How the South Carolina Gamecocks willed their way to a win over Tennessee
South Carolina coach Dawn Staley kept it real during her postgame press conference Thursday night.
“I thought we were gonna lose this game.”
The undefeated Gamecocks trailed 28-25 to unranked Tennessee at halftime in Knoxville. Staley described USC’s pregame shootaround as “sluggish” and said she felt the championship spirit of Pat Summitt closing in. The orange, white and blue banners lining the ceiling of Thompson-Boling Arena provide a constant reminder of Tennessee’s winning legacy. Opponents face off against the current Lady Vols roster and accolades of years past.
The Gamecocks made the fourth quarter their own Thursday, pulling away from a 48-48 tie to start the period and ending with a 66-55 victory. It wasn’t USC’s tightest finish of the season (that goes to last month’s six-point win over LSU), but it was the first time Staley conceded such a pessimistic piece of her inner dialogue.
Still, her No. 1 squad managed to pull through, proving once again it’s made for big moments.
“The Freshies played with a lot of pressure,” Staley said Sunday after a fourth straight victory over UConn. “This team doesn’t play with a lot of pressure. They just play a lot free. And I’m used to pressure. ‘Cause it’s pressure. You’re 23-0. There’s pressure that comes with that. And I guess we’re taking on all the pressures as coaches and allowing them to play their game.”
The Freshies — USC’s 2019 recruiting class of Aliyah Boston, Laetecia Amihere, Olivia Thompson, Brea Beal and Zia Cooke — finished their collegiate careers with a 129-9 record, including three SEC Tournament titles, three Final Fours and a national championship. But one of those nine losses came at the hands of the Lady Vols in Knoxville in 2021. Thursday night’s game felt eerily similar to Staley.
But maybe she forgot how much this team hates to lose — not that it has much experience. These Gamecocks — now 24-0 — hate the idea of losing so much that they’re able to will themselves through situations like being down 28-25, 29-26 (at then-No. 24 North Carolina) and 41-36 (at then-No. 9 LSU).
“We’re complete competitors to the next level,” junior guard Bree Hall said. “We’re never hanging our heads. As down as we get, we’re never like, ‘Oh yeah, we’re out of the game.’ We’re always like, “All right, we can make a comeback. Let’s score, and let’s get a stop.’”
Hall embodied that mindset, hitting USC’s second 3-pointer of the night about halfway through the fourth quarter to put the Gamecocks up by eight. The basket also marked Hall’s second make of the night. Hall wasn’t “on” Thursday night, she said, but she did hit a big shot at an opportune time.
South Carolina point guard Raven Johnson led the team in rebounds with 15, snagging more boards than any of USC’s post players. Starting center Kamilla Cardoso made her triumphant return to the Gamecocks after a week abroad with Brazil Basketball, scoring a team-high 18 points along with 10 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and a steal.
Staley said getting Cardoso more touches in the second half was “the difference-maker in the game.” And sixth woman Ashlyn Watkins followed up four consecutive starts with a stellar performance off the bench: 14 points, 10 rebounds, an assist, a block and four steals.
“They’re creating something that we really haven’t had because they’ve got the freedom to do what they want,” Staley told The State of her 2023-24 team in December. “They still have the knowledge of discipline and how we want to play, but they’ve got the creativeness to play how it makes them feel good in a certain style.”
This story was originally published February 16, 2024 at 7:30 AM.
