South Carolina women's basketball: Five Things to Watch - Auburn

South Carolina returns to the court on Sunday against Auburn. Before the game, the Gamecocks will retire A’ja Wilson’s jersey.

1. Rested
South Carolina had its only bye of the SEC season on Thursday (the Gamecocks sacrifice their other bye in order to play teh annual game against UConn). 

After playing at Tennessee on Monday, South Carolina took Tuseday off, had a light practice on Wednesday, and then took Thursday off. It was a much-needed break following five straight games against ranked opponents.

“Refreshed. Super refreshed. And it happened at the perfect time,” Dawn Staley said. “Friday was energized. A lot of energy in the building. A lot less execution. You’ve got to get back in the swing of things, but to today they brought it all together. A lot of energy, a lot of execution. They’re ready.”

2. Get Right
Pick whatever pet peeve you think is ailing the Gamecocks. The next week is a chance to get that fixed. After five consecutive games against ranked opponents, South Carolina finally got an off date, and then two games against teams at the bottom of the SEC standings. 

Worried about Te-Hina Paopao missing a lot of threes? Now’s the time to find that stroke again. Worried about getting outrebounded in the last two games? Time to crash the boards. You get the picture.

Win tickets to the South Carolina-Florida women’s basketball game

3. A’ja’s Jersey Retirement
What has been unofficial will become official on Sunday – A’ja WIlson’s number 22 jersey will be retired.

Read more of GamecockCentral’s coverage this weekend:
A’ja Wilson and Dawn Staley talk about the jersey retirement
South Carolina basketball since A’ja Wilson’s statue unveiling

The ceremony will begin at 11:35 am. It will take place on the court, so fans are advised to be in their seats early.  Doors open at 10:30 so fans can get in early.

For those unable to attend the sold-out game, SEC Network will air a special edition of “SEC Now” live from Columbia to cover the ceremony.

Due to a water pipe issue, Greene Street is closed from Park to Lincoln, and Lincoln Street is closed from Devine to Greene.

A free fan parking shuttle from Founders Park (431 Williams Street) has been added for this game. Parking and the shuttle from the Lot 1 are free. The shuttle will run from 10:30 a.m. until one hour after the game. The arena dropoff/pickup location will be at the corner of Devine and Lincoln Streets.

4. Availability report
There were no surprises on the initial availability report.

Only Ashlyn Watkins (out) is listed for Suth Carolina.

Auburn listed two players as Out. Prized transfer Taliah Scott injured her wrist in the third game of the season and hasn’t played since. Savannah Scott, a part-time starter last season, has yet to play this season.

5. Scouting the Tigers
How bad are the injuries at Auburn? The Tigers had to add two players to the roster for the spring semester. 

One, walk-on Julia Geis, predictably has only appeared in one game. But the other, Yuting Deng from China, has immediately stepped in and become Auburn’s second-leading scorer (9.7 points).

With the extended absence of both Scotts, and with Deng having just arrived, Auburn has been almost entirely dependent on Texas transfer DeYona Gaston on offense. Gaston averages 21.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, 1.2 steals, and 1.0 assists this season.

Like every Johnnie Harris team, Auburn’s strength is on the defensive end. The Tigers try to mix things up and make everything difficult, an attitude that carries over to the offensive end.

“Auburn is very athletic. They’re going to pressure us. They’ve got pressure defense. They have a little halfcourt zone that we haven’t seen in a while. Just hard guards that will push you back on your heels if you’re not ready to defend,” Staley said. “We have to be us. We have to be who we’ve been these past eight games in our conference.”

The Ws
Who: #2 South Carolina (20-1, 8-0) vs Auburn (11-10, 2-6)
When: Noon, Sunday, February 2 (Doors at 10:30)
Where: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, SC
Watch: SEC Network

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