South Carolina heads to Rocky Top for a crucial game against Tennessee.

1. Going through the wringer

The final two weeks of the regular season are an absolute gauntlet for the Gamecocks, and they are not alone. South Carolina will play Tennessee, Kentucky, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M over the last four games. That’s the second, third, and fourth place teams in the conference, all of whom were in the NCAA’s top 16 reveal, and an Ole Miss squad that is battling for its tournament life. The Gamecocks aren’t alone. All the coaches in the SEC are looking at the next two weeks and seeing ranked opponents and trying to figure out how to improve their tournament stock.

The SEC had five teams in the top 16, the most of any conference, and currently has eight teams in the tournament according to Charlie Creme, with two more trying to push their way in. There are plenty of opportunities for resume enhancements, whether a team is on the bubble or trying to improve its seed. The top 16 reveal showed that the selection committee cares a lot more about who you beat than how many games you won or lost, so teams are scrambling to make up postponed games.

Tennessee and Mississippi State were supposed to play a game this Tuesday, squeezed in between the Lady Vols’ Sunday game at Texas A&M and tonight’s visit from South Carolina. But that game was postponed a second time when Tennessee got stuck in Texas because of the winter storm. Tennessee ended up not flying home to Knoxville until Tuesday night. There will probably be more attempts at makeup games to come, plus the SEC Tournament.

“The intensity for me goes up,” Dawn Staley said. “Any loss has impact on the SEC, it has impact on the NCAA Tournament. For us we have to make sure we’re tightening the things we do down the stretch. A loss is not devastating, but it’s something we don’t want to feel at this point in the season.”

“Battle-tested” doesn’t begin to describe the SEC. The NCAA Tournament is going to seem like a walk in the park.

2. SEC Standings

With its win over LSU, South Carolina guaranteed itself of finishing, at worst, 12-4 in the SEC. If every team (aside from Vanderbilt) plays a full allotment of games, South Carolina is assured of finishing no worse than fourth. If teams aren’t able to play all 16 games then winning percentage would come into play and things could get dicey.

South Carolina (12-0) is two losses ahead of third-place Tennessee (6-3) in the loss column and one loss ahead of Texas A&M (10-1). By winning percentage, Tennessee is in a three way tie with Georgia and Kentucky, though they have each played three more games. Figuring out all the possible scenarios as teams like the Lady Vols scramble to make up games is headache inducing. That’s another reason every possible win matters.

“We look at the standings as coaches,” Dawn Staley said. “I don’t think we put that pressure on players to look, but they’re engaged in it. They watch it. We have enough pressure to continue to win and hold our small lead.”

3. "What do you think about the execution of your offense?" "I'm for it."

As the season winds down, Staley has said repeatedly that, as a championship contender, the Gamecocks aren’t just trying to win the next game, they are trying to fine-tune their play. That is why they play UConn every year, and it was why, much to the consternation of many fans, Staley wanted the Gamecocks to finish the LSU game with Zia Cooke and Aliyah Boston on the bench.

Things got tense, especially when South Carolina botched a sideline inbounds play that led to an LSU basket that cut the Gamecock lead to five. It was the same sideline play that South Carolina flubbed at UConn. Staley said the only way to get better executing in pressure situations is game repetition, and that’s why she wanted the reserves to finish off the LSU game.

“At some point players really have to take it upon themselves to make plays in those situations,” Staley said after the LSU game. “As an inbounder you have to scan the room and you have to make decisions within four seconds or else what happened to us tonight was we turned the ball over. We’ve got a lot of footage to get better.”

Staley wants to see better execution not just on inbounds plays, but on all aspects of the offense. South Carolina is second in the SEC in both points scored and points allowed, but those points have come in spurts and the offense has broken down at crucial moments.

“We’re a very good basketball team, we’re not a great basketball team. That’s the part that really holds us back,” Staley said. “At times we can put a lot of points on the scoreboard. We have a stingy defense. But until we’re able to take that leap of being great: that is making layups, that is making people pay in transition, our half court is going to be what it is. They have a really good understanding of what we need and what we want in the half court. What’s holding us back is transition and in the half court making the proper basketball play.”

4. Naismith Notes

The five finalists for the Naismith High School Trophy Girls player of the year were announced Tuesday. Future Gamecocks Raven Johnson and Sania Feagin were named finalists. South Carolina was the only college with two finalists. South Carolina’s other two signees, Saniya Rivers and Bree Hall, were named to the semifinalist and midseason list, respectively. Johnson’s coach, Hilda Hankerson, was named a finalist for coach of the year.

The winner will be announced March 10. A’ja Wilson won the award in 2014 and Zia Cooke was a finalist in 2019.

South Carolina is the only college with two finalists. The other finalists are Azzi Fudd (UConn), Jersey Wolfenbarger (Arkansas), and Aaliyah Moore (Texas). The amount of talent when UConn visits South Carolina next season is going to be unbelievable.

On Wednesday the Naismith Coach of the Year Late Season Watch List was released. Staley, the reigning Coach of the Year winner, was one of 15 coaches named to the list. Tennessee’s Kellie Harper and Texas A&M’s Gary Blair were also named to the list.

5. Scouting the Lady Vols

Opinions on Tennessee vary significantly. The NCAA selection committee ranked the Lady Vols 13th, while the AP poll has never had them higher than 16th and dropped them to 21st the same day the committee bumped them up. All of the Lady Vols’ losses have been to teams that made the top 16

Tennessee and South Carolina are similar teams. Both struggle with turnovers, and both excel in the paint. Tennessee’s turnover margin is -2.0, second worst in the SEC. South Carolina is better, at +0.2, but still only 10th in the SEC. South Carolina is first in blocked shots and Tennessee is third, but where both sides dominate is on the glass.

The gamecocks and Lady Vols are first and second in rebounding margin by a wide gap, nearly double third place Texas A&M. They are also first in second in both offensive and defensive rebounding. The team that can limit turnovers while getting the better of the rebounding battle will have good odds of winning.

“Size-wise, they’re bigger than we are,” Staley said. “It doesn’t change how we approach it. We have to utilize our speed in transition. We have to utilize our ability to apply pressure and play underneath them to bother them with our pressure and then we’ve got to box out. They go to the boards. They’re a great rebounding basketball team, and so are we. It will be a battle. I’d like to see where we end up on the boards.”

Both South Carolina and Tennessee have outrebounded every opponent this season, so something will have to give. South Carolina is averaging 17.7 second chance points per game and allowing 6.8. Tennessee is averaging 14.8 second chance points per game, while allowing 8.5

The Ws

Who: #2 South Carolina (17-2, 12-0) at #21 Tennessee (12-5, 6-3)

When: Thursday, February 18, 7:00 pm

Where: Thompson-Boling Arena, Knoxville, TN

Watch: SEC Network