidding me? Those questions were simply unacceptable!