Joyce Edwards, South Carolina women's basketball signee, wins national Gatorade Player of the Year award
Joyce Edwards, a South Carolina women's basketball signee and the No. 2-rated prospect in the class, was named the 2023-24 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year on Thursday, according to a release.
Edwards averaged 31.3 points, 13.3 rebounds, 4.5 steals, 3.3 blocks and four assists per game for Camden in her senior year, leading the Bulldogs to the 3A state championship over Wren. She recorded 27 points, 20 rebounds, six blocks and three steals in the 44-22 victory.
The 6-foot-2 forward signed with coach Dawn Staley and South Carolina on Nov. 15, 2023. Edwards is ESPNW's No. 2 prospect in the class of 2024, making her the Gamecocks' highest-rated signee since No. 2 Raven Johnson in the Class of 2021. She is the highest-rated prospect from the Palmetto State since A'ja Wilson, who was ranked No. 1 overall in 2014.
The two other finalists for the award were Jaloni Cambridge from Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida, and Kennedy Smith from Etiwanda High School in Rancho Cucamonga, California.
Past Gatorade Player of the Year winners include Juju Watkins, Paige Bueckers, Breanna Stewart and two-time winner Candance Parker. Saniya Rivers, a former South Carolina player who transferred to NC State after her freshman year, became the first Gamecocks signee to win the national award in 2021.
South Carolina (34-0) advanced to its 10th straight Sweet 16 with a dominant win over North Carolina on Sunday, closing out its season at home at Colonial Life Arena with an 88-41 victory. The Gamecocks will play No. 4 Indiana (26-5) on Friday (5 p.m., ESPN) at MVP Arena in Albany, New York, with an Elite Eight spot on the line.
Evan Gerike covers South Carolina women's basketball for the Greenville News. Email him at egerike@citizentimes.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanGerike.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: South Carolina signee Joyce Edwards is national Gatorade Player of Year
