Things have been fairly quiet for the Gamecocks, so let’s take a look around the rest of the SEC.
On Wednesday I covered the "eastern" half of the conference, even though the SEC doesn't use divisions. Now it's time for the other half, which can easily be split into risers and fallers (and Alabama).
Mississippi State
- Mississippi State is dealing with some of the roster turnover that typically follows a coaching change. Center Promise Taylor medically retired in the middle of last season. This offseason, three players transferred out, including starter Chloe Bibby. Both members of the 2020 recruiting class questioned their commitment, with DeYona Gaston ultimately decommitting and following Vic Schaefer to Texas.
- Nikki McCray’s first win as the Bulldogs’ coach was convincing point guard Madison Hayes to stick with Mississippi State. Hayes was a top-30 point guard and Tennessee player of the year (and Gamecock target). When Schaefer left, Hayes openly questioned whether she still wanted to play for the Bulldogs. But McCray convinced Hayes to still come to Starkville, salvaging something from the transition and hopefully bringing in Rickea Jackson’s running mate for the next few years.
- McCray has been hard at work restocking with the 2021 class. She has commitments from three top-100 players, with #60 Jasmine Shavers as the highest rated. But the Bulldogs lost a couple of major targets, top-ten Aaliyah Moore and top-20 Rori Harmon, to Schaefer and the Longhorns.
Ole Miss
- I realize that when you need an entire half to score two points, there’s nowhere to go but up, but I can’t be the only one who likes what Yolett McPhee-McCuin is doing. I know two of the top three scorers from last year’s team transferred, but again, two points in a half. They weren’t setting the world on fire.
- For the record, leading scorer Deja Cage (12.9 points) left for Middle Tennessee State as a graduate transfer. Losing freshman Jayla Alexander (9.5 points) might sting a little, as the Mississippi native transferred to Georgetown.
-Ole Miss’ 2020 recruiting class is ranked 13th overall, best in the SEC. It is headlined by wing Madison Scott, a top-15 player and McDonald’s All-American. Jacorriah Bracey is a top-50 guard who stayed in-state.
- Coach Yo is also rebuilding the roster in other ways, some of it internal. Redshirt freshman Sarah Dumitrescu, who was averaging 7.3 rebounds per game last year before a torn ACL ended her season after six games, is back. Valerie Nesbitt was last year’s second-leading scorer and perhaps best all-around player when she was kicked off the team in January. But Nesbitt made amends and is back on the team for this season. 6-3 forward Aleah Sorrentino was a top 100-player in the 2021 class, but she reclassified for 2020 and joined the Rebels this summer. Ole Miss also got one of the top juco transfers in guard Tiya Douglas, who once scored 44 points and made 13 threes in a game. Lastly, Ole Miss got in on the great Maryland migration as well, adding post Shakira Austin, who was the #4 overall prospect in 2018, set Maryland’s single season blocks record as a freshman, and was second-team all-Big Ten last season.
- See? That’s a lot to like, especially when compared to some other programs.
Texas A&M
- It’s all about Chennedy Carter, specifically her departure. For as incredibly dynamic a scorer as Carter is, the Aggies were arguably better last season while Carter was sidelined by injury. Either way, the Aggies never found their rhythm and fell significantly short of preseason expectations.
-Aside from Carter’s 21.3 points per game, Texas A&M also loses starting point guard Shambria Washington and her 5.1 assists per game. But after those two, Texas A&M returns almost everybody. That includes Kayla Wells (who actually was a better shooter than Carter), N’dea Jones (All-SEC, top-five rebounder nationally), and Ciera Johnson (fifth in career double-doubles at Texas A&M). Those three are a handful.
- Texas A&M brings in five newcomers, including three top-100 players. Point guard Kayla Green was ranked 48th and will have a chance to step in immediately at point guard. A&M also adds juco star Ella Tofaeono. Aside from being the best quote in the SEC (if not all of women’s basketball), Gary Blair has had a lot of success with juco players.
-The Aggies have also hit the transfer market hard. They signed Zaay Green from Tennessee, Alexis Morris from Baylor and Rutgers, and Destiny Pitts from Minnesota. Pitts is the biggest name, a former Big Ten freshman of the year and all-conference player. Pitts was kicked off the Gophers in January for what she claimed was bad body language. The Aggies will probably try to get Pitts, who averaged 16.3 points last season, eligible for the second half of the season. That would be a big boost, but it is in the hands of the NCAA’s random waiver generator.
Alabama
- The Tide went 8-8 in the SEC last season, the best record of Kristy Curry’s tenure. One gets the feeling this was more of a happy accident than any program building.
- Seriously, I can’t pretend to care. This program exists entirely to not bother Nick Saban.
- Okay. The senior inside-outside duo of Jasmine Walker and Jordan Lewis, who had her way against South Carolina, is pretty good.
Arkansas
- Arkansas loses Alexis Tolefree, who emerged as the Razorbacks’ best player by the end of last season. But they return everybody else: leading scorer Chelsea Dungee, Amber Ramirez, Makayla Daniels, and so forth.
- And they add one of the most coveted transfers of the summer: guard Destiny Slocum. In 2017, Slocum was the national freshman of the year at Maryland. She then transferred to Oregon State, where she was a two-time honorable mention All-American. She shot nearly 37% from three at Oregon State, the number that matters the most.
- At the risk of being overly simplistic, that’s kind of it. Slocum replaces Tolefree. Arkansas also adds top-40 guard Elauna Eaton, who is not strictly a shooter and has a little more talent off the dribble. The Hogs will still be matchup nightmares. They will still shoot threes.
Auburn
- Ugh. Just ugh.
- I’ve mentioned before how, since the retirement of Joe Ciampi, Auburn just never seems to be able to get over the hump as a program. The Tigers have had some very good seasons but haven’t been able to sustain it. It isn’t the coaches. Nell Fortner coached Team USA to a gold medal (though her Twitter handle @NellOnWheels may be the finer accomplishment) and won the SEC in 2009. That was followed by a losing season. Current coach Terri Williams-Flournoy is well-liked and respected by other coaches, but hasn’t been able to get Auburn higher than the middle of the SEC.
- And then there was last season. Seven players left. There was no common reason, which was frustrating. The players who transferred were talented, going to Kentucky, Missouri, Florida State, Purdue, Dayton, and Missouri State, all strong programs, which makes it all the more frustrating.
- Auburn still has Unique Thompson. The senior is a double-double machine. She finished second in the nation in double-doubles last season, despite getting little help. She managed to earn honorable mention All-American, despite playing for a team that went 11-18.
- It gets more discouraging. Normally this is where I talk about the talent that has been recruited. Not really. Auburn is bringing in six new players, including transfers, and five are eligible to play this season. Three are juco players. There are plenty of good juco players out there, but relying on a bunch of jucos in one class is a sign of desperation. None of the high school recruits made the top-100. Ugh.
LSU
- Another Tiger program that is trending the wrong way. Last year LSU was having a strong season behind the stellar play of senior Ayana Mitchell. Sadly, Mitchell suffered a career-ending injury late in the season, and LSU limped toward a postseason that got canceled. It was a doubly disappointing end to what was supposed to be a bounce-back season.
- LSU loses Mitchell, but returns the other two of its three best players from last season. Guard Khayla Pointer led LSU in scoring at 14.8 points per game, and post Faustine Aifuwa averaged 10.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game. They will have to do even more next season.
- They won’t get much in the way of new help. LSU signed three incoming freshmen, none ranked in the top-100. Transfer Ryann Payne will sit out this season, and was a reserve at TCU for two years.
