South Carolina WBB player back with team after mid-year suspension
Maddy McDaniel is back with the South Carolina women’s basketball team.
McDaniel, a sophomore guard, had her indefinite suspension from the team lifted and is available to practice and play in games going forward as of Thursday.
“Maddy has been reinstated from her suspension,” a USC spokesperson told The State, adding that they’ve been told of “no other restrictions” for McDaniel.
South Carolina WBB teased the news of McDaniel’s return with a post on X captioned “10/10” indicating all 10 healthy players on this year’s team were now available. In McDaniel’s absence, the Gamecocks were down to nine players.
McDaniel missed three games because of her suspension: Wins against Clemson, No. 8 Southern Cal and Winthrop on Wednesday night. Coach Dawn Staley has declined to share why McDaniel was suspended from the team.
McDaniel has played in just one game for the Gamecocks this year. She left South Carolina’s season opener against Grand Canyon early after a leg injury and missed the following game but was seen on the bench with a brace on her right knee.
McDaniel averaged 3.1 points and 1.7 assists per game last year off the bench in 10 minutes per game. She is a former top 20 national recruit from Maryland.
The return of McDaniel brings South Carolina back up to 10 healthy players at the perfect time. The Gamecocks (5-0) will be traveling to Las Vegas next week, where they’ll face high-level opponents in Duke and No. 4 Texas or No. 3 UCLA in the Players Era Championship event.
USC’s next game is Sunday at home vs. Queens (2 p.m., SECN+).
The State’s Michael Sauls contributed reporting.
This story was originally published November 20, 2025 at 2:38 PM.
