History: For many years Pat Summit and her Lady Vols dominated this tournament. They won the first title in 1980 and then 16 more thereafter. But that's ancient history, in recent years this tournament has been the Dawn Staley Invitational. The Gamecocks have won 6 of the last 7 years and don't let the butt-hurt Mississippi State tell you its because of its Greenville setting. The Gamecocks have won the SEC Tournament in Little Rock, Jacksonville, Greenville and Nashville during that stretch. Staley's Gamecocks are the only school to have won the title 4 consecutive years. The 2022 edition is being held in Nashville for the 7th time. The last time it was held in Nashville, (2018), South Carolina added to its trophy case. South Carolina is also the defending champion and Aliyah Boston is defending MVP.

The Gamecocks obviously have a long way to catch Tennessee in overall tournament titles but they are the favorite to take sole possession of second place come Sunday. South Carolina and Vanderbilt currently have 6 titles a piece. Auburn and Georgia are next with 4 a piece, followed by LSU with 2. Kentucky, Mississippi State, and Texas A&M have all cut down the nets once.

On Wednesday morning Texas A&M coach Gary Blair went quietly into that good night. Vanderbilt officially ended his career with a 85-69 thumping of the Aggies. Also Alabama defeated Auburn for the 3rd time this season. Don't expect Vanderbilt or Alabama to see the weekend.

The second round tips tomorrow at 1:00 pm EST with Missouri and Arkansas. Missouri is the last and only school to defeat the Gamecocks this season. Arkansas was the last school to beat the Gamecocks in the SEC Tournament back in 2019. Gamecocks fans are mostly likely hoping for some revenge as the winner of this game plays South Carolina at 1:00 pm on Friday. Arkansas has already beaten Missouri twice this season, look for it to happen a 3rd time and spoil the Gamecocks change for revenge. Missouri has had internal issues lately with 4 players suspended for a loss at Kentucky and 3 for a win over Florida. One of those suspended players was Missouri star Aijha Blackwell.

Game 2 on Thursday features the biggest surprise in the SEC, the Florida Gators. Coach Kelly Rae Finley had her interim tag removed after her Gators went 20-9 this season and 10-6 in the league. Senior guard Kiara Smith averaged 14.9 ppg and was named to the 1st Team All-SEC team by league coaches. The Gators get by in Nashville over the hometown Commodores but closer than the experts think.

Game 3 features the leagues highest projected draft pick in All-SEC first teamer Rhyne Howard. Howard actually took a step back this season from her POTY season in 2021. The Wildcats have had a disappointing season but they've won 6 games in row since falling to the Gamecocks in Columbia on February 10. Can't pick against a streak, Wildcats roll Mississippi State.

The nightcap features a football championship rematch when Alabama plays Georgia and just like football, look for Georgia's superior defense to reign supreme.

In short, South Carolina defeats LSU on Sunday. We will preview each game once we know the Gamecocks' opponent. My guess is that South Carolina defeats Arkansas and Ole Miss before dispatching with the pesky Bayou Bengals in the finals. I like LSU over Georgia in the other semifinal.

First Team All-SEC

Kiara Smith, Florida

Jenna Staiti, Georgia

Rhyne Howard, Kentucky

Khayla Pointer, LSU

Shakira Austin, Ole Miss

Aliyah Boston, South Carolina

Destanni Henderson, South Carolina

Jordan Horston, Tennessee

Second Team All-SEC

Brittany Davis, Alabama

Amber Ramirez, Arkansas

Aicha Coulibaly, Auburn

Que Morrison, Georgia

Alexis Morris, LSU

Anastasia Hayes, Mississippi State

Aijha Blackwell, Missouri

Hayley Frank, Missouri

Zia Cooke, South Carolina

Tamari Key, Tennessee

All-Freshman

Samara Spencer, Arkansas

Jersey Wolfenbarger, Arkansas

Alberte Rimdal, Florida

Jada Walker, Kentucky

Denae Carter, Mississippi State

Sara Puckett, Tennessee

Sacha Washington, Vanderbilt

Iyana Moore, Vanderbilt

All-Defensive

Kiara Smith, Florida

Que Morrison, Georgia

Aliyah Boston, South Carolina

Tamari Key, Tennessee

Jordyn Cambridge, Vanderbilt

Player of the Year - Aliyah Boston, South Carolina

Freshman of the Year - Samara Spencer, Arkansas

Defensive Player of the Year - Aliyah Boston, South Carolina

6th Woman of the Year - Angel Baker, Ole Miss

Scholar-Athlete of the Year - Mikayla Coombs, Georgia

Coach of the Year - Dawn Staley, South Carolina

Currently Charlie Creme has the Gamecocks as the #1 seed for the NCAA Tournament. That is likely not going to change even if the Gamecocks fall in Nashville. Creme has LSU as a #2, Tennessee as a #4, Georgia as a #6, Florida as a #6, Ole Miss as a #7, Arkansas as a #10, Kentucky as an #11 and one of the last 4 byes, and Missouri as one of the last 4 in. Creme has Mississippi St as a first four out.