Doniyah Cliney

In the Record Books

 
Career Summary

• During her four seasons on the court, was part of the 2017 NCAA National Championship, three other Sweet 16 teams, two SEC regular-season titles and three SEC Tournament crowns … team posted a 118-23 record
• Holds a share of the school record for most games played in a single season, seeing action in 37 games in 2016-17
• Great “team” player, accepting every role she was given – limited time as a freshman, defensive stopper as a sophomore, starter as a junior, in and out of starting lineup as a senior

 
Senior Year (2018-19)

• Started eight of last nine games and 18 of her 32 on the season
• Scored in double figures six times, including three SEC games, and was team’s top scorer against ETSU
• Shot a perfect, and career best, 5-of-5 from the floor in NCAA opening round against Belmont (Mar. 22), including six of last nine points of the third quarter
• Pulled down seven of her season-high nine rebounds in SEC Tournament quarterfinal against Arkansas (Mar. 8) in the first half
• Scored seven of her 11 points at Auburn (Feb. 28) in the first quarter to give the Gamecocks early double digit lead … huge steal in fourth quarter helped extend game-changing 15-2 run
• Poured in a career-high 16 points at Tennessee (Feb. 24), hitting clutch shots down the stretch, including a big three with 6:34 in the fourth to put Carolina back up by 10
• Showed solid leadership with young lineup coming off the bench early against Georgia (Feb. 14), grabbing three first-quarter rebounds, scoring seven of her season SEC-high 12 points in the third quarter and sealing the victory with a steal in the final 30 seconds
• Collected six of her career-high nine rebounds at Arkansas (Feb. 3) in the fourth quarter to help seal the comeback
• Dished out season-high four assists and connected on an and-one in the fourth quarter to put the Gamecocks up by 17 at #19/15 Kentucky (Jan. 31)
• Connected on two of her career-high three 3-pointers in the opening quarter against Appalachian State (Dec. 5)
• Hit a pair of free throws to put Gamecocks up by two with 28 seconds left in regulation against Drake (Nov. 24)
• Scored six of her nine points against #9/8 Oregon State (Nov. 23) during a 14-2 fourth-quarter run that closed a 14-point deficit to just two with 2:33 to play
• Season-high 14 points vs. ETSU (Nov. 22), including opening game with back-to-back 3s

 
Junior Year (2017-18)

• Started every game, often taking the defensive assignment of the opponent’s top scoring guard
• Led the team in assists four times – vs. St. John’s, #14/16 Duke, vs. #19/18 Georgia, vs. #1/1 UConn
• 12 double-figure scoring games after entering season with just two in her career
• Posted six of her double-digit scoring games in SEC play to average 8.4 points in league games
• Played at least 35 minutes in 13 games, including two 40-minute outings (#6/6 Tennessee, vs. #2/2 Mississippi St.) … played 1,120 minutes on the season, which ranks eighth in program history
• Jump started Carolina’s pivotal 7-0 fourth-quarter run in the NCAA Tournament Second Round against Virginia (Mar. 18) with a shot-clock-beating 3-pointer from the corner
• Averaged 8.7 points on 47.1 percent shooting, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range, in the SEC Tournament
• Hit a 3 from the right wing to open the fourth quarter of the SEC Tournament championship against #2/2 Mississippi State (Mar. 4) to quash a third-quarter rally by the Bulldogs
• Scored 11 of her 14 points against #19/18 Georgia (Mar. 3) in the first quarter on 4-of-5 shooting, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range to help Gamecocks establish 14-point halftime lead
• Opened SEC action with a bang, netting her career high 16 points in the league opener against #22/21 Texas A&M (Dec. 31), including a three-point play early in the third quarter to stop a 7-0 Aggie run and six of the team’s first 12 fourth-quarter points to turn an eight-point deficit into a four-point lead

 
Sophomore Year (2016-17)

• Played in all 37 games, including one start
• Great contributor in postseason, averaging 23.0 minutes over nine games after logging 16.8 in the regular season
• Led team in rebounding three times – Saint Peter’s, at Savannah St., vs. #10/13 Florida State
• Hit a pair of free throws late in first quarter of NCAA title game vs. #7/7 Mississippi State (April 2) to give team first lead of the game, swiped a fourth-quarter steal that launched a 10-2 run to seal the championship
• Scored in transition as part of 13-0 run that turned seven-point deficit into six-point lead in third quarter of NCAA semifinal against #6/6 Stanford (Mar. 31)
• Came up with a steal and layup to cap pivotal 6-1 run to close the third quarter and bring the Gamecocks within two of Arizona State in NCAA Tournament second round (Mar. 19)
• Netted a career-high 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting in the SEC quarterfinals against Georgia (Mar. 3)
• Baseline jumper late in second quarter at Texas A&M (Feb. 23) launched 10-4 run to close the half that turned a back-and-forth opening 20 minutes into a six-point Gamecock lead
• Facilitated the offense at #25/- Kentucky (Feb. 2) with a game-high six assists, the first of which led to a layup that sparked game-changing 22-4 run to close the first half
• Dished out three of her career-best six assists at Auburn (Jan. 5) in the fourth quarter
• Hit a 3-pointer to give Gamecocks first lead at Georgia (Jan. 26) and closed game with four of last five points
• Slowed down  #9/9 UCLA’s backcourt attack (Dec. 18) and netted the final four points of second quarter to even the score
• Matched a career high with eight rebounds against Minnesota (Dec. 11) after earning her first start of the season
• Was solid defensively in 20 minutes off the bench against #4/4 Louisville (Nov. 27)

 
Redshirt-Freshman Year (2015-16)

• Played in 20 games following hand injury suffered in the preseason, drawing three starts
• Helped pace South Carolina’s strong defensive effort against Georgia (Feb. 18) with a career-high three steals
• Scored five of team’s first eight points in first career start against #16/19 Florida (Feb. 11) en route to first double-digit scoring game
• Efficient in relief of Tiffany Mitchell (injury) against #18/18 Kentucky (Feb. 4), notching seven points (3-of-4 shooting) that included a key bucket in transition during South Carolina’s 10-2 run to end the game
• Scored her four points against Ole Miss (Jan. 28) during 13-4 fourth-quarter run to end Rebels’ rally
• Made an impact on the boards against Ole Miss (Jan. 28), grabbing a career-best three rebounds in 12 minutes of action
• Showed her court vision at Auburn (Jan. 21) handing out three assists in the second half while capping the third quarter with her first career 3-pointer
• Added five points to win over No. 20/- Missouri (Jan. 10), finding her way in pace of play on both sides of the ball after not seeing game action since high school (2013-14)
• Made her South Carolina debut at Vanderbilt (Jan. 7), tallying two points in five minutes of action
• Had a great preseason before surgery on her right hand in early November … had cast removed Dec. 17 and was fully cleared for practice in January

 
Freshman Year (2014-15)

• Received an initial eligibility waiver from the NCAA, allowing her to enroll in school but not compete
• After focusing on academics in the fall, began practicing with the team in the spring

 
High School

• Ranked 13th in the nation among 2014 guards by ProspectNation.com
• Scored over 1,000 points in her career
• Named honorable mention all-state
• Averaged 13.4 points, 3.3 assists and 5.2 rebounds, shooting 48 percent from the field, including 39 percent from 3-point range as a senior (2013-14)
• Helped team to state titles her junior (2012-13) and senior (2013-14) seasons

 
Personal

• Daughter of Nasheedah Brown and Kishmar Cliney, has a younger sister, Ayannah Kirsey, and younger brothers, Omar Reeds and Raheem Powell
• Majoring in interdisciplinary studies