Alaina Coates Named Co-SEC Freshman of the Week

Feb. 3, 2014

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina center Alaina Coates (Irmo, S.C./Dutch Fork) earned her fourth SEC Freshman of the Week selection of the season, the league office announced today. Sharing the honor with Florida’s Ronni Williams this week, Coates has earned the award more than any other Gamecock freshman before her.

“I’m so proud of Alaina and how she’s been able to play so consistently in a tough league like the SEC,” South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said.

Coates led the Gamecocks in scoring and rebounding last week with 18.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game while averaging just 19.0 minutes in a pair of wins. She tied her career high with 24 points against Ole Miss, becoming the first Gamecock freshman to score at least 20 points in an SEC game since March 2010. Her 12 rebounds against the Rebels completed her seventh double-double of the season, her fourth in SEC play. Coates scored 13 points and blocked four shots in just 16 minutes of action against Missouri to close out her weekend.

Coates entered the week already atop the South Carolina freshman record books with 42 blocked shots. Her four last week moved her into the overall single-season top 10. Her 46 are just 14 off the single-season record of 60 set by Lakesha Tolliver in 2006-07.

With a pair of wins last week, South Carolina leads the SEC with an 8-1 league record and tied the school-record for fastest to 20 wins in a season with a 20-2 mark. The Gamecocks head to Mississippi State for an 8 p.m. (ET) contest on Thu., Feb. 6, before returning home to Colonial Life Arena on Sun., Feb. 9, to host Arkansas.