Boston and Clark headline women’s AP All-America team

aliyah boston he is now a member of the elite three-time club.

The South Carolina star was honored for the third straight year as an All-American by The Associated Press on Wednesday. She is only the 10th player to earn that honor three times.

Boston was joined on the first team by Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist, LSU’s Angel Reese and Indiana’s Mackenzie Holmes. Boston and Clark were unanimously chosen by the 28-member national media panel that votes on AP top 25 weekly.

It is the second consecutive season that a player has joined the club. Rhyne Howard of Kentucky he did last season.

South Carolina’s A’ja Wilson, Baylor’s Brittney Griner, Tennessee’s Chamique Holdsclaw, Duke’s Alana Beard, Oklahoma’s Courtney Paris, Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu, and UConn’s Breanna Stewart and Maya Moore are the only other players to have won the First-team honors at least three times. Paris and Moore did it four times.

Boston earned second-team All-America honors as a freshman.

“For me, Aliyah has been the best college player in as many years as she’s been honored as an All-American, but definitely in the last two seasons,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said. “I hope we can really give her flowers while she’s still a college athlete because I don’t think there’s another Aliyah Boston to grace women’s college basketball.”

Boston helped South Carolina go undefeated in the regular season and enter the NCAA tournament as the top overall seed. He averaged 13.3 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. She is a big reason the Gamecocks were wire to wire as No. 1 in the AP poll for the second straight season.

Clark could join the club of three-time champions next season. The junior once again put up amazing numbers averaging 27.0 points, second best in the nation. He also had 8.3 assists and 7.5 rebounds per game to help Iowa win the Big Ten Tournament title for the second straight year.

“It’s one thing to be a first-team All-American, but it’s another to receive it back-to-back seasons,” Iowa coach Lisa Bluder said. “Our program, university, and state are very proud of all he has accomplished thus far. There is no one more deserving than a generational player like Clark.”

Clark trailed only Siegrist in scoring. The Villanova star averaged 28.9 points this season and set the Big East career scoring record for him. She has 984 points this season and is looking to become the fifth player to score over 1,000 in a season. She has scored 20-plus points in 34 straight games, one shy of Kelsey Plum’s record set in 2016-17.

“Maddy is an All-American in every sense of the word and truly deserves this honor,” Villanova coach Denise Dillon said. “On the court, the numbers that she has put up this year are staggering. Leading the country in scoring and scoring 1,000 points in one season is incredible. We are very proud that Maddy has become the first Associated Press All-American in the history of the program.”

Reese had a stellar season for the Tigers, averaging 23.4 points and 15.5 rebounds while shooting 54% from the field. The sophomore forward broke Sylvia Fowles’ school record of 20 consecutive double-doubles.

“Angel Reese joined our program and has had a tremendous impact on our team,” said LSU coach Kim Mulkey. “She has a special skill set that sets her apart as one of the best players in the nation. She definitely is one of the best players in the country. We are excited to see what the future holds for her and the impact she will have on our team at LSU.”

Holmes helped Indiana to one of the best seasons in school history. The Hoosiers, who finished second in the AP poll, won the Big Ten regular season title. Holmes averaged 22.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and shot 68.8% from the field.

“That’s an incredible accomplishment for a girl from Maine,” Indiana coach Teri Moren said. “No one is more excited and happy for her than our staff and her teammates. It is well deserved. She has worked on her game since the day she came to Bloomington”.

Boston, Clark, Stanford’s Haley Jones, Iowa State’s Ashley Joens, Virginia Tech’s Elizabeth Kitley, and DePaul’s Aneesah Morrow made the preseason All-America team.

The AP second team was headlined by Kitley, who was the ACC player of the year for the second straight season. She was joined by Cameron Brink from Stanford, Diamond Miller from Maryland, Olivia Miles from Notre Dame and Alissa Pili from Utah.

The third AP team was Joens, UConn’s Aaliyah Edwards, South Carolina’s Morrow, Jones and Zia Cooke.

Indiana’s Grace Berger and Florida State freshman Ta’Niya Latson and Louisville’s Hailey Van Lith were the top vote-getters among players who did not make the three All-America teams. Players earned honorable mention status if they appeared on one of the ballots.