Four Gamecocks Earn All-America Status
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 2/2 South Carolina women’s basketball saw four Gamecocks earn All-America honorable mention honors today. Junior Chloe Kitts and freshman Joyce Edwards made the list for both the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) and the Associated Press (AP). Senior Te-Hina Paopao and sophomore MiLaysia Fulwiley were among those picking up the recognition from the AP.
It marks the second time in the last three seasons and the third time in program history that four Gamecocks have been earned All-America status. This is the 12th-straight season that at least one Gamecock has received an All-America nod, dating back to head coach Dawn Staley’s first South Carolina All-Americans Tiffany Mitchell and Aleighsa Welch in 2013-14.
Kitts has been the Gamecocks’ top rebounder all season and has been on an all-around tear in recent weeks. Ranked ninth in the SEC in rebounding at a career-best 7.88 boards per game, she lifted that production to 8.25 rebounds per SEC game, which was fourth in the conference. Among her team-high nine double-doubles is a triple-double at Ole Miss (Feb. 27) that was just the second in an SEC game in program history. Her 16-point, 13-rebound, 10-assist outing in Oxford launched a five-game stretch that including three-straight double-doubles to leave her averaging 15.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists in that time. The last three games of that run paced the Gamecocks to their third-straight SEC Tournament title and SEC Tournament MVP honors for Kitts.
Edwards became the third Gamecock freshman to capture First-Team All-SEC recognition after leading the team in scoring for much of the season. Her 13.2 points per game include 14.4 per SEC game and 12.3 per game against ranked opponents. She is fourth in the SEC in field goal percentage (.550) and 10th in free throw percentage (.777). She has led the Gamecocks in scoring in a team-high 14 games this season and is also the team leader in double-figure scoring games (24) and 20-point outings (4). She has three double-doubles on the season, including on against a ranked opponent and two in SEC action.
Paopao has been the steadying force for the Gamecocks, especially early in the season when her leadership and court vision helped the team find its identity and re-emerge as a frontrunner for SEC and NCAA titles. Her 9.8 points per game include 10.5 per outing against ranked opponents, against which she has shot 46.6 percent from the field. Paopao is the team’s top distributor with 3.0 assists per game, which rose to 3.44 per SEC contest to rank her 12th in the conference. Her 2.48 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks 16th in the nation. In addition to ramping up her defensive skills, Paopao has also diversified her offense from being primarily a 3-point shooter last season. This season her offense includes 4.4 points per game from 3-point range, 3.5 from the paint and 1.3 from the midrange.
Fulwiley, the SEC Sixth Woman of the Year and a Second-Team All-SEC selection, continues to wow crowds, teammates and coaches with her athleticism and creativity on the court, to which she has expanded to the defensive end in addition to improved decision-making throughout the season. She is second on the team in scoring at 12.0 points per game, including a 13.4 average in SEC play and 11.0 points per game against ranked opponents. Ramping up her defense in SEC play, she was 10th in the league with 0.94 blocks per conference game and ninth at 1.94 steals per SEC outing. Most recently, she earned a spot on the SEC All-Tournament Team with 14.7 points and team-best numbers in assists (3.33) and steals (2.67) per game at the event.
South Carolina earned the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament’s Birmingham 2 Regional and hosts first- and second-round games at Colonial Life Arena this weekend. No. 8 seed Utah will face No. 9 seed Indiana on Fri., Mar. 21, at 1:30 p.m. ahead of the Gamecocks taking on No. 16 seed Tennessee Tech at approximately 4 p.m. The winners of those games will meet on Sun., Mar. 23, at a time to be determined by Saturday.
Ticket booklets for the first- and second-round games at Colonial Life Arena can be purchased online at: https://am.ticketmaster.com/gamecocks/buy/virtual-venue/V0IyNUFTQg== or by calling the Gamecock Ticket Office at 800-472-3267.
Single-session tickets are also available at: https://www.ticketmaster.com/2025-ncaa-di-womens-bkb-championship-columbia-south-carolina-03-21-2025/event/2D0062632D9D6E4A for Friday or https://www.ticketmaster.com/2025-ncaa-di-womens-bkb-championship-columbia-south-carolina-03-23-2025/event/2D00626330836ED6 for Sunday.
Continue to check GamecocksOnline.com and the team’s social media accounts (@GamecockWBB) for the most up-to-date information on South Carolina women’s basketball.
