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Women's Hoops In Fort Myers for Top-15 Battle
Women's Basketball  . 

Women's Hoops In Fort Myers for Top-15 Battle

COLUMBIA, S.C. – No. 4/5 South Carolina heads to Fort Myers, FL, to face No. 15/15 Iowa State on Thanksgiving Day in the first game of the Elevance Health Fort Myers Tipoff.

Gamecock Notables

  • South Carolina’s schedule includes 13 games against nationally ranked opponents. Through six games, the Gamecocks’ past opponents’ .852 winning percentage is the sixth highest in the nation, and no other ranked team is in the top 10. In looking at the whole 30-game schedule, South Carolina ranks fifth in opponent winning percentage (.792).

  • The Gamecock bench is eighth in the nation in scoring at 37.2 points per game and includes three players averaging at least 9.0 points, led by MiLaysia Fulwiley’s 10.7 points per game. The group is outscoring its counter parts by 21.3 points per game and accounts for 48.0 percent of the total offense.

  • South Carolina continues to be a rebounding force this season, ranking 15th in the nation with 45.3 boards per game. The team effort features four players with at least 4.0 rebounds per game. The Gamecocks’ 18.3 offensive boards per game are eighth in the country and have yielded 18.2 points per game. According to Her Hoop Stats, South Carolina is 12th in the nation with a 44.2 percent offensive rebounding rate.

  • Ranked 15th in the nation with 5.7 blocks per game as a team, 11 Gamecocks have blocked at least one shot this season. Ashlyn Watkins is ninth in the SEC with her team-best 1.6 blocks per game, but the Gamecock guards are doing their part with 12 of the team’s 34 total blocks this season.

  • Fifth-year guard Te-Hina Paopao’s career-best 14.2 points per game leads the Gamecocks as does her 3.3 assists per game. Her 50.0 percent 3-point shooting is 33rd in the nation and includes a perfect 4-of-4 effort at #5/6 UCLA on Sunday. She has scored in double figures four times this season, including both games against ranked opponents, against whom she averages 20.5 points on 58.6 percent shooting. Her career 41.2 percent 3-point shooting is 11th among active Div. I players.

  • NCAA Final Four All-Tournament selection Tessa Johnson has carried that momentum into this season, averaging 9.3 points on 50.0 percent shooting. In her last two games, she averaged 11.0 points on 53.3 percent shooting, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range.

 

By the Numbers
4 – South Carolina has lost just four  of its 118 games over the last four seasons (beginning 2021-22).

13.0 – The Gamecocks’ 13.0 turnovers per game are the fewest in the SEC and rank 27th in the nation.

100 – South Carolina’s 100 straight weeks in the AP Top 10 is the longest active streak in the nation and the 11th longest in the history of the poll.

 

The Iowa State Series
The Gamecocks and Cyclones have met one other time in women’s basketball when South Carolina traveled to Ames for an SEC/Big 12 Challenge matchup on Dec. 6, 2020. The Gamecocks jumped out to a 10-point lead in the opening quarter and rode a 50.0 percent 3-point shooting night to the 83-65 victory.

 

Neutral Stance
The Gamecocks are 171-96 (.640) all-time on a neutral court. South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley is 88-27 in games played at neutral sites (.765), including a 32-10 (.762) record in regular-season outings on neutral courts.

 

Ranking Review
South Carolina’s first loss in 44 games moved the Gamecocks to No. 4 in this week’s AP Poll and No. 5 in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches’ Poll.

It marks the Gamecocks 100th consecutive entry in the AP top 10, beginning with the 2019-20 preseason poll. It is the longest active streak and the 11th longest in the history of that poll. Their 231 straight appearances in the AP Poll, dating back to Dec. 10, 2012, marks the second-longest active streak in the nation and the ninth longest all-time (8th place, Notre Dame, 234).

In the USA Today/WBCA Coaches’ Poll, South Carolina has been in the top 10 since claiming the No. 10 spot in the 2019-20 preseason poll.

All About Balance
Like last season, South Carolina’s greatest asset is its depth. Returning nine of 11 letterwinners from last season’s undefeated National Championship team, the 2024-25 roster features six Gamecocks who averaged at least 18.0 minutes and scored at least 8.1 points per game last season.

This season, 10 Gamecocks have played at least 15.0 minutes per game. Six average at least 7.0 point,s and four have grabbed at least 4.0 rebounds per game. Nine Gamecocks have scored in double figures at least once, and three have led the team in scoring at least once.

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