Anticipated South Carolina vs UConn women’s basketball game canceled. Here’s why
.JPG "In this photo provided by Bahamas Visual Services, South Carolina forward Victaria Saxton (5) defends against UConn guard Paige Bueckers (5) during an NCAA college basketball game at Paradise Island, Bahamas, Monday, Nov. 22, 2021.")
The South Carolina women’s basketball team won’t be playing UConn on Thursday after all, with head coach Dawn Staley saying in a statement that “it has become more important to complete our SEC schedule.”
USC announced in a release Sunday that the Gamecocks have canceled the matchup with UConn that was scheduled for Thursday at Colonial Life Arena, and the Gamecocks will instead play Ole Miss.
This year’s USC-UConn game will not be made up.
The South Carolina-Ole Miss game will tip at 6 p.m. Thursday and will be televised on ESPN. It is the same time and TV assignment that had been designated for the UConn matchup.
Tickets for the original game between South Carolina and UConn will be honored for the rescheduled matchup with Ole Miss, according to a school statement.
The original game scheduled between South Carolina and Ole Miss was postponed on Jan. 2 due to COVID-19 issues in the Rebels’ program.
“I know our fans always enjoy the UConn game, and our team enjoys the rivalry; but I have always said that our conference season and especially our goal of another SEC championship is more central to our program,” Staley said in a statement Sunday night. “As we approach the second half of league play next month, it has become more important to complete our SEC schedule to keep ourselves in the running for a conference title. This Thursday is one of the few dates Ole Miss has open, so, with my team’s best interest at heart, I started the conversations that led us to this point.”
South Carolina (17-1) has been No. 1 in the Associated Press Top 25 all season long. UConn (9-3) was No. 9 in the latest poll. The Gamecocks were the No. 1 overall seed in ESPN’s latest Bracketology projections for the NCAA tournament, with the Huskies a No. 4 seed.
UConn agreed to the schedule change, given the Huskies have also dealt with postponements in Big East play. UConn will play conference opponent DePaul on Wednesday instead of the South Carolina game.
“Dawn reached out to me about postponing the series for this season,” UConn head coach Geno Auriemma said Sunday night in a statement. “It’s a priority for South Carolina to make up SEC games, so this is the best decision for them right now. We know a lot of fans were excited for this game, but we look forward to continuing the series with South Carolina in future seasons.”
This week’s game was the last in the previous home-and-home agreement between South Carolina and UConn, with the two signing a new agreement for the next two seasons over the summer. UConn’s release stated the two will work to reschedule this year’s game in a future season.
South Carolina and UConn played once this season on Nov. 22 for the Battle 4 Atlantis Championship in Paradise Island, Bahamas. The Gamecocks won over the then-No. 2 Huskies 73-57.
South Carolina is second in the SEC standings behind Tennessee, which hasn’t lost an SEC game. The Gamecocks are 5-1 in the conference after dropping their SEC opener at Missouri on Dec. 30, while the Vols are 7-0 in conference play. Thursday’s opponent, Ole Miss, is also 5-1 in the conference.
SEC women’s basketball standings
As of Sunday night, with conference record, then overall record listed
- Tennessee (7-0, 18-1)
- South Carolina (5-1, 17-1)
- Ole Miss (5-1, 17-2)
- LSU (5-2, 17-3)
- Florida (5-2, 15-5)
- Georgia (4-3, 15-4)
- Missouri (4-3, 15-5)
- Arkansas (3-3, 13-6)
- Mississippi State (2-4, 11-7)
- Alabama (2-6, 11-8)
- Kentucky (1-4, 8-7)
- Vanderbilt (1-4, 10-9)
- Texas A&M (1-6, 11-8)
- Auburn (0-6, 8-9)
This story was originally published January 23, 2022 at 8:38 PM.
