Tessa Johnson

Awards

At South Carolina
NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team (2024)
SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll (2024)

High School
McDonald’s All-America (2023)
All-USA TODAY Team (2023)
WBCA Honorable Mention All-America (2023)
Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year (2023)
MGBCA Miss Basketball (2023)

Bio Information

Freshman Year (2023-24)

• Critical part Gamecocks becoming just the fifth program in NCAA history to go undefeated and win a National Championship with a program-record 38 wins and ran SEC win streak to league-record 47 games, which is 10th-best conference win streak in NCAA history
• Helped team to SEC regular-season and tournament championships as well, averaging 6.6 points on 44.7 percent shooting, including 43.2 percent from 3-point range, in her 35 games played on the season
• Thrived at the NCAA Tournament, averaging 10.2 points (4th on the team) on 40.8 percent shooting in 24.9 minutes per game
• Earned a spot on the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team behind 14.0 points per game on 58.8 percent shooting (10-of-17) in the final weekend of the season
• Became the fourth freshman in the last 25 seasons to lead her team in scoring in a national title game with her 19 points against #2/2 Iowa (Apr. 7), which also put her in company with former Gamecock Destanni Henderson (2022) as the only players in the last 25 years to set their career highs in a national championship game (according to ESPN)
• Key part of the Gamecocks’ second-quarter comeback in the National Championship against #2/2 Iowa (Apr. 7) with seven points on perfect 3-of-3 shooting, including a 3-pointer, in the period … added 10 more points in the second half to seal the victory
• Turned in a team-high 15 points against #12/15 Oregon State (Mar. 31) in the Elite Eight, including a traditional three-point play and four free throws as part of the 8–0 run that closed out the win
• Hit her stride in the opening quarter of the NCAA Tournament second-round game against North Carolina (Mar. 24), hitting back-to-back 3s as part of a 15-0 run to close the period
• Had a huge first half against Texas A&M (Mar. 8) in her SEC Tournament debut, posting her first career block while adding seven of her 13 points in a 12-2 run that broke open a 17-17 tie
• Was hot from beyond the arc at Arkansas (Feb. 29), finishing with 12 points on a career-high four made 3s, tying a team season-high for 3-point percentage at .800 (4-of-5)
• Finished with a new SEC career-high 12 points against Alabama (Feb. 22), including five in the first three minutes of the second quarter to help turn a five-point lead into a 14-point advantage
• Knocked down a 3 as part of an 8-0 run to end the second quarter against Ole Miss (Feb. 4), in addition to finishing with a new SEC career-high five boards
• Had a huge third quarter against Kentucky (Jan. 15), scoring nine of her SEC career-high 11 points, hitting all three of her attempts from behind the arc in the period
• Added eight points to her SEC debut at Florida (Jan. 4)
• Was efficient against Morgan State (Dec. 6) with her career-best 16 points coming on 7-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-2 from 3-point range in her first career start
• Scored six of her 12 points against #14/11 Maryland (Nov. 12) in the first half, including a 3 from the left corner that started a 17-4 run that delivered a 12-point halftime lead

High School

• Ranked No. 25 overall player in the Class of 2023
• Finished her career with over 2,100 points
• Earned McDonald’s All-America and Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year honors in 2023 after averaging 24.3 points, 6.6 assists and 2.8 steals per game as a senior
• Added Miss Basketball from the Minnesota Girls Basketball Coaches Association and was named Minneapolis Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year honors in her final season
• Two-time MGBCA 4A All-State selection (2022, 2023)
• Won the 3-point shooting contest at McDonald’s All-America weekend
• As a senior, led St. Michael-Albertville to its first state title since 2009, earning all-tournament honors by averaging 25.7 points in the final three games, including a 27-point, 10-rebound outing in the title game
• Missed her sophomore season due to a broken leg, but came back as a junior to help team to a state runner-up