Edwards, Latson, Okot Named Academic All-District
COLUMBIA, S.C. – For the first time in South Carolina women’s basketball history, three Gamecocks earned Academic All-District status, College Sports Communicators announced today. Sophomore Joyce Edwards, senior Ta’Niya Latson and senior Madina Okot all made their debut on the list. To be eligible for the award, an undergraduate student-athlete must have at least a 3.50 cumulative grade point average, be at least a sophomore academically and athletically and compete in at least 90 percent or start at least 66 percent of the team’s games.
Edwards is an environmental science major and part of the University of South Carolina’s Honors College. She is a unanimous Second-Team All-American, a First-Team All-SEC selection and a finalist for the Katrina McClain Award, which recognizes the top power forward in the country. The Gamecocks’ leading scorer at 19.9 points per game, she ranks 19th in the nation in that stat and 15th in field goal percentage, hitting 59.5 percent of her shots. Her 21 games of at least 20 points are tied for the second most in program history, and her 717 points this season are the fourth most in program history. Her career-best 6.4 rebounds per game rank16th in the SEC.
Latson is a services management major who has earned All-SEC Second Team and All-America Honorable Mention honors this season. She is the Gamecocks’ second-leading scorer at 14.3 points per game, which ranks 16th in the SEC, and her 49.5 percent shooting comes in eighth in the league. She is second on the team and 14th in the league with 3.6 assists per game, and her 2.22 assist-to-turnover ratio comes in 21st in the nation.
Also a services management major, Okot is an All-SEC Second Team selection and a finalist for the Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award who is among the nation’s top 25 in four categories, including ranking third with 22 double-doubles this season, which ranks her fifth in program history. Her SEC-best 10.9 rebounds per game are 11th in the nation, and she comes in 22nd in offensive rebounds with 3.8 per game. Averaging 13.5 points per game, Okot is 18th in the nation with a .584 field goal percentage.
No. 4/4 South Carolina advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 with Monday night’s win over Southern Cal. The top seed in the Sacramento 4 Region, the Gamecocks will face SEC-rival Oklahoma on Sat., Mar. 28, at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN.
