Feb. 16, 2013
Game Information
Date: Sunday, February 17, 2013
Time: 2 p.m. (ET)
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Arena: Tad Smith Coliseum (9,061)
TV: SEC Network (Doug Bell, play-by-play; Steffi Sorensen, analyst) Where to Watch SEC Network 
Radio: WISW 1320 AM (Brad Muller); GamecocksOnline.com
Live Video: ESPN3
Live Stats:
Ole Miss Series: OM leads 17-15; In Oxford: OM leads 8-4; In Columbia: SC leads 9-5; Neutral Site: OM leads 4-2
Notes
Fast Break
- This is the Gamecocks’ 39th season as a varsity sport, the fifth with head coach Dawn Staley at the helm. It is South Carolina’s 22nd season in the SEC.
- South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley was named one of 12 finalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2013 on Friday. Finalists must receive 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Hall. The Class of 2013 will be announced on April 8 prior to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship game.
- For a pair of teams that pride themselves on defense, South Carolina and Kentucky combined for 152 points Thursday night with both teams allowing well over their season average. The Gamecocks had not yielded 78 points since Nov. 21, 2011, while the Wildcats saw then-No. 1/1 Baylor net 85 in the second game of the season. South Carolina’s 44 first-half points were the program’s most in a half since posting 50 against then-No. 18/16 North Carolina on Dec. 18, 2011. The Gamecocks shot 56.0 percent from the field, the second-highest percentage in the Dawn Staley era, and the team’s 68.2 percent free throw shooting was a season high.
- While assistant coach Nikki McCray is on maternity leave following the birth of her son on Feb. 1, director of basketball operations Cynthia Jordan will be the Gamecocks’ third assistant coach. There is no definitive timeline for McCray’s return to the bench.
- Injury Update: Sophomore Elem Ibiam is day-to-day following surgery on Fri., Feb. 15, to repair her broken nose, suffered in practice on Feb. 6.
A South Carolina Win Would…
- Be the Gamecocks’ 100th regular-season SEC victory.
- Be the Gamecocks’ fifth regular-season SEC road win of the season, the most in the program’s now 22 seasons in the league.
- Be the Gamecocks’ fourth straight over Ole Miss and the seventh in the last nine meetings.
By the Numbers
1 Offensive rebound needed by sophomore forward Aleighsa Welch to move into the program’s single-season top five
2 Opponent that has scored 60 or more points against the Gamecocks this season, helping South Carolina to No. 4 in the nation in scoring defense
4 20-win seasons for South Carolina since joining the SEC for the 1991-92 season, including this season, which is the second consecutive 20-win effort under head coach Dawn Staley
4 Times sophomore Elem Ibiam has reset her career-high points, including twice in SEC play (12 pts at Alabama, Feb. 7; 15 pts at Kentucky, Feb. 14)
5 Gamecocks scoring in double figures at No. 9/7 Kentucky (Feb. 14), a first in a regular-season SEC game since Jan. 6, 2011, against LSU
18 Gamecocks all-time who have collected 600 career rebounds since senior forward Ashley Bruner joined the group on Feb. 3 at Alabama – she is seven rebounds shy of Evelyn Johnson (1980-83) in 16th place
10 Points by freshman Asia Dozier at No. 9/7 Kentucky (Feb. 14), all scored in the final four minutes of the first half as part of the Gamecocks’ 12-4 run to build a 14-point halftime lead
14 RPI for South Carolina – one of six SEC teams among the top 40
15 Of the last 25 Associated Press polls that have included the Gamecocks, dating back to Jan. 9, 2012
19 Points by Khadijah Sessions against Auburn (Feb. 3), the highest scoring output by a Gamecock off the bench this season
29 More rebounds by the Gamecocks than the Crimson Tide (Feb. 7), a Dawn Staley era record for rebounding margin
32 Free throws made by the Gamecocks at Mississippi State (Jan. 6), the most in the Dawn Staley era, the fourth-most in school history and the most ever in a road game
42 Points scored by then-No. 13/12 Georgia (Jan. 13), the fewest the Gamecocks have ever allowed in a losing effort
43 Points scored by the Gamecocks’ four post players at Alabama (Feb. 7) – Aleighsa Welch 16, Ashley Bruner 15, Elem Ibiam 12 and Wilka Montout 0
56.0 Percent field goal shooting by South Carolina at No. 9/7 Kentucky (Feb. 14), the second-highest mark of the Dawn Staley era
59 Rebounds by the Gamecocks at Florida (Jan. 20), the most in the Dawn Staley era
74 Points by the Gamecocks at No. 9/7 Kentucky (Feb. 14), the program’s most in a regular-season SEC contest since a 79-71 defeat of Kentucky on Jan. 14, 2010
75.5 Percent of the team’s 1,507 points this season scored by the starting lineup
The Ole Miss Series
The Rebels lead the series 17-15, but the Gamecocks have won the last three match-ups and six of the last eight meetings. Ole Miss is 8-4 against South Carolina in games played in Oxford. The last contest at Tad Smith Coliseum was a 63-58 overtime victory for the Gamecocks on Jan. 16, 2011. Ole Miss’ last win in the series was a 64-63 comeback on March 4, 2010, in the first round of the SEC Tournament in Duluth, Ga.
20/20 Vision
With a win at Alabama (Feb. 7), South Carolina posted its second-consecutive 20-win season. In now 39 seasons of women’s basketball, the Gamecocks have compiled 12 seasons of 20 or more victories. Four of those have come while playing in the SEC (since 1991-92 season), and two of those are under current head coach Dawn Staley.
High-Volume Players
Seniors Ieasia Walker and Ashley Bruner rank among the most active Gamecocks in program history. Walker’s 122 career games played is among the program’s top 10, while Bruner’s 120 are two away. With at least five games left on the schedule, Walker has a chance to move into the top five, and Bruner could reach the top six. The school record is 134 held by Sheila Foster, who played 1978-82. With four regular-season SEC games remaining, Walker could become the record holder as she has played in 60 so far and La’Keisha Sutton holds the record at 62. Bruner’s 59 career SEC games played is among the program’s top five. Walker’s 95 career starts leave her five shy of becoming the 12th Gamecock to record at least 100. Her 44 regular-season SEC starts is already a school record. Walker is 10th in school history with 3,432 minutes played. She is 36 minutes away from Lisa Diaz (1986-90) in ninth place.
Five for Fighting
South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley has used the same starting lineup in every game this season, and the quintet led the way to the program’s best non-conference record and the best SEC start since 2001-02. Starters – Ieasia Walker, Sancheon White, Tiffany Mitchell, Ashley Bruner and Aleighsa Welch – account for 75.5 percent of the offense and 69.1 percent of rebounds while playing 73.3 percent of the minutes available. Four of the five average at least 9.0 points. The four reserves available have out-scored their counterparts on the opposite bench 14 times this season, during which the Gamecocks are 12-2.
