For the second time this season, Francis Marion University sophomore point guard Kiara Croskey has been named the Conference Carolinas women's basketball Defensive Player of the Week, this time for the week of Feb. 9-15.

A native of Sumter, S.C., Croskey averaged 5.3 steals and 8.7 rebounds per game in three contests last week, while helping hold opponents to a combined 39.5 percent shooting and forcing a combined 58 turnovers.  At the offensive end, she averaged 27.3 points and 4.7 assists per game, while shooting 50.0 percent from the floor and hitting 26-of-32 (81.3%) attempts at the foul line in 35.0 minutes per game.  She averaged 11 points alone in the fourth quarter of those three games.

Her week included a career-high 35 points with 10 rebounds, seven steals, and five assists in a home win over Chowan University.  In that game, she set school records for free throws made and attempted in a game (18-of-20).  She registered 21 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, and five steals in a road win at Converse University and then tallied 26 points, six rebounds, four steals, and three assists on the road at King University – the team's fourth game in 8 days.

For the season, Croskey ranks second in the conference in scoring at 19.0 points per game.  She also leads the league in steals (3.7 per game), is eighth in assists per game (3.5), sixth in assists-to-turnovers ratio (1.1), second in free throw accuracy (.866), seventh in total field goal percentage (.464), 16th in rebounding (6.6 rpg), and 12th in minutes played (33.3 mpg).

Francis Marion (16-8, 13-3) will play at Ferrum College on Wednesday night before hosting North Greenville University for Senior Day on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Croskey is majoring in healthcare administration and is a product of Sumter High School.


       Kiara Croskey