With ‘a shift in understanding,’ Gamecock offense puts up points at torrid pace
Six weeks ago, South Carolina women’s basketball delivered its worst offensive output in more than two and a half years, putting up just 46 points in a performance against N.C. State that had coach Dawn Staley taking players to task for “selfish, untamable” play.
Around that time, Staley and the Gamecocks often spoke about finding the team’s identity, both on offense and defense. All the talent and pieces were there, they said. They just needed to click together in just the right way.
Fast forward to mid-January, and Staley has gone from frustrated to optimistic — even excited.
“I think the roles are being seen a little more clear. It doesn’t always mean they make the right decisions, but I think they really understand what is necessary for them and us to be successful,” Staley said Monday after the Gamecocks defeated No. 15 Arkansas 104-82. “And sometimes that is giving up the good shot for a great shot. Or just being connected from a defensive standpoint. So I think for the most part, there’s a shift in that understanding.”
In particular, the No. 4 Gamecocks have bounced back from those offensive woes against N.C. State to put up points in record bunches. With a 106-43 victory over Vanderbilt before beating Arkansas, South Carolina has now passed the century mark four times this season, the most in program history since the 1978-79 campaign. It’s also the first time the Gamecocks have had back-to-back 100-point performances in 40 years.
And perhaps even more impressive, it’s the first time since South Carolina joined the SEC in 1991-92 that it’s had multiple 100-point games in conference play in one season — as many as the program had against SEC opponents from 2014 to 2020.
“It’s definitely something that we’ve been working on,” star sophomore forward Aliyah Boston said of the team figuring itself out since N.C. State. “We’ve talked a lot about it within the team, just making sure that everyone kind of knows ... their roles and kind of where they need to be and what needs to happen. But as games go on, we kind of just continue to work to keep at it. And in practice we also work on that, making sure everyone kind of knows where they’re at and knows what they’re doing.”
It’s all translated to an offense averaging 86.2 points per game, a top-10 mark in the country and on pace to smash the program record of 82.0 in 2019-20. The Gamecocks are playing at a faster pace than ever and are still the most efficient they’ve been on offense in at least five years, according to Her Hoop Stats.
“I’m pleased and encouraged that we are moving towards an identity on defense, and we’re moving towards just having some balance offensively, and that’s a good place to be,” Staley said.
That defensive identity is something Staley has stressed as key, saying the offense will follow. And sure enough, the Gamecocks have put up strong defensive numbers through these past two 100-point victories. USC held Vandy to just 29.2% shooting from the field. And Arkansas, a notoriously 3-point reliant team, got off just 13 attempts from beyond the arc, compared to its season average of more than 25 per game.
“What I did see — I saw it in this game and I saw it in the Vandy game, which was engagement. We were engaged on the defensive side of the ball. Meaning they were making shots, but it wasn’t uncontested shots. We were in the play, we forced Arkansas into just 13 3-point attempts. That’s a stat to me that I’m truly proud of our team, because we were always talking about having them 2 us rather than 3 us,” Staley said.
NEXT USC BASKETBALL GAME
Who: No. 4 South Carolina (10-1, 5-0 SEC) vs. No. 22 Georgia (12-1, 4-1 SEC)
When: 6:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Colonial Life Arena
Watch: SEC Network
