CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Behind a strong week that saw her second career double-figure scoring effort and her career-high totals for steals and minutes played, USC Upstate women's basketball's Kinley Paterson adds the first Big South Freshman of the Week nod to her resume as the league announced its weekly award winners Monday afternoon.
 
A native of Perth, Western Australia, Paterson averaged 6.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.5 steals per game while shooting 46.2 percent from the field. She finished the week ranked third in assists per game, fourth in steals per game, and sixth in assist-to-turnover ratio in the Big South for games played between Jan. 5-11.
 
Against Winthrop, Paterson poured in 10 points, her second career double-figure scoring game, finishing 5-of-9 from the field (55.6 percent). She added five assists—her third contest of the season with five-plus helpers—four rebounds, and four steals. Her four steals marked the most in a game by a Spartan since Dec. 19, 2024, and stand as a career-high.
 
Paterson's Freshman of the Week accolade marks the 21^st such accolade for a Spartan since joining the Big South ahead of the 2018-19 campaign. She joins McKinley Brooks-Sumpter, Zora Fray-Chinn, Cassie Gallagher (six times), Terah Harness, Gwen Jenkins (two times), Quadijah Moore, and Rachel Rose (eight times) in capturing the honor.
 
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