South Carolina WBB extends win streak vs. Clemson to 15 games. What we learned
South Carolina earned a point in the Palmetto Series on Tuesday courtesy of a rivalry win from Dawn Staley and the women’s basketball team.
The No. 2 Gamecocks improved to 3-0 on the year after beating Clemson 65-37 at Colonial Life Arena.
An 18-point performance from Joyce Edwards led South Carolina. The sophomore nearly recorded a double-double, finishing with eight rebounds. Three other Gamecocks reached double-digits in the scoring column. Ta’Niya Latson also flirted with a double-double, finishing with 12 points and eight rebounds. Madina Okot had a 12-point, 12-rebound double-double, and Tessa Johnson scored 13 points.
Staley’s squad didn’t play a perfect game and looked disjointed on both sides of the ball at times. The Gamecocks led by just 10 entering the fourth quarter but finished strong (outscoring Clemson 20-2 in the final quarter) to cement the 28-point win.
“The change was just a more disciplined unit out there on the floor that was connected on both sides of the ball,” Staley said. “Reversed the ball with that group a lot more, and then we got good looks. So it just was that simple.
“We locked in defensively, and we rebounded the basketball, and came back down and didn’t take quick shots and moved the defense. When you do that against a team like Clemson, you’re going to really get some good looks by a lot of different people.”
The streak continues
South Carolina’s victory on Tuesday gave the Gamecocks 15-straight wins over Clemson.
USC now holds a 37-33 lead in the all-time series, and Staley is 15-2 against Clemson in her tenure at South Carolina.
“When I signed up for this job, I knew the powerhouse right up the road here with what Dawn’s built,” Clemson head coach Shawn Poppie said. “...That’s what the standard is in our sport, and has been for a little while. It’s our goal and our dream to be matching that. What a game that would be when we get to where we can come in here and compete every single year.”
Clemson’s last win over South Carolina came in 2009. The Tigers lost by an average of 32 points in the previous 14 games against the Gamecocks.
The closest the Tigers have ever come to beating South Carolina since 2009 was when they lost by 12 in 2018.
Paint production makes a difference
The Gamecocks dominated Clemson in the paint Tuesday.
In the first half, South Carolina out-rebounded Clemson 24-14. The Gamecocks also scored 22 points in the paint compared with the Tigers’ 10 in the first half.
South Carolina’s advantage on the boards also helped lead to 11 second-chance points in the first half.
The Gamecocks’ success in the paint continued in the second half. South Carolina finished the game with 48 rebounds to Clemson’s 31. Staley’s squad also outscored Clemson 36-18 in the paint and recorded 16 second-chance points.
“We definitely had a size advantage,” Edwards said. “...We just took advantage of that.”
Gamecocks win despite being down a player
South Carolina, who is already down to just 10 healthy players this season with Chloe Kitts out for the year and Ashlyn Watkins taking the year off, was limited to just nine players against Clemson.
USC announced an hour before tip off that sophomore guard Maddy McDaniel was suspended for the game. Staley provided a brief update after the game, suggesting that McDaniel’s suspension is indefinite.
In McDaniel’s absence, South Carolina’s starting guards got even more minutes.
Johnson, Latson and Raven Johnson all recorded a season-high in minutes. Tessa Johnson led the Gamecocks with the most minutes played (35).
South Carolina WBB’s next four games
- Saturday: vs Southern Cal in The Real SC in Los Angeles 9 p.m. (FOX)
- Wednesday, Nov. 19: vs Winthrop, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
- Sunday, Nov. 23: vs Queens, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
- Wednesday, Nov. 26: vs Duke in Players Era Championship in Las Vegas, 4:30 p.m. (truTV)
This story was originally published November 11, 2025 at 7:41 PM.
