Jan. 10, 2006
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THE BASICS
The South Carolina women’s basketball team is back on the road when it travels to Baton Rouge, La., for an SEC clash with No. 3 LSU set to tip off at 8 p.m. ET Thursday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
ON THE AIR
The game will be broadcast live on WISW 1320 AM Columbia, with Andy Demetra handling play-by-play and Robin Muller providing analysis. For listeners outside of Columbia, the live radio broadcast will also be aired worldwide via the internet on the official web site of South Carolina athletics, www.uscsports.com.
ACCESSING THE WEB BROADCAST
To access the internet broadcast, go to www.uscsports.com, then go to the women’s basketball home page and click on “Schedule/Results”. At the top of the page is a link for Audio Broadcasts. Click on that link, then select the game you wish to listen to.
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. In her second year in the head spot at LSU, reigning Naismith Coach of the Year Pokey Chatman owns a 46-3 career record and already has an SEC Regular Season championship to her credit. Chatman led the Tigers to a 33-3 record in 2004-05 and a trip to the NCAA Final Four. A Kodak All-American as a point guard for LSU in 1991, Chatman was a three-time all-SEC selection.
HEAVY D
When South Carolina and LSU hook up Thursday, it will be a matchup of two of the SEC’s best defensive teams. The Tigers and Gamecocks rank one-two in the league in scoring defense, field goal percentage defense and three-point field goal percentage defense. Both teams also rank among the top five in the SEC in blocked shots, rebounding margin and steals.
KEY MATCH-UP
During the non-conference portion of the schedule, the Gamecocks won games with their defense. Carolina will need its defense to play a big role if they are going to topple LSU, as the Tigers rank third in the SEC in scoring offense and lead the league in field goal percentage.
CAROLINA FROM A DISTANCE
Height, experience, defense 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 Thursday’s battle with LSU having won seven of its last nine games, with the lone losses coming at the hands of No. 1 Tennessee and at Kentucky.
LSU FROM A DISTANCE
One of the elite programs in women’s college basketball the last couple years, LSU boasts the reigning Naismith Player of the Year and Wooden Award winner in Seimone Augustus and the reigning Naismith Coach of the Year in Pokey Chatman. In Augustus and sophomore center Sylvia Fowles, the Tigers have one of the best one-two punches in the country. Both players rank in the top five in the SEC in scoring, with Augustus averaging 19.8 points per game and Fowles good for 17.6 points per game.
CAROLINA WINS OVER TEAMS RANKED IN THE TOP 5
12/30/99 No. 4 NC State W, 69-55
1/14/98 No. 5 Vanderbilt W, 70-66
2/27/93 No. 3 Auburn W, 59-47
12/31/91 No. 4 Vanderbilt W, 72-65
12/29/90 No. 3 Auburn W, 83-76
12/29/89 No. 3 Iowa W, 82-76
1/23/80 No. 3 Tennessee W, 56-52
A CAROLINA WIN WOULD:
>> Mark the Gamecocks’ eighth win in their last 10 games, with the lone losses coming to top-ranked Tennessee and at Kentucky.
>> Mark the seventh win over a top five in the history of the South Carolina women’s basketball program.
>> Snap LSU’s 23-game home winning streak that dates back to the 2003-04 season.
>> Snap the Gamecocks’ 15-game road losing streak against SEC opponents. South Carolina’s last road win over an SEC opponent was a 79-64 victory over Ole Miss on March 2, 2003.
>> Snap the Tigers’ eight-game winning streak over South Carolina, with the Gamecocks’ last win over LSU coming in the 1997-98 season.
>> Mark Carolina’s first win in Baton Rouge since a 90-82 triumph in 1994.
SLISKOVIC’S NUMBERS IMPROVE ON THE ROAD
Junior forward Iva Sliskovic has turned in some of her best performances away from the Colonial Center this year, evidenced by the fact that she has scored in double-figures in each of Carolina’s four games played away from home.
INDIVIDUAL PLAYER TRENDS OF NOTE
>> A different player has led the Gamecocks in scoring in five of the last six games.
>> Stacy Booker has scored in double-figures in five of the last six games.
>> Lea Fabbri has dished out either more or equal assists than she has committed turnovers in each of the last nine games.
>> Demetress Adams has made eight of her last nine free throw attempts.
>> Lauren Simms has scored in double-figures in four of Carolina’s last six games.
>> Lakesha Tolliver has converted on 10 of her last 14 field goal attempts (.714 pct.)
USC DEFENSE AMONG NATION’S BEST
The Gamecocks lead the nation in field goal percentage defense (31.2 pct). In addition, Carolina leads the SEC in three-point field goal percentage defense (27.3 pct.), blocked shots (7.7 per game) and rebounding offense (44.7 rpg). Carolina ranks second in the SEC in scoring defense (51.1 ppg) and is third behind only LSU and Tennessee in scoring margin (+20.9 ppg).
THE BENCH MOB
Through South Carolina’s first 14 games, the Gamecock bench averages 36.4 points per game against 16.1 points per game from the opponent’s bench. During South Carolina’s seven-game winning streak that recently ended, the Gamecocks’ non-starters combined to average 46.1 points per game, whereas the opposition’s non-starters combined to average 9.3 points per contest.
WHAT’S NEXT
Carolina returns to action at 3 p.m. Sunday when it hosts No. 23 Vanderbilt at the Colonial Center. The game will be broadcast live on WISW 1320-AM with Andy Demetra handling play-by-play and Robin Muller providing analysis.
