Aliyah Boston, Zia Cooke named All-SEC, Boston picks up back-to-back defensive honors
Coming into her sophomore season, Aliyah Boston’s dominant defensive presence was well known — after exploding onto the scene as a freshman and posting 2.6 blocks per game, she was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year.
This season, even as opposing teams often steered clear of the lane to avoid her, Boston still managed to swat 2.9 shots per contest. And on Tuesday, she was rewarded with another conference Defensive Player of the Year honor, this time sharing the award with Que Morrison of Georgia.
Boston is the first Gamecock to win that award in back-to-back seasons — A’ja Wilson won it in 2016 and 2018, and Ieasia Walker took it home in 2013. Since the award was first given out in 2004, there have been four players to win it multiple times, and just one to win two consecutively, Mississippi State’s Teaira McCowan. Next season Boston will have the chance to become the first three-time winner.
Boston was also voted by the league’s coaches to the All-SEC first team Tuesday, alongside classmate Zia Cooke.
Cooke led USC in scoring this season, averaging 15.9 points per game, along with 2.2 assists per game. She tallied a season-high 26 points against Florida to kick off SEC play and had four 20-point games on the season. She also shot 35.6% from 3-point territory, second on the team.
Boston, meanwhile, averaged a double-double in the regular season with 13 points and 11.7 rebounds per game, in addition to her 2.9 blocks. She also swiped 1.1 steals and dished out 1.6 assists per game. In SEC play, she upped her play even more, averaging 13.3 points and a school-record 12.3 rebounds.
This is also Boston’s second first-team All-SEC award — she was joined on last year’s sqaud by senior guard Tyasha Harris. The Gamecocks have had a first-team representative in eight of the last nine years.
South Carolina travels to Greenville this week to play in the SEC tournament. As the No. 2 seed, the Gamecocks will open Friday against the winner of No. 7 Alabama vs. No. 10 Missouri in the quarterfinals.
2021 SEC Awards (Coaches)
Player of the Year: Rhyne Howard, Kentucky
Freshman of the Year: Madison Scott, Ole Miss
Co-Defensive Players of the Year: Aliyah Boston, South Carolina; Que Morrison, Georgia
6th Woman of the Year: Destiny Pitts, Texas A&M
Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Ciera Johnson, Texas A&M
Coach of the Year: Joni Taylor, Georgia
First Team All-SEC
Jasmine Walker, Alabama
Chelsea Dungee, Arkansas
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky
Khayla Pointer, LSU
Shakira Austin, Ole Miss
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Zia Cooke, South Carolina
Rennia Davis, Tennessee
N’dea Jones, Texas A&M
Second Team All-SEC
Jordan Lewis, Alabama
Unique Thompson, Auburn
Destiny Slocum, Arkansas
Lavendar Briggs, Florida
Jenna Staiti, Georgia
Aijha Blackwell, Missouri
Rae Burrell, Tennessee
Aaliyah Wilson, Texas A&M
All-Defensive Team
Que Morrison, Georgia
Chasity Patterson, Kentucky
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Tamari Key, Tennessee
Khayla Pointer, LSU
This story was originally published March 2, 2021 at 11:06 AM.
