SEC Media Tap Gamecocks for SEC Title
COLUMBIA, S.C. – For the fourth time in five seasons, South Carolina women’s basketball was picked to finish first in the SEC by league and national media. Senior Te-Hina Paopao drew Preseason All-SEC First Team honors, while junior Raven Johnson and sophomore MiLaysia Fulwiley were picked for the second team.
The Gamecocks lost just one letterwinner from last season’s undefeated 2024 National Championship team, which was just the 10th team in NCAA history to complete that feat. South Carolina also added the program’s eighth SEC Regular-Season Championship and eighth SEC Tournament title as well. South Carolina led the nation in scoring defense, scoring margin and blocked shots per game, setting program records for scoring average, scoring margin, field goals made, 3-point field goals made, defensive rebounds and assists.
In addition to the returning group, the Gamecocks welcomed four newcomers to the team, including redshirt-freshman Adhel Tac, who was part of the Class of 2024 but enrolled in January while recovering from a season-ending injury. The trio of freshmen, which includes the No. 3 signee in the class Joyce Edwards and the No. 14 player Maddy McDaniel, was rated the No. 2 class in the nation by ESPN. South Carolina also added Arkansas transfer Maryam Dauda, who led the SEC in blocks per league game last season.
Paopao was the nation’s top 3-point percentage shooter last season who earned All-America honors and was an All-SEC Second Team selection as well. She averaged 11.0 points and 3.7 assists last season with those numbers rising to 12.6 points and 4.0 assists per game against ranked opponents. The Oregon transfer has drawn all-conference honors every year of her college career.
Johnson was second in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio last season (3.09) and earned Second-Team All-SEC honors after ranking third in the league in assists per game (4.8) and eighth in steals per game (2.1). She scored a career-best 8.1 points per game, including 16 double-digit scoring games and handed out five or more assists 20 times in her 37 games.
Fulwiley burst onto the college scene with attention-grabbing moves in the season opener and steadily built her game throughout the season to land on the SEC All-Freshman Team. She was the Gamecocks’ top scorer 11 times last season, the second most on the team, as part of 23 double-figure scoring games, which included three 20-point outings. She finished with 11.7 points per game, which was second on the team, and grabbed SEC Tournament MVP honors after averaging 14.3 points at the event, including a 24-point outing in the title game.
The Gamecocks have won eight SEC regular-season titles over the last 11, including the last three, and have not been outside the top two in that stretch. Head coach Dawn Staley is 199-55 in SEC play, including back-to-back undefeated seasons, with her .783 league winning percentage second only to Tennessee’s Pat Summitt (.874) in league history. Her 199 conference wins are the most among active league coaches and third all-time, trailing just Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame inductees Andy Landers (Georgia, 273) and Summitt (Tennessee, 306).
South Carolina unofficially tips off its 2024-25 season on Tue., Oct. 15, with an exhibition game against Memphis as part of the inaugural Hoops for St. Jude® Tip Off Classic. The Gamecocks will also host an exhibition game at Colonial Life Arena on Mon., Oct. 28 at 7 p.m., to which admission is free. The season officially gets underway on Mon., Nov. 4, in the Hall of Fame Series in Las Vegas against Michigan.
Continue to check GamecocksOnline.com and the team’s social media accounts (@GamecockWBB) for the most up-to-date information on South Carolina women’s basketball.
2024-25 SEC Media Preseason Poll
Order of Finish
1. South Carolina
2. Texas
3. LSU
4. Oklahoma
5. Ole Miss
6. Alabama
7. Tennessee
8. Kentucky
9. Florida
10. Vanderbilt
11. Mississippi State
12. Auburn
13. Texas A&M
14. Georgia
15. Missouri
16. Arkansas
Preseason Player of the Year
Flau’Jae Johnson, LSU
Aneesa Morrow, LSU
Madison Booker, Texas
Preseason First Team All-SEC
Sarah Ashlee Barker, Alabama
Georgia Amoore, Kentucky
Aneesah Morrow, LSU
Flau’Jae Johnson, LSU
Raegan Beers, Oklahoma
Te-Hina Paopao, South Carolina
Madison Booker, Texas
Preseason Second Team All-SEC
Mikaylah Williams, LSU
Madison Scott, Ole Miss
Skyler Vann, Oklahoma
Raven Johnson, South Carolina
MiLaysia Fulwiley, South Carolina
Rori Harmon, Texas
