South Carolina visits Mississippi State as the best rivalry in women's basketball begins a new chapter.

1. Rivalry time

Ahead of their game last week, there were stories about the importance of the Tennessee-UConn rivalry. I argued that the South Carolina-Mississippi State rivalry is better. It’s intense, it’s balanced, the teams are good, and almost every game over the past five years has a title of some sort at stake. ESPN agrees, at least somewhat - tonight’s game got bumped up to ESPN and is getting the promotion that entails. I’ve written a lot about the rivalry and what it means, but this year feels a little different.

Maybe it’s because the pandemic has eliminated the passionate crowds. Maybe it’s because the pandemic has made everyone happy just to be able to play. Maybe it’s because Mississippi State is down a little this season, and for the first time in five years it looks like the two the Gamecocks and Bulldogs won’t finish 1-2 in the SEC. Maybe it’s because Nikki McCray-Pinson replaced Vic Schaefer, and as a part of the Gamecock family she not only doesn’t generate any animosity, she still has a lot of fans on the other side. So maybe the intensity is down, but both sides know what the game means.

“The rivalry is there. It doesn’t matter where we are in the rankings, we always seem to find a way to get ourselves in a barn-burner,” Dawn Staley said. “I know coming into the game they want to win, regardless of what Nikki and I have and with Nikki being part of our family. They want to win just as badly as we want to win.”

“It’s like family,” McCray said. “These are lasting relationships.”

2. Bench production

After the close win over LSU, Staley expressed concern about the lack of production from South Carolina’s bench. The concern had been building over the course of the week, but hit a tipping point in Baton Rouge. Although LeLe Grissett and her eight points were critical in the win, she was the only reserve that scored. This came after South Carolina got just ten bench points against Georgia.

The drop in bench production has coincided with a slump by Laeticia Amihere, who is supposed to be the scoring spark on the second unit. She averaged just 3.3 points during the three games last week. Some of it was due to circumstance: there simply isn’t much of a role for Amihere against Arkansas’ small ball, guard-heavy lineup. Yet that was her most productive game of the week, as she ended up playing just seven unproductive minutes at LSU. Staley likes what she has seen in practice this week.

“They had a much better practice,” Staley said. “They understand what they mean to our team. They understand that they have to bring it every night. I think sitting them a little bit longer than we like sitting them against LSU focuses them a little more. I like the adjustment that they’ve made, particularly LA. We need LA.”

Amihere gets most of the attention because the expectations for her are the highest, but that doesn’t absolve other reserves. After playing her best basketball of the season against Vanderbilt and Arkansas, Destiny Littleton was a non-factor against Georgia and LSU. Freshman Eniya Russell barely played.

3. Small ball

There was another development last week that may tie into the lack of bench production - the emergence of a small-ball lineup. In two of the games, against Arkansas and LSU, South Carolina’s best lineup was a small lineup that had Brea Beal or Grissett at power forward instead of Victaria Saxton or Amihere.

As with Amihere’s situation, context matters. Arkansas plays a four guard lineup with Chelsea Dungee at power forward, so putting Beal at the four meant she still had a size advantage and South Carolina had its best defender on Arkansas’ best offensive player. And the move to put Grissett at the four against LSU came from the desperate need to get out in transition against the LSU zone.

Of course, “small” is relative. Beal and Grissett are each about 6-2, they rebound well, and score most effectively around the basket. Their effectiveness at the four gives Staley another wrinkle she can throw at opposing teams.

4. More honors for Boston

In what had to go down as one of the easiest decisions ever, Aliyah Boston was named the SEC Player of the Week for last week. She averaged 18 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 5.5 blocks in the three games, which included a triple-double against Georgia. It was the second triple-double of her career, making her the first Gamecock to have two triple-doubles and the first to do it in the SEC. According to ESPN, no SEC player has ever had three triple-doubles, and Boston joined Candace Parker and Sylvia Fowles as the only SEC players in the last 20 seasons with at least 25 points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks in a conference game.

Earlier this week, Boston was also named to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List. She was a finalist last season and is one of t15 players on the Watch List this season. Boston leads the SEC and is eighth in the country with 3.15 blocks per game. She’s second in the SEC and 15th in the nation with 11.3 rebounds per game. And just because she likes to show off, Boston is top-15 in the SEC with 1.7 steals per game.

Rebecca Lobo, who will be calling tonight’s game, knows a lot more about playing center than I do, so I’ll share this really good segment she made breaking down why Boston is such a good defender.

5. Scouting the Bulldogs

Mississippi State was probably headed for a transition season even before the coaching change. It’s not unlike what South Carolina went through two years ago. There has been a lot of roster turnover, and the pandemic through a big monkey wrench in Mississippi State’s nonconference schedule, which put the Bulldogs a little behind in adjusting to McCray’s system. But Mississippi State still has plenty of talent, led by Rickea Jackson and Jessika Carter.

Jackson and Carter are each averaging just under 16 points per game, with Carter also averaging 9.2 rebounds. Consistency has been an issue for Carter, who is something of a litmus test for the Bulldogs this season. When they get her involved early and she plays well, the Bulldogs play well. But Carter was quiet in the Bulldogs last two games, losses to Alabama and Texas A&M. The winner of the battle between Carter and Bostonwill likely be the winner of the game.

Mississippi State hasn’t played in 11 days, since the loss to Texas A&M. That means a lot of time to stew over those back-to-back losses, and a lot of self-scouting.

“It has allowed us to watch a lot of film and look at some things that we need to get better at,” McCray said. “It allowed us to get some rest but we wanted to stay in form so we’ve been scrimmaging a lot.”

The Ws

Who: #4 South Carolina (12-1, 7-0) vs #21 Mississippi State (8-4, 3-3)

When: Thursday, January 28, 7:00 pm

Where: Humphrey Coliseum, Starkville, MS

Watch: ESPN