Talaysia Cooper
| No. 55 – Tennessee Lady Volunteers | |
|---|---|
| Position | Guard |
| League | Southeastern Conference |
| Personal information | |
| Born | July 17, 2004 |
| Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Career information | |
| High school | East Clarendon (Turbeville, South Carolina) |
| College |
|
| Career highlights | |
| |
Talaysia Cooper (born July 17, 2004) is an American college basketball player for the Tennessee Lady Vols of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
High school career
Cooper played for East Clarendon in Turbeville. As a junior, she averaged 23.7 points, 12.8 rebounds, and 8 assists, winning South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year in 2021. [1] Cooper was a five-star recruit and the number 18 recruit in the class of 2022.[2] In October 2021, Cooper committed to South Carolina. [3] Cooper scored over 3,000 points in high school, and was named a McDonald's All-American. [4]
College career
As a freshman, Cooper played in a reserve role, averaging 2.9 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists.[5] On December 29 2022, she scored a career-high 15 points against Texas A&M.[6] At the end of the season, Cooper announced that she would be transferring. In July 2023, she committed to Tennessee. Because she left after the transfer portal closed, Cooper sat out the 2023–24 season. [7]
In her redshirt sophomore season, she averaged 16.6 points which led the team. [8] Cooper had her first career double-double against Middle Tennessee on November 12 2024, scoring 18 points and 10 rebounds. [9] A few days later, she scored a career-high 33 points against Liberty. [10] She was subsequently named SEC and USBWA Player of the Week for her performance. [11] Cooper led the SEC in total steals, with 88 in the season, and was named to the SEC All-Defensive team. [12]
Career statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
College
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | South Carolina | 24 | 0 | 8.4 | 38.9 | 23.8 | 38.1 | 1.8 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 2.9 |
| 2023–24 | Tennessee | did not play - redshirted | |||||||||||
| 2024–25 | Tennessee | 34 | 27 | 23.5 | 44.7 | 26.7 | 67.1 | 5.6 | 3.2 | 3.1 | 0.7 | 3.5 | 16.6 |
| Career | 71 | 37 | 18.6 | 44.0 | 28.1 | 61.7 | 4.4 | 2.7 | 2.2 | 0.5 | 2.5 | 11.6 | |
| Statistics retrieved from Sports-Reference.[13] | |||||||||||||
References
- ^ Boynton, Eric. "What to expect from South Carolina coach Dawn Staley's new 5-star, in-state signee". The Greenville News. Retrieved 2026-01-07.
- ^ "2022 SportsCenter NEXT 100 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2026-01-07.
- ^ Owens, Michael; McDonald, Gabe (2021-10-23). "East Clarendon's Talaysia Cooper commits to South Carolina". Retrieved 2026-01-07.
- ^ ""Giving her her flowers while she can still smell them": Cooper scores 3,000th point as East Clarendon retires her jersey". The Sumter Item. Retrieved 2026-01-07.
- ^ Hall, Cora. "Talaysia Cooper transfers to Lady Vols basketball after freshman year at South Carolina". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ "Cooke, No. 1 South Carolina run past Texas A&M 76-34". AP News. 2022-12-30. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ Hall, Cora. "Talaysia Cooper transfers to Lady Vols basketball after freshman year at South Carolina". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ Edmands, Tyler. "Talaysia Cooper embraces pressure, growth for Lady Vols basketball". The Daily Beacon. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ "Tennessee's Talaysia Cooper leads the Week 2 women's basketball starting five | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ Church, Jack. "Talaysia Cooper's career-high day leads Lady Vols basketball to win over Liberty". The Daily Beacon. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ Trainer, Eric. "Cooper Named SEC, USBWA Player of the Week". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ Trainer, Eric. "Cooper Snares All-SEC, All-Defensive Team Honors". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
- ^ "Talaysia Cooper College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved January 7, 2026.