Nov. 16, 2011

Complete Game Notes

Game Information

Date: Thursday, November 17, 2011
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Clemson, S.C.
Arena: Littlejohn Coliseum (9,850)
TV: None Radio: WISW 1320 AM (Brad Muller); GamecocksOnline.com
Live Stats:
Clemson Series: CU leads 33-23; In Clemson: CU leads 20-5; In Columbia: SC leads 16-10; At Neutral Site: SC leads 2-0

South Carolina Notables

<>

• This is the Gamecocks’ 38th season as a varsity sport.
• The 2011-12 season is the fourth at the helm for South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley. Her teams have improved by four wins each of the last two campaigns, capped by last season’s 18-15 mark.
• Senior Markeshia Grant is third in the SEC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 4.5. Her 4.5 assists per game (against just 1.0 turnovers) is eighth-best in the league.
• The Gamecocks have the third-stingiest defense in the SEC, allowing opponents just 52.5 points per game. South Carolina was sixth in the league last year, yielding just 59.6 points per game.
• Senior La’Keisha Sutton continues to show her balanced game, ranking 15th in the SEC in assists (3.5 apg) and 24th in scoring (11.5 ppg).

Notes

A South Carolina Win Would…

• Give the Gamecocks a 3-0 record for the first time since the 2007-08 season.
• Be the Gamecocks’ second-straight over Clemson and their fifth in the last seven meetings.
• Make the Gamecocks 2-0 in non-conference road games this season, the most in the Dawn Staley era.

By the Numbers
.450 Percentage of the team’s points (60) that came from the frontcourt duo of Ashley Bruner (15) and Aleighsa Welch (12) in the win over Alabama A&M
.652 Gamecocks’ second-half field goal percentage at Illinois, their highest in a half since knocking down the same percentage (both 15-of-23) in the second half against High Point on Dec. 2, 2009
2 Current Gamecocks who average double-figure points against Clemson – Ieasia Walker (15.5) and La’Keisha Sutton (11.7)
4 Gamecocks who scored in double figures against Alabama A&M, the most since Jan. 6, 2011, against LSU (also four)
5.0 Rebounds per game senior guard La’Keisha Sutton has posted in her three career games against Clemson, the highest average on the team
9 Blocked shots against Alabama A&M, the most by the Gamecocks in the Dawn Staley era
48.1 Percent of points scored by the bench this season (63 of 131)

Clemson Series Notes
The Gamecocks and Tigers have met 56 times before tonight’s game, the last time being November 18, 2010, which the Gamecocks won 73-59. Overall, Clemson leads the series 33-23, but the Gamecocks have won four of the last six meetings. The Tigers hold a decisive 20-5 edge in games played on their home floor. This year’s senior class is looking for the career split with the Tigers, entering tonight’s game with a 1-2 record against its arch-rival. The most bitter loss of the stretch is likely the double-overtime 94-92 defeat the last time the Gamecocks came to Littlejohn Coliseum (Nov. 19, 2009). That disappointing results was somewhat eased by Ieasia Walker’s 30-point outburst against Clemson last season.

Road Warriors
South Carolina has a 180-230 (.439) all-time record on the road. The Gamecocks’ best season on the road was 1979-80 when they went 11-4. Under head coach Dawn Staley, South Carolina is 11-21 in road games. In her 11th season as a head coach, Staley has a 73-67 road record. Aside from home games, the Gamecocks are 33-38 all-time in games played in their home state.

Triple Play
Coming into the season, may observers felt the fate of the Gamecocks’ season rested largely in the hands of its experienced backcourt – seniors Markeshia Grant and La’Keisha Sutton and junior Ieasia Walker. Through the first two games, that has certainly been the case as between their points and assists, the trio has contributed to 67.9 percent of the team’s 65.5 points per game. The trio’s camaraderie on and off the floor has bred friendly competition specifically between the two seniors, designed to ultimately guide the team to its goals. After Sutton led the team with 3.6 assists per game last season, Grant has set her sights on unseating her classmate in the assist department. After the two each handed out three assists in the season opener, Grant surged ahead with a career-high six against Alabama A&M.

Not So Fast While the backcourt gets all the attention, the Gamecock frontcourt has led the team in scoring in each of the first two games of the season, specifically junior Ashley Bruner. Particularly when it comes to the assist battle in the backcout, South Carolina’s forwards will be counted on to deliver the basket at the end of those passes. That ability was especially on display in the second half against Alabama A&M when Bruner and freshman Aleighsa Welch netted 15 of the team’s 30 points. The duo finished the night with 27 of the Gamecocks’ 60 points and handed out three assists of their own. Bruner also matched her career high with four steals in the outing.