SOUTH CAROLINA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
The Gamecocks announced their 2019-20 schedule on Wednesday, and it sets up for the Gamecocks to make an early statement against some familiar teams.
You can read the release about the schedule here.
Also on Wednesday ESPN released its “Way-Too-Early” top 25 and using those rankings South Carolina will play eight ranked opponents, plus four more in the “also considered” category. South Carolina came in at number seven in the poll, the highest-ranked SEC team.
The Gamecocks’ young players will have to hit the ground running. The season opens against Alabama State, continuing a series that began two years ago when Bianca Jackson, whose mother Freda Freeman-Jackson, is the coach. Jackson has moved on, transferring to Florida State in the offseason, but the series continues. Then things get difficult: the second game of the season is at #5 Maryland. The Terrapins and Gamecocks played the last two seasons, with each winning on the other’s home court.
A return trip to Dayton follows (South Carolina beat Dayton 65-55 at home last season), then two guarantee games before a trip to Clemson the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Clemson was significantly improved last season under Amanda Butler, and made ESPN’s also considered.
South Carolina’s second big test will come in the Paradise Jam over Thanksgiving weekend. South Carolina will play against #21 Indiana, Washington State, and then defending national champion #2 Baylor. Late in the summer, the Lady Bears signed former South Carolina and Tennessee guard Te’a Cooper. Cooper had a few unkind words upon signing with Baylor, accusing Dawn Staley of playing her out of position, so the reception could be interesting.
South Carolina will be playing in the Paradise Jam for the fourth time and third under Staley. South Carolina won its division of the Paradise Jam in 2012. It will also be a homecoming for freshman Aliyah Boston, who grew up in the Virgin Islands before moving to Massachusetts.
Staley gets the next homecoming game when South Carolina plays at Temple December 7. That completes the first 10 games of the season, and the Gamecocks would probably be looking at an 8-2 or 9-1 record.
After the exam break, South Carolina hosts three games before Christmas, including return games from Purdue and Duke (continuing the series with the Blue Devils despite last season’s game being cancelled due to weather). South Carolina should expect to win all three games, and should go into conference play with double-digit wins, an improvement over last season’s 8-4 non-conference record.
The SEC schedule opens on January 2 at home against Kentucky. South Carolina plays #13 Kentucky, #19 Arkansas, and Vanderbilt twice. There is also the annual Monday night game against #3 Connecticut, this year in Columbia. After opening conference play against #10 Texas A&M the last two seasons, this year the Gamecocks and Aggies will end the season against each other. South Carolina also plays Tennessee, Auburn, and LSU, who were in the also considered category. Additionally, there is a game at Missouri, although with the graduation of Sophie Cunningham, some of the chippiness should be gone as well.
Of course, the marquee game is between South Carolina and #9 Mississippi State, the two favorites to win the SEC. One of the two teams has won every SEC regular season or tournament title since 2015. They are scheduled to play only once this season, a Monday night game on January 20 in Columbia. The game comes fairly early in the conference schedule, which could create an interesting chase by the loser over the final six weeks. After being dominated by South Carolina for years, Mississippi State has won three of the last four, including edging South Carolina 68-64 to end last season and deny South Carolina a share of the SEC championship.
The Gamecocks benefit from playing the Commodores twice, but playing the Wildcats and Razorbacks, who seemed to have the Gamecocks’ number last season, twice cancels that out.
The SEC Tournament will once again be at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville. It will be the second of three straight tournaments and fourth in five years to be held in Greenville. The tournament will move to Nashville in 2022 and 2026, but the other future sites have not been determined.
