Gamecocks Break Program Record, See Five Players Selected In WNBA Draft
Dawn Staley and South Carolina's Women's Basketball team once again set a new record on Monday night, as for the first time in the program's history, the Gamecocks had five players selected in the 2023 WNBA Draft. According to ESPN Women's Basketball writer Alexa Phillipou, this also marks just the fourth time in the sport's history that a program has seen five players be selected, with Tennessee accomplishing this feat in both 1999 and 2008 and Notre Dame doing the same in 2019.
It didn't take long for the fireworks to get started as Aliyah Boston was selected by Indiana Fever with the first pick in the draft, a move that just about everyone saw coming. Boston will be reuniting with former teammate Destanni Henderson, who was a part of the team's national championship run in 2022, as they look to lead a youth movement in Indiana to the WNBA playoffs in the near future.
Laeticia Amihere was the second Gamecock to go off the board, as she was taken eighth overall by the Atlanta Dream. Amihere joins fellow rookies Haley Jones and Leigha Brown in an effort to try and make the Dream more respectable this coming season.
Zia Cooke was the third Gamecock selected on Monday night as she was drafted tenth overall by the Los Angeles Sparks. Cooke will bring a diverse offensive arsenal to the west coast along with her staunch defense and high motor.
The final two Gamecocks to be drafted on Monday night happened to come off the board in back-to-back selections. The first was Brea Beal, who surprisingly fell to pick No. 24 and was taken by the Minnesota Lynx. Beal will of course bring a strong presence on the defensive end of the floor, but also displayed significant growth with her offensive play during her senior campaign, become a much more reliable three-point shooter and underrated facilitator of the Gamecocks' offense.
Victaria Saxton was the final South Carolina player to come off the board, being drafted by the Indiana Fever with the 25th overall pick. Saxton therefore will be playing with fellow Gamecock alums in Destanni Henderson and Aliyah Boston, and will bring leadership to the locker room, along with a ruthless off-ball mentality on the low block, understanding the importance of positioning and making her opponent work for every inch of hardwood.
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