Gamecock Trio Named WBCA All-Region
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No 1/1 South Carolina women’s basketball’s top three scorers were named Region 2 finalists for WBCA All-America honors, the organization announced today. Senior Aliyah Boston is making her fourth appearance on the All-Region 2 team and is eyeing her third All-America nod from the organization. Senior guard Zia Cooke is on the list for the second-straight season, and this marks the first selection for junior center Kamilla Cardoso.
The unanimous 2022 National Player of the Year, Boston continues to dominate her sport on both sides of the ball as the only player in the nation to rank among the top five in both player offensive and defensive rating, according to Her Hoops Stats. The two-time SEC Player of the Year and four-time SEC Defensive Player of the Year has powered through every imaginable defensive scheme this season to still rank sixth in the nation with 21 double-doubles, 25th in field goal percentage (.565), 24th in blocks per game (2.00) and 30th in rebounds per game (9.7). Boston’s averages skyrocket in the high-end games as she averages 16.0 points and 11.6 rebounds in seven games against ranked opponents and 14.4 points and 10.5 rebounds in 17 games against NET top-50 foes.
Cooke is enjoying an All-American season, picking up the honor from the Associated Press earlier this month. She grabbed First-Team All-SEC honors after leading the Gamecocks in scoring at 15.3 points per game (10th in SEC) behind a career-best .405 field goal percentage. Her offensive production rose in conference play to 17.0 points per game (6th) and 43.4 percent shooting (10th). Scoring in double figures 101 times in her 134 career games, this season has seen those numbers come more efficiently with 13 games shooting at least 50.0 percent from the field, including seven SEC outings.
Cardoso has been a force this season with eight double-doubles to go with 12 double-figure rebounding games and 14 double-digit scoring games. She is third in the SEC with 8.6 rebounds per game and is 28th in the nation in offensive rebounding average (3.6). In seven games against ranked opponents, Cardoso’s production goes up to 11.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Defensively, she helps anchor the nation’s top shot-blocking team, ranking 28th in the nation in blocks per game (1.97) just behind Boston.
NCAA Tournament No. 1 overall seed South Carolina will be back in action on Fri., March 17, against Norfolk State. It will be the second game of the session at Colonial Life Arena, tipping off at approximately 2 p.m. on ESPN.
Stay tuned to GamecocksOnline.com and the team’s social media accounts (@GamecockWBB) for more information on the 2022-23 season.
2023 WBCA All-America Region 2 Finalists
Angel Baker, Ole Miss
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Kamilla Cardoso, South Carolina
Zia Cooke, South Carolina
Jordan Horston, Tennessee
Rickea Jackson, Tennessee
Alexis Morris, LSU
Angel Reese, LSU
