South Carolina women's basketball star wins SEC award
South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley helped her team bounce back from its first loss in a year-and-a-half with two blowout wins last week over No. 15 Iowa State and Purdue in the Fort Myers Tip-Off.
A big reason why? Freshman Joyce Edwards.
The first-year Gamecock came off the bench to average 12 points and 10 rebounds, two numbers that led the team. She also shot 55% from the field and averaged three steals per game en route to all-tournament honors. The steals mark also led South Carolina during the Thanksgiving tournament. Her 13-point, 11-rebound effort against Iowa State was her first career double-double.
For her efforts, Edwards was named the SEC co-Freshman of the Week. She shared the weekly honor with Justice Carlton of the Texas Longhorns.
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From the South Carolina Athletics press release:
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina forward Joyce Edwards picked up SEC co-Freshman of the Week honors, the league office announced today. The Camden, S.C., native helped power the Gamecocks to the Elevance Health Fort Myers Tip-Off Island Division Title as the team’s top scorer and rebounder at the event with 12.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, shooting 55.0 percent from the field and also swiping 3.0 steals per game to earn a spot on the all-tournament team.
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Edwards poster her first career double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds in the Gamecocks’ commanding win over #15/15 Iowa State. Four of her 13 points came on a pair of offensive rebounds, the last of which came in a 9-3 run that stopped an early third-quarter surge by the Cyclones. Against Purdue, Edwards narrowly missed another double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds, six of which came on the offensive end. She first checked into the game when the Gamecocks had a narrow 11-10 lead, and her five points and two steals in the final 4:37 of the quarter powered a 12-2 surge that gave South Carolina a commanding lead that they continued to increase throughout the game.
On the season, Edwards averages 9.8 points and 6.1 rebounds on 45.1 percent shooting and leads the team with 14 steals. Her five games in double-figure scoring are the most on the team, and she has been the team’s rebounder twice.
South Carolina, ranked #3 in this week’s AP Poll, is back in action on Thu., Dec. 5, hosting its first home game in nearly three weeks in a 9 p.m. tipoff against #8 Duke. Fans are encouraged to bring new blankets to donate at the door and/or teddy bears (no battery packs or boxes) to toss onto the court at halftime.
