Indiana Fever Select Aliyah Boston with First No. 1 Overall Pick in Franchise History
April 10, 2023 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Indiana Fever News Release
INDIANAPOLIS - With the No. 1 overall selection in the 2023 WNBA Draft, the Indiana Fever picked University of South Carolina forward Aliyah Boston (pronounced uh-LEE-uh) on Monday night.
"Aliyah Boston will have an immediate impact on our franchise on and off the court. We are excited to pair her with Kelsey and NaLyssa as we reload the Indiana Fever. We are very impressed with Aliyah's post skills as well as her natural leadership skllls. This a a great day for our franchise!" Fever General Manager Lin Dunn said.
The 6-foot-5 forward from St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands comes to Indiana after completing one of the most accomplished college careers in college basketball history. Boston finished her career with the Gamecocks from 2019-23 as the program's all-time leader in the following categories:
Consecutive games started (138)
Rebounds (1,493)
Offensive rebounds (518)
Offensive rebounds in SEC games (244)
Defensive rebounds (975)
Defensive rebounds in SEC games (485)
Rebounds in SEC games (729)
Blocked shots in SEC games (165)
Double-doubles (82)
Double-doubles in SEC games (42)
Triple-doubles (2)
Boston was a four-time All-America recipient, four-time Lisa Leslie Center of the Year, four-time SEC Defensive Player of the Year, two-time National Player of the Year, two-time Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, two-time SEC Player of the Year and was also the 2022 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player guiding the Gamecocks to a national championship.
During her senior year, Boston shot a 55.9 field goal percentage and was her best shooting season since her freshman campaign. Defensively she averaged 2.0 blocks per game, including an SEC-best 2.3 per conference outing this past season. Boston picked up SEC Player of the Year honors for the second-straight season as South Carolina finished the season with a 36-1 record.
In her penultimate season, Boston became South Carolina's first Honda Cup Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year and CoSIDA Academic All-America Team Member of the Year. She swept the national player of the year awards, including becoming the first player, male or female, to win both the Naismith Trophy and Naismith Defensive Player of the Year. She also claimed the SEC Female Athlete of the Year. Boston played an integral role as part of the first team in program history to be ranked No 1 in both the AP and the USA Today Coaches' Polls every week of the season capturing the program's second National Championship.
As a sophomore, Boston recorded the first triple-double in program history in SEC play with 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 blocks against Georgia. In her freshman season with the Gamecocks from 2019-20, Boston posted the first triple-double by a freshman in program history and the first by any NCAA Division I player in her career debut against Alabama State. She later became the program's first National Freshman of the Year.
As a part of USA Basketball, Boston has earned four gold medals and was named MVP of the 2017 FIBA U16 Americas Cup after leading team with 11.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per game.
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