Women's Hoops Open SEC Tournament Play Friday
South Carolina Game Notes | WATCH LIVE | Clear Bag Policy | Interactive Bracket
COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 12/13 South Carolina heads to Greenville, S.C., for the 2019 SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament this week. The second-seeded Gamecocks (21-8, 13-3 SEC) have a bye until Friday night’s quarterfinals, in which they will face either seventh-seeded Georgia or the 10 seed, Arkansas, in a 6 p.m. game at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. South Carolina is the four-time reigning SEC Tournament champion.
SOUTH CAROLINA NOTABLES
• South Carolina women’s basketball is in the midst of its most successful era, claiming at least 20 wins for the eighth-straight season. The Gamecocks have played in the NCAA Elite Eight three times in the last four seasons, including winning the 2017 National Championship, and have been ranked in the AP Top 25 for 129 consecutive weeks, the fifth-longest active streak in the nation. In SEC action, Staley has led the Gamecocks to four SEC regular-season titles and the last four SEC Tournament championships – first in league history to win four straight tournament crowns.
• The Gamecocks finished in the top two of the SEC for the sixth-straight season and played for the league regular-season title on Sunday. After opening the season 4-4 against a schedule that featured three top-10 foes, South Carolina won 13 of its next 14 to climb as high as #11 in the Associated Press Poll. All eight of the Gamecocks’ losses have been to teams ranked in this week’s top 25 with an average RPI of 13.
• South Carolina’s offense is dangerous because it comes from so many places – inside and outside AND from any number of scorers. On the season, 10 different Gamecocks have led the team in scoring at least once – nine in SEC games – and eight have scored 15 ore more points in an SEC game at least once. Five Gamecocks averaged double-figure points in SEC play this season.
• Five Gamecocks picked up postseason honors from the SEC coaches, including three members of the All-SEC Second Team – Te’a Cooper, Tyasha Harris and Alexis Jennings. Destanni Henderson and Victaria Saxton were on the SEC All-Freshman Team. Harris went on to earn second-team recognition from the Associated Press as well.
• Junior point guard Tyasha Harris powered down the stretch of SEC action with five straight double-figure scoring games and three double-doubles during the stretch. She averaged 13.2 points, 8.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.8 steals over the last five games as the Gamecocks played for their share of the regular-season crown.
• Junior Mikiah Herbert Harrigan tied for second in the SEC in blocks per league game (2.1) – matching the SEC Defensive Player of the Year’s numbers – but was not part of the SEC All-Defensive Team. She turned in 12 games of three or more blocks, including six in SEC action.
BY THE NUMBERS
5 Gamecocks who averaged double-figure points in SEC play
6 Consecutive seasons the Gamecocks have finished either first or second in the SEC
7 Assists needed by Tyasha Harris to move into the program’s all-time top five in career assists
8 Gamecocks who scored 15 or more points in at least one SEC game this season
9 Gamecocks who led the team in scoring in an SEC game at least once this season
10.1 Average ranking of the opponent in the Gamecocks’ eight losses this season, including six top-10 teams
12 Different Gamecock starting lineups this season
27 Points needed by Bianca Cuevas-Moore to reach 1,000 in her career
ARKANSAS SERIES NOTES
After winning 10 straight and 11 of the last 12 in the series, the Gamecocks have taken the lead in the all-time series with Arkanas, 18-17. South Carolina has played the Razorbacks in the SEC Tournament three times, with the lone win over Arkansas coming on the road to the Gamecocks’ first SEC Tournament title in 2015.
In the regular-season meeting between these teams in Fayetteville on Feb. 3, South Carolina needed a huge fourth quarter to secure the 87-79 victory. After trailing after each of the first three quarters, the Gamecocks poured in 35 points on 57.1 percent shooting in the final 10 minutes. Freshmen Destanni Henderson and Victaria Saxton responded to the lead of point guard Tyasha Harris early in the period with all three finishing with at least 10 points in the final quarter alone.
GEORGIA SERIES NOTES
Georgia leads the series 33-17, but the Gamecocks have won the last 10 meetings and 11 of the last 12 border battles.
In the Dawn Staley era (beginning 2008-09), South Carolina leads the series 13-6 with at least one team ranked in 16 of those games, including six games in which both teams were ranked.
In the Staley era, the series has been notoriously low scoring with just three games seeing a team score 70 points and four games with neither team reaching 60 points. During this segment of the series, the Gamecocks averaged 58.9 points while the Lady Bulldogs average 53.9 points.
This season, the Gamecocks edged away from the Lady Bulldogs a few points each quarter en route to a 65-57 win on Feb. 14. After Georgia used a 7-0 run to open the fourth quarter and tie the game 53-53, five different Gamecocks scored and three others combined to hold Georgia to one shot on the other end to close the game on a 12-4 surge to victory.
NEUTRAL STANCE
The Gamecocks are 122-87 all-time on a neutral court, including a 67-23 mark in regular-season contests. South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley is 44-21 in games played at neutral sites.
SEC TOURNAMENT TALES
South Carolina is 20-23 all-time in the SEC Tournament since joining the league for the 1991-92 season. In her 11 trips to the event, head coach Dawn Staley is 17-6 with four championships. The Gamecocks have reached the tournament semifinals six times in the last seven seasons and have won the tournament in each of their four trips to the championship game. Reigning champion South Carolina is the only program in league history to win four consecutive SEC Tournament titles.
PREDICTABLY UNPREDICTABLE
The Gamecocks captured their 13 SEC wins in every way imaginable this season.
South Carolina won six scoring in the 70s but also three when scoring in the 60s and four when scoring 80 or more points. Six of their wins came by single digits, leaving seven to come by 10 or more points.
The Gamecocks went 7-2 in league play when making five or more 3-pointers and 6-1 when making fewer than five.
Six wins came when holding an opponent under 60 points, and seven came with the opponent scored 60 or more. Seven wins came when an opponent shot 30-39.9 percent, but four came with an opponent shooting at least 40.0 percent and two others came when holding an opponent under 30.0 percent from the field.
