Quantesha Patterson has enjoyed basketball success in high school, junior college and college while earning praises from her coaches at all three levels.
“She's a very good player and a better person,” said Craig Roden, her coach at Delta State University where Patterson has established herself as one of the nation's top Division II players as a senior. “She's a pleasure to coach.”
His comments were echoed by Bill Brand, Patterson's coach at East Webster and Sharon Thompson, her coach at East Mississippi Community College.
“She's the type of kid you like to coach,” said Brand. Now the Alcorn County school superintendent, Brand was Patterson's coach when she led East Webster to the 2A state championship in 2015 as a senior.
Patterson averaged 24.4 points per game that year, including 39 in a 68-64 overtime victory over West Tallahatchie in the championship game as East Webster finished 31-1.
Thompson, her coach for two years at East Mississippi, called Patterson “The epitome of what coaches want in a student-athlete. She worked hard every day. In two years in our program, I don't think she ever missed a class.”
She was MACJC All-State her two years at EMCC, averaging 19 points and 10.5 rebounds.
After leaving East Mississippi, Patterson took a year off to care for her mother who suffered a stroke. “It was hard, but it was for a good cause,” she said. She kept in shape playing pickup games with high school boys and girls before entering Delta State. “It’s kind of like a bigger version of Scooba (East Mississippi) to me.”
“We feel fortunate to have gotten her,” Roden said.
Despite the year off, Patterson has continued her strong play at the collegiate level. She leads Delta State in scoring (14.9 points per game) rebounds (13.5) and field goal percentage (.621). She leads the Gulf South Conference field goal percentage and is among the national Division II leaders in rebounding and field goal accuracy.
Patterson's scoring and rebounding are up from a year ago, her first at Delta State, when she averaged 11.5 points and 7.6 rebounds. “She worked in the offseason to improve her game,” Roden said.
She was recently named GSC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the third time in her career at DSU.
Patterson, a six-foot forward, hopes to have an opportunity to play in the WNBA. But before that she hopes to bring a national championship to Delta State. “We can go all the way.”
Delta State is ranked 15th with a 14-7 record, 7-4 in Gulf South play. The next two games will be at Walter Sillers Coliseum, hosting Alabama-Huntsville at 5:30 p.m. Thursday and
Auburn-Montgomery at 2 p.m. Saturday.
