Top-10 Battle Awaits Gamecocks Sunday in Charlotte

COLUMBIA, SC –No. 1/1 South Carolina faces its first ranked opponent of the 2024-25 season, taking on #9/8 NC State on Sunday in Charlotte, NC, as part of the Ally Tipoff at Spectrum Center.

Gamecock Notables

• Head coach Dawn Staley has the Gamecocks atop the college women’s basketball world for the fourth-straight season, and the sustained success has come with her ability to it adapt to her roster. From the business-only mentality of the 2022 National Championship and 2023 Final Four teams dominated by “The Freshies” to the “day care” energy of last season’s undefeated National Championship team, her ability to meet players where they are while holding firm to her core principles has shaped the Gamecocks into a perennial power in the ever-changing landscape of college athletics.

• In her 25th season as a head coach, Dawn Staley is building a hall of fame coaching resume to go with her 2013 Naismith Hall of Fame induction as a player, guiding the Gamecocks to six NCAA Final Fours and three National Championships in the last nine tournaments. Her .767 winning percentage is the 11th-best in NCAA women’s basketball history among coaches with at least 15 years of experience.

• South Carolina’s non-conference schedule includes five games against teams ranked in the preseason top 25, including three in the top 10 before the end of November. In all, the Gamecocks will play 12 games against preseason ranked teams, including eight against top-10 teams.

• The Gamecock offense continues to be balanced across the roster this season. In Monday’s season opener, the bench accounted for 42.6 percent of the offense, five players scored at least seven points, and guards and forwards shared the scoring almost evenly with the guards edging ahead at 54.4 percent of the points.

• Despite not having last season’s two top shot blockers on the floor in the season opener, South Carolina sits 15th in the nation with 8.0 blocks per game, including two each from guards Raven Johnson and MiLaysia Fulwiley.

• Junior forward Chloe Kitts put the basketball world on notice Monday night, leading the Gamecocks with 19 points and 14 rebounds on 7-of-14 shooting from the field and a best-in-the-nation 1.000 (5-of-5) free throw percentage. She converted five of her offensive rebounds into six points and added a block and a steal to the defensive effort.

By the Numbers

3 – South Carolina is third in AP Poll history with 84 weeks at #1, including 59 times in the last 60 polls since the start of the 2021-22 season.

7 – Seven Gamecocks were named to national preseason watch lists, led by Paopao and Fulwiley who are on both Naismith and Wooden lists.

20.6 – The Gamecocks held Michigan to 20.6 percent shooting in the second half of the season opener on Monday.

The NC State Series
The Gamecocks are 13-20 all-time against the Wolfpack, but are 5-2 in the Dawn Staley era (beginning 2008-09 season). The teams have met three times in the last four seasons with South Carolina claiming the last two outings.

Last season’s Final Four matchup (Apr. 5) went to eventual National Champion South Carolina 78-59. A tight, seesaw first half sent the Gamecocks to the locker room with a one-point lead, but South Carolina exploded in the third quarter. The Gamecocks nearly matching their first-half output with 29 points on 60.0 percent shooting, including 5-of-9 from 3-point range, in the period while holding the Wolfpack to just six points on 1-of-11 shooting. Then-sophomore Ashlyn Watkins dominated the glass, becoming the just second Gamecock to record 20 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game, including eight boards in the pivotal third quarter.

Neutral Stance
The Gamecocks are 170-96 (.639) all-time on a neutral court. South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley is 87-27 in games played at neutral sites (.763), including a 31-10 (.756) record in regular-season outings on neutral courts.

CK Obsession
Forward Chloe Kitts showed flashes of her potential throughout her sophomore season, and, after an offseason of focusing on building her strength as much as her skills, she is poised to have a break out junior campaign.

Kitts started 31 games last season and held her starting position again this season, leading the Gamecocks with 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting against Michigan. Her career-high tying 14 rebounds included five offensive, and she scored immediately on three of those.

Her opening night effort has her leading the SEC in double-doubles and the nation in free throw percentage. Her 14.0 rebounds per game are second in the league.

Last season, Kitts finished with 9.1 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.

It’s T Time
Sophomore guard Tessa Johnson saw her consistent effort and steady demeanor pay off in the biggest moments of her freshman campaign, and she picked up right where she left off.

The quiet guard earned NCAA Final Four All-Tournament honors after exploding for 14.0 points per game on the season’s final weekend, including 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting in the National Championship game. The whole three weeks in the NCAA Tournament were solid for Johnson, who posted three of her 10 double-digit scoring games in the last five games of the season and averaged 10.2 points over the six-game event.

In Monday’s season opener against Michigan, Johnson was the steadiest guard offensively, pouring in 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range, highlighted by netting seven points in an 11-5 run midway through the second half.