Sutton, Walker Capture Preseason All-SEC Nods

Nov. 8, 2011

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina guards La’Keisha Sutton and Ieasia Walker earned preseason second-team All-SEC honors by voting of the league’s coaches entering the 2011-12 season. The Gamecocks’ backcourt duo accounted for 38.2 percent of the team’s scoring last season and handed out 54.0 percent of the assists.

A senior, Sutton has been among the team’s top three scorers in each of her three seasons in the Garnet and Black, while ranking in the team’s top two in assists each year as well. In 2010-11, Sutton’s 3.6 assists per game were her best average and the most by a Gamecock since 2003-04. Adding 10.2 points per game to that assist mark, Sutton became just the 13th player at South Carolina to close her season with that many assists per game while also averaging double-figure points.

Walker, a junior, exploded onto the scene in her sophomore campaign after a 30-point coming out party against archrival Clemson just three games into the season. Voted by the SEC coaches onto the All-SEC Second Team in 2010-11, Walker was 17th in the league in scoring (12.2 ppg) and third in steals (2.4 spg). She scored in double figures 23 times in 33 outings, including four 20-point games and her 30-point outing. Her 13.3 points per SEC regular-season game was the ninth-best average in the league.

In other voting, the SEC coaches tabbed the Gamecocks to finish seventh in the league standings. South Carolina closed the 2010-11 campaign tied for fifth, earning the No. 5 seed in the SEC Tournament, its best showing since 2002-03. The Gamecocks return last season’s top two in scoring, rebounding and assists. As a whole, the 2011-12 roster accounted for 74.5 percent of last year’s scoring, 81.4 percent of its assists and 63.1 percent of its rebounds.

South Carolina opens the regular season at Illinois on Fri., Nov. 11, at 4:30 p.m. (ET) with the home opener coming three days later when Alabama A&M visits Colonial Life Arena on Mon., Nov. 14, for a 7 p.m. tipoff.

Season tickets for women’s basketball are on sale now at www.GamecocksOnline.com or by calling 1-800-4SC-FANS. Prices start at $50 for general admission, or a Family Four-Pack of tickets is available for $100.

Preseason All-SEC First Team

C’iera Ricketts, Arkansas
Jasmine James, Georgia
A’dia Mathies, Kentucky
LaSondra Barrett, LSU
Glory Johnson Tennessee
Shekinna Stricklen, Tennessee
Meighan Simmons, Tennessee
Stephanie Holzer, Vanderbilt

Preseason All-SEC Second Team

Ericka Russell, Alabama
Sarah Watkins, Arkansas
Jasmine hassell, Georgia
Adrienne Webb, LSU
Valencia McFarland, Ole Miss
La’Keisha Sutton, South Carolina
Ieasia Walker, South Carolina
Tiffany Clarke, Vanderbilt