First look: Gamecocks draw all-Carolina showdown for Sweet 16 in Greensboro
South Carolina women’s basketball is Sweet 16 bound.
The top-seeded Gamecocks (31-2) defeated No. 16 Howard and No. 8 Miami on their way path to the Greensboro Regional semifinals, where they will meet up Friday with No. 5 North Carolina (25-6) with a trip to Sunday’s Elite Eight game on the line.
Here’s what you need to know for USC’s upcoming March Madness matchup.
How to watch South Carolina basketball vs. UNC/Arizona
Who: No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks (30-2) vs. No. 5 North Carolina Tar Heels (25-6)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Where: Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C.
Watch on TV and stream: ESPN and ESPN app
Series history: UNC leads 11-8; the teams are 1-1 against each other in the NCAA tournament, with both postseason games coming in the Dawn Staley era. UNC won in 2014’s Sweet 16; USC returned the favor a year later in 2015’s Sweet 16.
Greensboro Regional games Friday
▪ No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 5 North Carolina, 7 p.m. (ESPN)
▪ No. 3 Iowa State vs. No. 10 Creighton, 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
The state of the Gamecocks
Dawn Staley’s squad advanced through the tourney’s first two rounds behind historic defense.
The Gamecocks allowed 54 points across their first two games against Howard and Miami, setting an NCAA women’s basketball tournament record. They set another record by allowing Howard just four points in the first half of their Round 1 game.
USC’s defense is the good news, but its offense could raise a level of concern.
The Gamecocks hit just 29.5% of their shots against Miami in Round 2, a season low. Star forward Aliyah Boston had an uncharacteristic day from the field, connecting on 4 of her 15 shots, while veteran guards Zia Cooke and Destanni Henderson continue to struggle with consistency, as they have at times throughout the season.
USC’s rebounding power and defensive efforts have kept Staley from feeling overly concerned about the lack of offense.
“You can only do what you do,” Staley said. “This is what they’ll say. ‘I’m not intentionally trying to miss.’ They’ll say that. I think you just have to continue to play good basketball, just take good shots. Basketball has a way of just repaying you for doing it the right way and be disciplined.”
“If we’re not making shots, and we’re not defending the rebound, then there is really — it’s an issue. But as long as we’re defending, as long as we’re rebounding the basketball, those two areas really give us a good chance of winning basketball games. The offense is a cherry on top at this point.”
The Gamecocks entered the NCAA tournament as the top overall seed behind an 11-0 record against top 25 teams in the regular season. They lost just two games — to Missouri on Dec. 30 and Kentucky in the SEC tournament championship — both off buzzer-beaters, and tallied regular-season wins over two No. 1 seeds, Stanford and N.C. State.
South Carolina has the depth, experience and resume, but a trip to the Final Four in Minneapolis could rely on improving its offensive output.
The state of the UNC Tar Heels
North Carolina won its first tournament game since 2015 when it defeated No. 12 Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, continuing on a strong season for third-year head coach Courtney Banghart.
The Tar Heels tallied five regular-season losses to four competitive ACC opponents — No. 1 seed N.C. State, No. 5 seeds Notre Dame and Virginia Tech and No. 9 seed Georgia Tech.
UNC upset No. 1 NCAA seed Louisville back in February, with the young squad flashing potential throughout the 2021-22 season.
North Carolina defeated 4-seed Arizona on the Wildcats’ home court 63-45 Monday night. Arizona was the runner-up in last year’s national championship.
The Tar Heels last made the Sweet 16 in that 2015 season and matched up against South Carolina in Greensboro. The Gamecocks won 67-65.
Scouting report: 3 North Carolina players to watch
Deja Kelly, G: The sophomore has emerged as UNC’s star scorer, averaging 16.3 points per game on 36.2% shooting. She dropped 28 points, including four 3-pointers, in the Tar Heels’ opening round win over Stephen F. Austin, and went a perfect 8 of 8 from the free-throw line.
Alyssa Ustby, G: Ustby is a 6-foot-1 guard shooting an efficient 45.1% from the field, averaging 13.2 points per game. The sophomore is UNC’s best rebounder, averaging 8.6 boards per game.
Kennedy Todd-Williams, C: Todd-Williams performs under pressure, scoring 19 in the Tar Heels’ regular-season upset of Louisville and 15 in their Round 1 win over Stephen F. Austin. The 5-foot-11 guard is also a good defender, tallying two blocks and two steals against SFA.
This story was originally published March 22, 2022 at 12:04 AM.
