South Carolina women's basketball: Five Things to Watch - No. 5 LSU

No. 2 South Carolina women’s basketball hosts No. 5 LSU on Friday. Find out how to watch and what to watch for as the last two unbeaten SEC teams meet.

1. Delayed but not denied

Except for GameDay, that was denied.

LSU was unable to fly to Columbia in time for the game on Thursday so it was pushed back a day, becoming a rare Friday SEC game. The change meant that ESPN’s College GameDay, which was scheduled to air from Colonial Life Arena before the game, had to be canceled. 

The change also disrupts the normal routine of preparing for a game, but it shouldn’t be a significant disruption.

“It’s a little bit harder a day later,” Dawn Staley said. “You get yourself amped up, and then, the game is pushed back. (We) get an extra day of prep time, something that’s kind of weird, too, because we’re just not used to having three days. So, we just had a shorter day just to make sure that we got everything and keeping our game timing right.”

The change will be felt more this weekend. LSU has a quick turnaround. The Tigers fly back to Baton Rouge and host Texas A&M on Sunday with just one day of prep.

South Carolina doesn’t play at Tennessee until Monday, so it basically becomes a normal Thursday-Sunday turnaround.

WIN TICKETS: Geno Auriemma and UConn are coming to Columbia on Feb. 16

2. Mind your manners

The last time these two teams met, there was the infamous bench-clearing fight that led to six players being ejected. 

Some of the key players in that fracas, like Kamilla Cardoso and Angel Reese, have moved on. Others, like MiLaysia Fulwiley and Flau’jae Johnson, who committed the intentional foul on Fulwiley that set things off, are still around.

The fight was widely viewed as the result of a physical game that got out of hand. Because of that, Staley expects the officials to put a stop to any physical or extracurricular play early. She told her team to prepare for a tightly-called game.

“Obviously, we brought it to their attention,” Staley said. “We feel like the officiating is going to be on it at the start of the game. Some of the things that we did in that game, we’re not going to be able to do; some of the things that they did, they’re not going to be able to do. So, for us, it’s about adjusting to how the officiating is going to be. It’s probably going to be tight. It would if I’m the coordinator of officials.”

WIN TICKETS: The Auburn Tigers are coming to Columbia to upset Gamecocks WBB

3. Matching up with Morrow

Angel Reese got most of the attention, but in the two games last season it was Annesah Morrow who led LSU in scoring and notched double-doubles. Morrow had 16 points and 10 rebounds in the game in Baton Rouge and 19 points, 10 rebounds, and four steals in the rematch in Greenville.

Morrow, who is averaging 18.7 points and 14.2 rebounds, is a tweener in the best sense of the word. She is too quick for most other forwards but too strong for most guards. That’s how you become only the eighth player in NCAA history with over 2,500 points and 1,500 rebounds.

“You really can’t stop her,” Staley said. “I think you have to find ways in which to make it hard for her to score, that’s one. And then, you’ve got to gain rebounds. You’ve got to gang box out. That’s about will and positioning and, hopefully, making her play on the other side of the ball. She can’t just do what she does best and be able to rest on the defensive side of the ball. So, we got to make her play on both ends. We got enough bigs that will give her different looks to make her play.”

As much trouble as South Carolina had guarding Morrow, she, in turn, had trouble guarding Chloe Kitts (team-high 14 points) in the first game. Kitts didn’t have the same success in the rematch, scoring just six points, but she has improved significantly since a year ago.

There’s also Joyce Edwards, who could be the Gamecocks’ secret weapon against Morrow. Edwards is big and fast. She’s also strong in the post and good at drawing fouls. It would be a lot easier to guard Morrow if she’s on the bench in foul trouble.

WIN TICKETS: Geno Auriemma and UConn are coming to Columbia on Feb. 16

4. Availability report

There were no surprises on the availability report. Ashlyn Watkins is OUT for South Carolina, and Izzy Besselmanis OUT for LSU.

5. Scouting the Tigers

LSU looks a lot different without Reese and Hailey Van Lith. Johnson averages 20.0 points, and Mikayla Williams averages 16.5, and both shoot 37% from three. LSU also added Arizona transfer Kailyn Gilbert, who adds 11.5 points off the bench. 

The Tigers are deeper this year and more perimeter-oriented, but Kim Mulkey still relies heavily on that main group.

LSU beat Arkansas by 34 and Florida by 17, but in between, the Tigers had to gut out close wins over Auburn, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt. Whether that is a sign of resilience or vulnerability remains to be seen.

LSU has had issues with its perimeter defense in conference play, allowing an opposing guard to score 19 or more points in every game. Fulwiley, who scored a career-high 24 points in the SEC tournament last season, must be licking her chops.

The Ws

Who: No. 2 South Carolina (18-1, 6-0) vs No. 5 LSU (20-0, 5-0)
When: 5:00 ET, Friday, January 24
Where: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, SC
Watch: ESPN

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