Victaria Saxton’s selection gives Gamecocks school-record 5 WNBA draftees
South Carolina women’s basketball continued its record-setting run through the 2023 WNBA Draft on Monday with a fifth selection.
The Indiana Fever drafted forward Victaria Saxton No. 25 overall with the first pick of the third round, reuniting her with USC teammate and No. 1 overall pick Aliyah Boston.
Saxton is the South Carolina’s fifth 2023 draft pick, joining Boston, forward Laeticia Amihere (No. 8, Atlanta Dream), guard Zia Cooke (No. 10, Los Angeles Sparks) and guard Brea Beal (No. 24, Minnesota Lynx).
Saxton, a fifth-year senior, averaged 4.9 points and 3.1 rebounds per game for USC in 2022-23 and started all 37 games for the Gamecocks’ 36-1 Final Four squad.
The 6-foot-2 forward was a four-year team captain and a three-year starter with South Carolina; she also graduated with the Gamecocks’ career record in games played (166) and recorded the fifth most blocks in program history. She averaged a career high 8.9 points per game on 57.3% shooting in 2020-21.
Saxton will join Boston within a rebuilding Fever organization that went a league-worst 5-31 last season and hasn’t made the WNBA playoffs since 2016. Saxton is the 18th USC player to be selected in the WNBA Draft and the 14th under Staley (10 of Staley’s 14 have been first rounders).
Saxton selection also helps USC and Staley set a new program record for most picks in a single draft; the Gamecocks’ previous high was three draft picks in 2017.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, the Gamecocks are only the fourth program in women’s college basketball history to produce five picks in a single draft; the other three were 2019 Notre Dame, 2008 Tennessee and 1999 Tennessee.
This story was originally published April 10, 2023 at 8:53 PM.
