Three Gamecocks invited to attend WNBA Draft

Three players will represent South Carolina’s national championship women’s basketball team at WNBA Draft 2017 on April 13 in New York. Senior center Alaina Coates, along with junior guards Kaela Davis and Allisha Gray, will attend the event, which will air on ESPN2 for the first round beginning at 7 p.m. The second and third rounds will air on ESPNU starting at 8 p.m.

The San Antonio Stars hold the No. 1 pick in the draft. The Chicago Sky will pick second, followed by two selections for the Dallas Wings.

A four-time All-SEC selection, Coates finished four seasons as the program’s all-time leader in career field goal percentage (.620) and career defensive rebounds (850). She is second in career rebounds (1,230), double-doubles (57) and blocked shots (210) and has seven other top-10 entries in the Gamecocks’ career record book.

Davis played one season as a Gamecock after transferring from Georgia Tech, and her presence helped deliver USC’s first NCAA women’s national championship in 2017. The NCAA Stockton Regional Most Outstanding Player averaged 15.5 points in the NCAA Tournament, and her 16.3 points per game on 50.0 percent shooting in the SEC Tournament helped deliver the Gamecocks’ third straight title at the event.

Gray became the Gamecocks’ most consistent guard as she amassed 29 double-figure scoring games in the team’s 37 outings. She was 19th in the SEC in scoring at 13.2 points per game and shot 51.0 percent from the field.

Six Gamecocks all-time have been selected in the WNBA Draft, including two during coach Dawn Staley’s tenure – Aleighsa Welch (2015) and Tiffany Mitchell (2016). Mitchell matched the highest selection of a Gamecock at No. 9 (Indiana), which also was the draft position of Jocelyn Penn (2003, Charlotte) and Shaunzinski Gortman (2002, Charlotte).

This story was originally published April 7, 2017 at 12:35 AM with the headline "Three Gamecocks invited to attend WNBA Draft."