April 10, 2006

Suffocating defense, balanced scoring and a deep rotation were the staples of the 2005-06 women’s basketball season, but perhaps the most encouraging aspect of the season is that this core group of Gamecocks — the same core group that had paid its dues in its first two years playing together — was able to see the fruits of its labor by getting to the post-season and playing into March. And for more encouraging news: 98 percent of the team’s scoring returns next year.

2005-06 Team Accomplishments

>> South Carolina competed in the post-season, earning a bid to the Women’s NIT.
>> South Carolina led the SEC by placing eight of its women’s basketball players on the SEC Winter Sports Academic Honor Roll.
>> The Gamecocks ranked among the most improved teams from a year ago, as Carolina won nine more games than it did a year ago.
>> South Carolina limited the opposition to 56.8 points per game, setting a new school record. The previous record was 59.3 points per game, set by the Gamecocks of 2002-03.
>> South Carolina limited the opposition to 34.7 percent shooting from the field, setting a new school record. The previous record for field goal percentage defense was 36.6 percent, set by this same group of players last year.
>> The Gamecocks set a school record with 193 blocked shots, surpassing last year’s previous-record total of 176.
>> The Gamecocks claimed road wins over Alabama, Mississippi State, Florida and Auburn in succession, marking the first time that Carolina has won four consecutive SEC road games since joining the conference in 1991-92.
>> Carolina beat No. 14 Minnesota, 79-61 on Dec. 13, shooting 58.3 percent from the field in the contest.
>> The Gamecocks drilled in-state rival Clemson, 77-46.
>> The Gamecocks set a pair of school records by limiting Bethune-Cookman to only seven points in the first half and 26 points for the game.
>> The Gamecocks matched a school record by limiting Bethune-Cookman to 14.0 percent shooting from the field (8-of-57).
>> The Gamecocks limited 11 different opponents to either 30 percent shooting or lower from the field.
>> The Gamecocks tied a school record by blocking 13 shots against Western Carolina.

2005-06 Individual Accomplishments

>> Junior forward Melanie Johnson was a second-team all-SEC selection.
>> Freshman forward Demetress Adams earned a spot on the SEC All-Freshman team.
>> Freshman Demetress Adams was recognized as the SEC Player of the Week and the SEC Freshman of the Week on Dec. 26, becoming one of only nine Gamecocks ever to be selected as the SEC Player of the Week and becoming the first Carolina freshman ever to be named SEC Freshman of the Week.
>> Freshman Demetress Adams posted a double-double in her first game at the collegiate level, scoring 11 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in Carolina’s season-opening win over High Point. The freshman also notched double-doubles against Savannah State (17 points, 10 rebounds) and Bethune-Cookman (12 points, 10 rebounds).
>> Junior forward Melanie Johnson erupted for 27 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in leading South Carolina to an 81-63 win over Florida in Gainesville on Feb. 12.
>> Junior forward Melanie Johnson scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds vs. Xavier in the Women’s NIT.
>> Junior forward Melanie Johnson posted double-doubles in each of Carolina’s last three games and in five of the Gamecocks’ last eight contests. She averaged 16.3 points and 8.5 rebounds per game in Carolina’s last eight games.
>> Junior guard Stacy Booker scored 20 points against Georgia Southern, marking the second time in her career that she has scored 20 or more points in a game.
>> Junior forward Iva Sliskovic notched her sixth career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds against then-No. 14 Texas, she then picked up her seventh with 15 points and 10 boards vs. Clemson.

Month-by-Month

November (2-3 record) wins vs. High Point and Winthrop, losses to Texas, Purdue and Georgia Southern.
>> Demetress Adams posted a double-double in first collegiate game (11 points, 12 rebounds vs. High Point).
>> The Gamecocks traveled to Grand Bahama Island to compete in a loaded field at the Junkanoo Jam. The tournament provided reason for hope, as the Gamecocks played national powers Texas and Purdue tough, fueled by an all-tournament performance from Iva Sliskovic (11.5 points, 6.5 rebounds per game in the two games.) However, despite holding leads late in both games, Carolina fell short in the end and left the tournament without any wins.
>> In their first game following their gritty showing at the Junkanoo Jam, South Carolina lost a head-scratcher at home to Georgia Southern.

