A’ja Wilson update

A’ja Wilson’s sudden case of vertigo kept her at home on Sunday as South Carolina women’s basketball faced Tennessee in its regular season finale.

Looking ahead, USC coach Dawn Staley said she isn’t sure if Wilson will be able to play in the SEC tournament next weekend, as Wilson, the team’s coaching staff and its medical personnel deal with an illness that could linger, recur or vanish with seemingly no cause.

“I’ll be on bended knee that she’ll back on Friday. I don’t know. First and foremost is her health and making sure that she’s healthy. We’re just going to take it day by day, because vertigo isn’t anything you play around with,” Staley said Sunday after the game.

As recently as this past Thursday, Wilson was enthusiastically talking about facing Tennessee after she missed the Gamecocks’ first matchup with the Lady Vols with a sprained ankle. Staley said Wilson first began to experience the symptoms of vertigo Friday, though an official confirmation of the diagnosis didn’t come until Saturday.

Wilson did not travel with the team as it flew to Knoxville, instead staying in Columbia and receiving treatment, a team spokesperson said.

Staley said Sunday that Wilson has suffered from vertigo before, but any previous occurrences happened in the offseason.

“It’s probably something that she’s dealt with, not during the season. This is the first time during the season that we’ve had to deal with it,” Staley said.

South Carolina will play in the quarterfinals of the SEC tournament on Friday, against the winner of a Thursday game between Tennessee and Auburn.

This story was originally published February 25, 2018 at 7:14 PM with the headline "A’ja Wilson update."