Mitchell’s super finish lifts USC

GREENSBORO, N.C.

SOUTH CAROLINA trailed Florida State by a pair late in Sunday’s NCAA Tournament game at the Greensboro Coliseum when Dawn Staley determined it was time for Tiffany Mitchell to drive the Gamecocks bus to the women’s basketball Final Four.

Staley, the USC coach, and Mitchell, the Gamecocks star, have developed a method of non-verbal communication that serves everyone well.

“I just look at her and she looks at me,” Mitchell said, “and I’m just like, ‘All right, it’s time.’”

Mitchell Time turned into an eye-opening stretch of plays over four consecutive USC possessions that all but sealed the 80-74 victory, a Greensboro Regional championship and the program’s first berth in the Final Four.

“When a guard does it, it’s kind of special because Florida State knew we were going to Tiffany Mitchell,” Staley said. “When you know you’re coming to a certain player and she still plays through knowing it, I think is a tribute to Tiffany and her will and her determination not to deny us going to the Final Four.”

As impressive as Mitchell was in producing the game-winning layup in the final 5 seconds of Friday’s Sweet 16 win against North Carolina, her performance was even more remarkable at the end of Sunday’s game.

USC trailed 67-65 with 3 minutes remaining when Mitchell went to work, elevating herself above every other player on the court while alleviating any pressure in the moment.

Staley likes to say the end of games is when her star player finds a phone booth, puts a big “S” on her chest and emerges as the “Superwoman” of college basketball.

Here was “Superwoman’s” four-step process to winning the biggest game in USC women’s basketball history:

▪  First, she drove the middle of the lane and drew a Florida State defender toward her. Mitchell dropped a perfect pass to Aleighsa Welch, who scored an open layup to tie the game at 67 with 2:42 remaining.

▪  After Florida State missed a layup, Mitchell found an open lane and scored on a driving left-handed scoop shot for a 69-67 lead with 1:59 to go.

▪  Florida State again missed a shot, and Mitchell spotted up in the left corner where she sank her only 3-pointer for a 72-67 lead with 1:20 remaining.

▪  After Florida State made two free throws, Mitchell again drove the lane. This time she missed a close-range jump shot. Mitchell then alertly grabbed the rebound and was fouled. Her two free throws with 28 seconds remaining gave USC an insurmountable 74-69 lead.

With the game’s outcome on the line, Mitchell scored on a 3-point basket, a two-pointer, sank two free throws and added an assist and rebound to her final line. She finished the game with team-leading totals in points (21), rebounds (six), assists (five) and blocked shots (two).

“As much as we like the whole team concept, you’ve got to have players who relish the opportunity to shine in those moments,” Staley said. “Tiffany’s one who I know her work ethic. I know how much she puts into the game. Those are her moments to shine because she sets herself up for that.”

To USC fans, and even Mitchell’s teammates, it is a sight to behold.

“At the end of the game, there is no other person I would want (the ball) in her hands more than Tiffany Mitchell,” Welch said. “She made plays. That’s the key to being a star, somebody who makes plays.”

Mitchell has been making plays for most of her three seasons at USC. She is an All-American. She is the two-time SEC Player of the Year. She has led USC in scoring each of the past two seasons.

No points she scored and no plays she made in her career were bigger than those Mitchell produced in the Greensboro Regional. So when Staley accepted hugs from each of her players minutes after Sunday’s game, the longest and most heartfelt was shared with Mitchell.

Then Mitchell took her turn climbing the ladder at one end of the court to clip and remove one strand of net as a keepsake. Mitchell snipped away only to see the strand slip through her fingers and drop to the floor.

Even “Superwoman” has human qualities – just not at the end of close games.

This story was originally published March 29, 2015 at 11:27 PM with the headline "Mitchell’s super finish lifts USC."