Point break: Sessions, Cuevas key to getting ball to A’ja Wilson

As good as A’ja Wilson has been and will continue to be, she’s not any good without the ball in her hands.

Khadijah Sessions and Bianca Cuevas have spent each day since a win over Texas A&M knowing that if they don’t do their job against an Auburn defense designed to stop their passes into the post, the result is on them.

“We’re going to be the key of this team,” Sessions said before No. 2 South Carolina left for Thursday’s contest at Auburn. “We got to know where we’re going with the ball, make sure our players are in the right spots. It’s going to start with us.”

The Tigers (12-6, 2-3 SEC) aren’t trying to be coy. Their system is their system – they’ll press for 40 minutes, create turnovers and score in transition. Auburn averages over 21 forced turnovers per game and nearly 12 steals.

Yes, the Gamecocks have a tremendous advantage in the 6-foot-5 Wilson and 6-4 Alaina Coates. But if Sessions and Cuevas can’t get the ball past the swarm of orange that’s coming at them, Wilson and Coates might as well not be on the floor.

“We understand what they’re going to bring to the table,” Dawn Staley said. “We just got to make sure we’re making good decisions. And it’s a good game for Bianca -- someone that has to play against this style of play for the next few years.”

Sessions and Cuevas helped win the A&M game by playing together at times, forcing steals from the Aggies’ guards before they could get into shooting range and running the other way. Sessions, a three-year starter who can turn her speed and defensive acumen on and off, has helped train Cuevas, the fastest player with the ball in her hands that Staley has ever coached.

As flashy as Cuevas can be, she’s still prone to playing too fast. Going for the big play isn’t always the smart play. Against Auburn, she’ll be asked to play in control as much as possible.

“I think I’ve grown a little bit more,” Cuevas said. “I don’t think I was as bad as I was at turning the ball over.”

She and Sessions handling the press and working the Gamecocks’ system is crucial to staying perfect and atop the SEC standings. USC has been a controlled team thus far, averaging around 15 forced turnovers and committing 13.

Beat the press, get the ball to the giants Auburn can’t stop, get out of there with a win. Don’t, and it’s going to be a long evening. Sessions may have a bit of pain left over from the thigh bruise she suffered against A&M, but she’s ready to go.

“I think she’d rather us win basketball games and her deal with the pain than not play,” Staley said.