What to take away from USC WBB’s starting lineup, rotation in exhibition win
The outside world got its first look at the 2023-24 South Carolina women’s basketball team Sunday. And the 2023-24 South Carolina women’s basketball team got its first taste of outside competition.
It went well. The Gamecocks routed the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 100-55 at Colonial Life Arena, and coach Dawn Staley was pleased overall with the showing.
USC’s first unofficial starting lineup included guards Te-Hina Paopao, Raven Johnson and Bree Hall along with forward Sania Feagin and center Kamilla Cardoso. Whether that lineup and subsequent substitution patterns carry over into the regular season remains to be seen.
Still, one shouldn’t read too much into exhibition starting lineups. Take last year’s game against Benedict, for instance. Feagin and Hall started that exhibition and then didn’t start a single regular-season game.
But it might be safe to say four of the five starters against Rutgers — Paopao, Johnson, Cardoso, and Hall — could become mainstays in the first lineup this season.
Sunday’s starters haven’t played together a lot, Staley said, because of uncertainty at the other post spot alongside Cardoso. (Aliyah Boston and Victaria Saxton were USC’s starting post players last year.) Feagin, a junior, started against Rutgers but was subbed out with sophomore Ashlyn Watkins after two minutes. Feagin played 15 total minutes, the least among Sunday’s starters.
“Sania Feagin just started to separate herself from some other people for starting,” Staley said. “Not necessarily for playing, just for starting the basketball game. And she’s been around our program a long time, so she really has an understanding of what we want.
“And in fairness to her, we had been playing her on the perimeter a lot. So we moved her to that four spot, and she actually was just more energized having played on the perimeter. So hopefully it will be a big hit for us if she ends up starting or if she ends up playing on the perimeter for us.”
Aside from getting transfer point guard Kierra Fletcher acclimated last year to her first and only season at South Carolina, there weren’t really any personnel question marks Staley had to resolve. Boston, Saxton, Brea Beal and Zia Cooke were experienced, national championship-winning and undisputed starters. Things are different this year.
The Gamecocks returned six players from their 2023 Final Four team — Johnson, Hall, Feagin, Cardoso, Watkins and Chloe Kitts — and brought in five newcomers: transfers Paopao (Oregon) and Sakima Walker (Northwest Florida State College) along with highly touted freshmen MiLaysia Fulwiley (No. 13 in the class of 2023), Tessa Johnson (No. 25) and Sahnya Jah (No. 40).
South Carolina has talent. Just ask Rutgers coach Coquese Washington.
“It’s still South Carolina,” she said. “The names and faces change, but they’re a very, very talented team. They play hard. They play fast. They’ve got some shooters on the roster now, so I think that addition is gonna make them a really formidable opponent. And they’ll only get better as the season goes along.”
Staley acknowledged that this squad is more guard-oriented than the South Carolina teams of recent memory where post play was the greatest strength.
There’s no question that Cardoso can command the paint. She overpowered double teams from Rutgers en route to an impressive statline Sunday. But the guard play opens USC up to more scoring opportunities all over the court. The Gamecocks shot 50.6% from the field and 37% from 3-point range in the exhibition.
There were some really great individual performances Sunday. Take Cardoso’s 17 points, five rebounds and four assists. Or the 16 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals from Fulwiley (the second Gamecock off the bench). Or Raven Johnson’s seven points, four rebounds and would-be career-high nine assists. There’s also the double double (10 points and 10 rebounds) from Kitts (the fourth Gamecock off the bench).
But this group has to find ways to play more cohesively, Staley said.
“It’s cool getting to know them in that way and getting to kind of shape this team into the team that we know that can live up to its potential. I want all the teams that I’ve been around to live up to our potential. What that is right now, I don’t know.
“... I like it, though. I like the challenge of getting them to make that commitment to the team.”
USC exhibition game: By the numbers
——Starters——
Te-Hina Paopao: six points (2-of-7 and 2-of-6 from three), four defensive rebounds and one assist in 23 minutes
Bree Hall: 10 points (4-of-8 and 2-of-4 from three), three rebounds and two assists in 21 minutes
Raven Johnson: seven points (3-of-7 and 1-of-2 from three), four defensive rebounds, nine assists, three turnovers and four steals in 20 minutes
Sania Feagin: eight points (4-of-4), one rebound, three assists, one turnover in 15 minutes
Kamilla Cardoso: 17 points (8-11 and a three throw), five rebounds (four on defense), four assists, one turnover, one block in 19 minutes
——First four off the bench——
Ashlyn Watkins: six points (3-of-6), six rebounds, two assists, one turnover and four blocks in 17 minutes
MiLaysia Fulwiley: 16 points (6-of-13 and 4-of-9 from three), six rebounds, five assists, five turnovers and three steals in 25 minutes
Tessa Johnson: nine points, (3-of-8, 1-of-5 from three and two free throws), one rebound, three assists and four steals in 19 minutes
Chloe Kitts: 10 points (5-of-9, 0-of-1 from three), 10 rebounds, two assists, two turnovers and three blocks in 18 minutes
——Last ones in——
Sahnya Jah: five points (2-of-6 and a free throw), four rebounds, one assist and one turnover in 11 minutes
Sakima Walker: six points (3-of-6) and one rebound in 11 minutes
This story was originally published October 23, 2023 at 2:19 PM.
