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Jan. 1, 2006

THE BASICS
After playing its first 11 games either at home or on a neutral court, the Gamecocks play their first true road game of the year when they travel to the Upstate to battle Clemson at 7 p.m. on Jan. 2.

THE COACHES
Susan Walvius is in her ninth year at the helm of the South Carolina women’s basketball program and her 16th year overall as a head coach. Prior to USC, she coached at Virginia Commonwealth and West Virginia. The 2002 SEC Coach of the Year led the Gamecocks to consecutive top-20 national finishes and NCAA tournament appearances in 2002 and 2003. Her 2002 squad advanced to the Elite Eight. Cristy McKinney is in her first year at Clemson after spending 12 seasons as the head coach at Rice. In the 11 seasons prior to McKinney’s arrival in Houston, the Lady Owl program experienced just two winning seasons. After her arrival, Rice had a record of .500 or better in 10 of 12 seasons. Last season, Rice had a 24-9 overall record, won the WAC Tournament crown, and shared the WAC regular season title with Louisiana Tech after recording a 14-4 conference mark. McKinney was subsequently named WAC Coach of the Year.

COACHING QUICK HITS
South Carolina
Susan Walvius
Alma Mater Virginia Tech, 1986
USC Record 122-120/9th year
Overall Record 220-221/16th year

Clemson
Cristy McKinney
Alma Mater N.C. State, 1979
Clemson Record 6-6/1st year
Overall Record 222-145/13th year

CAROLINA FROM A DISTANCE
Height, experience and balanced scoring are the name of the game for South Carolina, as the Gamecocks boast eight players that stand 6-0 or taller and rank as the 15th-tallest team in the nation. Carolina’s roster is dotted by eight juniors and one senior, but freshman Demetress Adams has emerged as an early bright spot, ranking among the team leaders in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots and steals. South Carolina enters Monday’s battle with Clemson on a six-game winning streak in which the Gamecocks have outscored their six opponents (one of which was No. 14 Minnesota) by an average margin of 40.2 points per game.

CLEMSON FROM A DISTANCE
Defense and free throw shooting have been a concern for Clemson in the early going this year, but the play of sophomore guard Tasha Taylor and senior guard Julie Talley has not, as Taylor ranks among the national leaders in assists per game and Talley is one of the better three-point shooters in the country. The Tigers have faced a pair of SEC teams this season, suffering an 86-49 loss to Vanderbilt and a 70-66 setback at the hands of Ole Miss.

COMMON OPPONENTS
South Carolina and Clemson have a pair of opponents in common, as both the Gamecocks and Tigers claimed wins over Winthrop and Savannah State this season. Carolina drilled Winthrop, 73-42 early in the season, with Clemson needing a buzzer-beater from freshman Susan Yenser to lift the Tigers to a 52-51 win over the Lady Eagles. Both the Gamecocks and Tigers dispatched Savannah State with ease, with Carolina claiming a 94-37 win and Clemson emerging with a 97-62 victory.

NEVER A DULL MOMENT
The recent history between South Carolina and Clemson has been one of high scoring thrills and late-game heroics. Each of the last two meetings between the two schools has resulted in overtime finishes, with the Tigers claiming a 103-99 win at Littlejohn Coliseum in 2003 and an 87-79 triumph at the Colonial Center in 2004.

REPRESENTING THE PALMETTO STATE
There is little doubt that South Carolina and Clemson are the two premier institutions in the Palmetto State. In fact, a total of 11 players originally from the State of South Carolina will be in action Monday, with seven playing for the Gamecocks and four playing for the Tigers.

CAROLINA INJURY UPDATE
South Carolina freshman forward Demetress Adams is probable to play against the Tigers Monday after injuring her hand in the early going of the Gamecocks’ win over Western Carolina last Thursday. Adams came off the bench and played less than a minute before sustaining her injury. She did not return to the game.

WALVIUS IN NON-CONFERENCE GAMES
Entering Monday’s game, the Gamecocks have compiled an 88-42 record in regular-season non-conference games under Susan Walvius, including a 57-9 mark in non-conference games played in Columbia.

A CAROLINA WIN WOULD:
• Extend the Gamecocks’ current winning streak to seven games, marking the team’s longest such streak since Carolina won eight straight during the non-conference portion of the 2003-04 schedule.
• Mark the Gamecocks’ second win in their last four meetings with Clemson.
• Mark Carolina’s second win over a team from one of the elite basketball conferences this year. The Gamecocks handed Big Ten power and 14th-ranked Minnesota a 79-61 defeat on Dec. 13.
• Be the fifth time Carolina has knocked off Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum in 26 meetings at the facility.
• Mark Susan Walvius’ first win over Clemson at Littlejohn in her fifth trip to the facility.

A DECEMBER TO REMEMBER, GAMECOCKS GO 6-0
South Carolina enters the new year riding the crest of a perfect 6-0 showing in the month of December. Following are some of the key numbers behind Carolina’s six-game tear:
• The Gamecocks scored an average of 84.5 points per game while limiting the opposition to 44.3 points per game, for an average scoring margin of +40.2.
• Carolina limited the opposition to 86-317 shooting from the field (.271 pct.)
• The Gamecocks held a +15.5 rebounding margin and a +10.0 turnover margin per game, resulting in a six-game total of 88 more field goal attempts than the opposition.
• Carolina averaged 21.2 assists per game in comparison to the opposition’s 8.5 per contest.
• Of the 14 players on the South Carolina roster, 10 had positive assist-to-turnover ratios, with point guard Lea Fabbri leading the way with 22 assists and only eight turnovers.
• The Gamecocks averaged 9.2 blocked shots per game.
• Carolina’s non-starters combined to average 45.0 points per game, whereas the opposition’s non-starters combined to average 17.5 points per contest.

USC DEFENSE AMONG NATION’S BEST
The Gamecocks lead the SEC and rank among the top 10 teams nationally in scoring defense (48.3 oppt. ppg), field goal percentage defense (28.9 pct), three-point field goal percentage defense (26.1 pct), rebounding (47.0 rpg), rebounding margin (+13.5), blocked shots (8.4 bpg) and defensive rebounds (28.4 def. rpg).

SPEAKING OF DEFENSE…
Through South Carolina’s first 11 games (three of which came against ranked opponents in Texas, Purdue and Minnesota), no opposing team has shot 40 percent from the field. The Golden Gophers own the highest field goal percentage yielded by the Gamecocks this year at 39.6 percent, but the majority of Minnesota’s conversions came after the game was well out of reach, evidenced by the fact that the Gophers were shooting only 28.6 percent at the half. Carolina established school records by limiting Bethune-Cookman to only seven points in the first half and 26 points in the game, with the Gamecocks matching a school record by limiting Bethune-Cookman to 14.0 percent shooting from the field (8-of-57). Carolina limited High Point to only 20.0 percent shooting from the field in the season opener, a mark that ranks as the fourth-lowest total for an opponent in Gamecock history. The Gamecocks have limited six different opponents under 30 percent shooting from the field this year.

WHAT’S NEXT
The SEC season begins Wednesday as the No. 1/1 Tennessee Lady Vols visit the Colonial Center at 7 p.m. Wednesday’s game marks the second time in as many seasons that the top-ranked team in the country visited the Colonial Center, as No. 1 LSU came calling a year ago. It will be the seventh time in school history that Carolina has faced the nation’s No. 1 team. The game will be broadcast live on WISW 1320-AM with Andy Demetra handling play-by-play and Robin Muller providing analysis. Comcast Sports Southeast will televise the contest, marking the first of at least five televised games for Carolina this season.