Ruben Palacio/Staff Writer
It might not be a bestseller, but junior Jerica Coley’s record book is definitely a lengthy read. After another season of toppling FIU women’s basketball records, it just got a little longer.
The St. Petersburg, Fla., native’s ascent in basketball is well documented. A breakout in her sophomore campaign where she led her team in every statistic landed her in the national spotlight with a Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and Associated Press All-American award to boot. After yet another stellar year, Coley repeated as the conference player of the year and again received All-America honors.
“It just means that the hard work during the summer kind of paid off a bit,” Coley said. “It just keeps me focused on working hard knowing that the work actually pays off.”
After the stellar sophomore season, Coley, with all the notoriety and hype, wasn’t sure if she could repeat her success. She still wasn’t as good as she wanted to be.
“I didn’t know if I could top last year, but I was hoping to improve and have a better season,” Coley said. “I needed to get more mature mentally, have a better IQ of the game and my shot selection needed to improve. I needed to be more of a leader.”
In the season opener against the University of North Florida, Coley showed she could still dominate every facet of the game by coming up just a rebound and a block shy of a triple-double. Coley finished the game with 21 points, nine rebounds and a school record nine blocks. The nine blocks become even more remarkable when Coley’s stature and position come to mind; the point guard is just 5-foot-7.
“People just don’t expect you to block their shot, they get a little comfortable and that just gets me a few blocks,” Coley said.
While blocking is certainly a strength, it’s her scoring that’s made her a household name in Division I basketball. The All-American led the nation in scoring with a school record 26.3 points per game this past season. Coley and scoring were basically synonymous this season and have been during her tenure as a Panther.
Coley broke the single-season scoring record this year, a record that stood for 31 years. With 840 points, Coley surpassed Karen Turnquest, who netted 820 points back in 1981. “It’s something to think about, it makes it a little cooler.” Coley said about breaking a record that stood for so long.
With 2,135 career points, Coley is in sole possession of second place all-time at FIU. She is just 380 points shy of first place and is on pace to shatter the record and claim first place on the all-time scoring list.
“It will be a big accomplishment and an honor,” Coley said. “I’ll be happy because it’s a milestone to be the career leader in points at any school.”
Interestingly enough, Coley would become just the second Coley to lead a Florida school in career points scored. Her aunt, Tamika Coley, is the UCF women’s basketball record holder for career points with 2,006.
The younger Coley, though, has a shot to join a very rare class in women’s basketball: the 3,000-point club. Coley sits just 865 points shy of becoming just the tenth woman to score 3,000 points in a career. The milestone would put her name next to the likes of Brittney Griner of Baylor, Elena Delle Donne of Delaware, Maya Moore of Connecticut and the all-time leader, Jackie Stiles of Southwest Missouri State.
“That’s pretty elite right there. It would be another milestone and a major accomplishment, Coley said. “I saw it on TV a couple of days ago and not many people have made it there. That would be great.”
Despite the outlandish scoring numbers, Coley remains adamant on not being tagged as just someone who can score.
“I like to play defense, I like to get in there and rebound, I like to block shots,” Coley said. “I just like playing basketball and I want to be known as a complete player, who can score.
Here’s a scary thought for any opponent Coley will face during her senior year: she is not satisfied with her game just yet and plans on getting better.
“I will work out to try and be more efficient,” Coley said. “And become more of a student of the game so I can be smarter and be the type of player that makes people around them better. That will help us win more games.”
“Win more games and win our conference, that’s the main goal,” Coley added. “I want to win our conference tournament and go to the NCAA Tournament.”
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