BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Little Rock women's basketball hauled in the honors Tuesday as the Ohio Valley Conference announced its all-conference teams and superlative award winners.
Sali Kourouma was named the league's Player of the Year while
Joe Foley received Coach of the Year honors for the sixth time in his career.
In addition to those superlatives, Kourouma was named First Team All-OVC,
Tia Harvey received second team honors and
Jaiyah Harris-Smith was recognized on the league's All-Newcomer Team. It marked the 10
th consecutive year the Trojans have had at least two players receive all-conference honors and continued the streak of having at least one player receive all-conference honors in all 20 years Foley has been at the head of Little Rock's Team.
Kourouma becomes the fourth player in program history to earn a league's Player of the Year accolade, following Chastity Reed (2011 Sun Belt), Sharde' Collins (2017 Sun Belt) and Ronjanae DeGray (2019 Sun Belt). She led the OVC in scoring (17.2 ppg) both overall and in conference games only while her 2.6 steals per game ranks third in the league. In league play, she one of only two players in the OVC to rank in the top 10 in the league in scoring, rebounding, steals and blocks. Kourouma enters the OVC Tournament leading the nation in player defensive rating (61.0).
Harvey averaged 10.11 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 0.9 steals per game on the season as one of two Trojans to post a scoring average in double figures. A junior, Harvey averaged 31.8 minutes per game and her 4.2 two-point field goals made per game ranks ninth in the OVC. Her player defensive rating (78.8) ranks seventh in the conference.
Harris-Smith, an All-Newcomer selection, finished the regular season ranked 21
st nationally in total assists (150), 26
th in the country in assists per game (5.2) and 224
th nationally in rebounds per game (6.8). She is the only player in the OVC to be ranked in the top 10 in the league in assists and rebounding while being just one of nine players in the country to average more than 6.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.
After leading the Trojans to a 17-1 league mark and setting conference records for points allowed per game both overall and in league play, Foley claimed his sixth Coach of the Year honor and first in the Ohio Valley Conference. Previously the 2010, 2011, 2015, 2017 and 2018 Sun Belt Coach of the Year, Foley claimed another honor in a season where Little Rock became the first team in OVC history to win the league's regular season title in their first year in the conference. Holding all opponents to an incredible 51.4 points per game and limiting conference opponents to just 46.3 points per game, Foley has his Trojans ranked fourth nationally in scoring defense, sixth nationally in 3-point field goal defense and 16
th nationally in field goal defense while winning the program's 13
th regular season title in the past 16 years. He did all of that in a season where Little Rock entered a new conference, faced new opponents, had the court named after him, had that court flooded and destroyed, played on a temporary floor and recorded his 850
th career win as a head coach.
Entering as the No. 1 seed with a double-round bye, the Trojans open play in the OVC Tournament on Friday, Mar. 3 at 1 p.m. This marks the 15
th time in the past 16 years Little Rock is in the semifinals of its conference tournament.
For the latest information on Little Rock Basketball, make sure to check out
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2023 Women's Basketball All-OVC Teams
2023 OVC Player of the Year: Sali Kourouma, Little Rock
2023 OVC Defensive Player of the Year: Veronica Charles, Morehead State
2023 OVC Freshman of the Year: Sharnecca Currie-Jelks, UT Martin
2023 OVC Coach of the Year: Joe Foley, Little Rock
First Team
Sali Kourouma, Little Rock
Ajulu Thatha, SIUE
Lariah Washington, Eastern Illinois
Maaliya Owens, Tennessee Tech
Macy McGlone, Eastern Illinois
Erica Haynes-Overton, Tennessee State
Sharnecce Currie-Jelks, UT Martin
Hannah Haithcock, Southern Indiana
Jaliyah Green, Southeast Missouri
Veronica Charles, Morehead State
Second Team
Shae Littleford, UT Martin
Jada Guinn, Tennessee Tech
Tia Harvey, Little Rock
Sandra Lin, Morehead State
Gia Adams, Tennessee State
All-Newcomer Team
Sharnecca Currie-Jelks, UT Martin
Macy McGlone, Eastern Illinois
Erica Haynes-Overton, Tennessee State
Veronica Charles, Morehead State
Jaiyah Harris-Smith, Little Rock
#LittleRocksTeam