December (6-0 record) wins vs. No. 14 Minnesota, Ohio, South Carolina State, Savannah State, Bethune-Cookman and Western Carolina.
>> 79-61 win over No. 14 Minnesota at Colonial Center on Dec. 13 kicks off perfect month. Carolina wins each of its next five games by 28 points or more, including a 57-point win over Savannah State on Dec. 19 and a 61-point win over Bethune-Cookman on Dec. 21.
>> Demetress Adams named SEC Player of the Week and SEC Freshman of the Week after posting double-doubles in consecutive games vs. Savannah State and Bethune-Cookman. Adams averages 14.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game in the two contests. She and Tennessee’s Candace Parker are the only two SEC freshmen to earn SEC Player of the Week honors all season.
>> The only injury of note came to Adams, who suffered a laceration on her right hand early in the Western Carolina game that required 11 stitches and forced her to wear a bulky and cumbersome bandage on her shooting hand.

January (3-5 record) wins at Clemson, at Alabama and vs. Arkansas, losses vs. Tennessee, at Kentucky, at LSU, vs. Vanderbilt and vs. Georgia.
>> January picked up where December left off, with the Gamecocks rolling to a resounding 77-46 win at Clemson. Carolina started the game with a 12-0 run and didn’t look back, as the Gamecock bench outscored Clemson’s by a 53-7 margin.
>> Carolina lost its first four SEC games and five of its first six league contests, but scheduling was certainly a factor in the Gamecocks’ slow start, as Carolina’s first six opponents were Tennessee, Kentucky, LSU, Vanderbilt, Alabama and Georgia. Another factor in Carolina’s slow start to SEC play was Adams’ injured hand. It wasn’t until the Alabama game on Jan. 22 that Adams was able to play without the bandage on her shooting hand.

February (6-2 record) wins at Mississippi State, at Florida, at Auburn, vs. Ole Miss, vs. Longwood, vs. Mississippi State. Losses to Kentucky and at Vanderbilt.
>> The Gamecocks entered February with an 11-8 overall record and a 2-5 mark in SEC play, but one of the most encouraging facts for the team was that Carolina had faced all of the elite squads in the league and there were several winnable games remaining on the schedule.
>> February provided the stage for something that had never been accomplished in school history, as the Gamecocks rattled off four consecutive SEC road wins for the first time ever. Including a road win over Alabama at the end of January, Carolina then went on to claim an exciting 51-46 win over Mississippi State in Starkville that went down to the final moments. A convincing 81-63 win over Florida in Gainesville and a solid 58-46 win at Auburn ensued and following a Feb. 19 win over Ole Miss in Columbia, South Carolina worked its way into consideration for the NCAA Tournament.
>> With the stakes raised, the Gamecocks blew out Longwood at home on Feb. 21, then put a cap on their home schedule with a resounding 75-47 win over Mississippi State at the Colonial Center to give themselves a 17-9 overall record and a 7-6 mark in SEC play heading into the regular-season finale at Vanderbilt.
>> Riding the crest of a five-game winning streak, Carolina entered the Vanderbilt game with the opportunity to finish the SEC season with an 8-6 league record and sole possession of fifth place in the conference standings, either of which would have likely sealed the Gamecocks as an NCAA Tournament team. Things didn’t go well in Nashville, however, as the Commodores got out to a 32-17 lead to start the game, then went on to keep the Gamecocks at arm’s length the rest of the way en route to an 88-71 win.

March (0-2 record) losses to Auburn and at Xavier.
>> The month of March was ushered in by good news for the Gamecocks, as junior Melanie Johnson was selected to the second-team all-SEC squad by the league’s coaches and Demetress Adams was honored as a member of the SEC All-Freshman team.
>> South Carolina entered the SEC Tournament as the No. 7 seed and faced No. 10 Auburn in the first round, with the Gamecocks’ NCAA hopes still alive. The Tigers, however doused those hopes with a convincing 64-48 win that left Carolina’s NCAA hopes solely in the hands of the selection committee.
>> Selection Monday proved to be a day of disappointment for Carolina, as the Gamecocks were left out of the tournament field despite finishing the SEC season with a 7-7 record, making them only the third SEC team not to get into the NCAA Tournament with a .500 SEC record and a winning record overall since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1994.
>> Though an NCAA bid was not in the cards for South Carolina, the Gamecocks did earn a bid to the Women’s NIT and traveled to Cincinnati to face Xavier in the first round of the tournament. Carolina led for the majority of the game, but eventually fell in overtime, 70-65, despite 21 points and 10 rebounds from Melanie Johnson. With point guard Lea Fabbri playing at only half strength against the Musketeers after injuring her left shoulder in practice leading up to the game, South Carolina committed a rash of turnovers at a key stretch of the game that gave Xavier all the momentum it needed to keep the Gamecocks within striking distance and eventually win the game.
>> Johnson was the unquestioned star of the team late in the season as the Barnwell native posted double-doubles in each of her final three games and in five of the team’s last eight contests.