Injury bug bite again? What Dawn Staley said about Tessa Johnson leaving latest game
South Carolina was already down two players heading into its game against Mississippi State on Thursday night. Then, halfway through the game, the Gamecocks lost another.
Junior guard Tessa Johnson did not play in the second half of the 43-point win. Johnson scored three points and three rebounds in 15 first half minutes.
Staley did not say exactly what was wrong with Johnson, only saying she was “banged up” and that coaches opted to rest her with such a big lead. South Carolina was up 38-22 at halftime.
“She’s just banged up,” Staley said. “We afforded ourselves to get a big lead and not putting her in a situation where she could hurt herself more. She’s just a little sore. So we just opted to keep her out and get her ready to play for the Tennessee game.”
The Gamecocks host the Vols at 3 p.m. Sunday (ABC).
In Thursday’s game, Johnson was on the exercise bike behind South Carolina’s bench for the first few minutes of the third quarter. She made her way to the bench for the rest of the game.
She was wearing what seemed to be a heating pad wrap that covered her lower back and waist.
Johnson is having one of the best seasons of her career. She’s averaging career-high marks in points per game (14.1), field goal percentage (48.3%), 3-point percentage (45.9%) and effective field goal percentage (61.2%). She entered Thursday leading the SEC in the latter two categories.
South Carolina was without both Ta’Niya Latson and Agot Makeer on Thursday. Both players missed their second-straight game with a lower leg injury.
When asked if Makeer and Latson could return against for Sunday’s game with Tennessee, Staley, through a laugh, said Latson was questionable. Latson was listed as questionable on Wednesday’s SEC injury report before being downgraded to out before the Mississippi State game.
This story was originally published February 5, 2026 at 9:29 PM.
