South Carolina women's basketball: Are the Gamecocks on a collision course with UCLA?

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After the basketball season’s unofficial halftime, South Carolina and UCLA have established themselves as the top teams in the nation. Despite being separated by the entire country their destiny seems intertwined.

South Carolina and UCLA aren’t the last two unbeaten teams – in fact, there are currently ten unbeaten teams. But the general consensus is that there is a big drop between those two and the next-best teams.

In both the AP and Coaches’ polls, South Carolina ascended to number one with the first poll of the season. A week later the Gamecocks became the unanimous top team, the same week in which UCLA moved up to the second spot. They’ve been there ever since, oblivious to all the chaos below.

The computers disagree only slightly. South Carolina sits atop the NET rankings and UCLA comes in sixth.

It is mildly surprising that both teams have been so good, but they quickly gelled after offseason makeovers. UCLA pushed South Carolina to the wire when the teams met in Columbia last season, a 73-64 Gamecock win on November 29.

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Almost everyone came away from that game thinking the Bruins and Gamecocks might meet again in the Final Four. They did meet in the tournament, but only in the Sweet 16 for another Gamecock win.

Both teams had their weaknesses exposed in the tournament. UCLA lacked interior size or the three-point shooting to spread the court. South Carolina’s three-point shooting was also suspect, unable to punish teams for packing the paint.

Each team turned to the transfer portal after the season. South Carolina brought in Te-Hina Paopao, an All-Pac 12 guard, to shore up the three-point shooting. UCLA brought in 6-7 Lauren Betts, the former top overall recruit, to anchor the post. Both moves have been home runs.

Paopao is shooting 52.8% from three and has been one of the Gamecocks’ most consistent players. Betts is averaging 16.9 points and 9.2 rebounds while shooting 77.1% from the floor and giving the Bruins an elite post presence on both ends of the court.

In fact, Betts has transformed UCLA into a team that looks an awful lot like South Carolina. They have lots of depth, an elite post player (Betts, Kamilla Cardoso), a playmaking guard (Charisma Osborne, MiLaysia Fulwiley), a reliable wing (Gabriela Jaquez, Bree Hall), a shooter (Londynn Jones, Paopao), and a talented young point guard (Kiki Rice, Raven Johnson).

Statistically, the teams are similar. South Carolina ranks fifth in points per game (92.5) and UCLA is seventh (90.5). South Carolina is second in field goal percentage and UCLA is fourth. UCLA is second in assists, while South Carolina is seventh. UCLA leads the nation in rebound margin, and South Carolina is third. 

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Both teams even have the same weakness: turnovers. South Carolina averages 13.7 per game, 46th in the country. UCLA turns it over 15.6 times, 146th in the country.

There are also the intangibles. The Gamecocks are both motivated by coming up short last season and free from the weight of expectations. 

The Bruins seem to have learned from last season as well. Rice made a critical mistake at the end of the regular season game when she picked up a technical foul that gave the Gamecocks the free throws to seal the win. I spent about five minutes with Rice before the Sweet 16. We talked about the first game, her mistake, and her drive for the future. I was blown away by her temperament and am a firm believer in Rice.

In early December, UCLA played in the first game of a triple-header in Uncasville, CT. South Carolina played in the second game. Unless – or until – they meet in the NCAA Tournament, that is as close as the Bruins and Gamecocks will come to each other this season. 

South Carolina owes UCLA a return trip for last season’s game in Columbia, but that won’t happen until next season. Fortunately, that should be an elite matchup since neither program shows signs of dropping off, but time will tell. 

Of course, league play has a way of knocking teams down a peg. UCLA’s Pac-12 schedule is particularly daunting, as the Bruins face Southern Cal, Utah, and Colorado twice plus a road game at Stanford. 

South Carolina has one more non-conference tune-up this weekend, but UCLA dives headfirst into conference play with a rivalry game against Southern Cal. Would it really surprise anyone if UCLA’s undefeated season comes to an abrupt end Saturday?

Regardless, the Bruins and Gamecocks seem stuck on a collision course that will end in Cleveland. 

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