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

South Carolina Women’s Basketball: News • Recruiting • Schedule • Roster • Stats • SEC Standings • NCAA Polls • Scholarship Chart

---

1. Kamilla está ausente
Kamilla Cardoso will miss the Missouri game, the first of at least two games she will miss while playing in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Brazil. Although South Carolina did not officially confirm Cardoso’s absence until this past Sunday, the team (and pretty much everyone else) has known about it for weeks if not months.

How to watch Cardoso and former Gamecocks in the Olympic Qualifying Tournaments

Cardoso averages 13.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks, leading the Gamecocks in all three categories. 

Dawn Staley said she isn’t worried about replacing Cardoso on offense, but nobody can replace her on defense. She thinks the key will be for everyone to play within themselves.

“Everybody has to do what they do best. Do what you you’ve been doing. We don’t have anybody that’s 6-7,” Staley said. “We can’t make up for the defensive presence that Kamilla brings just from her stature. We can however play the other side of it. The rotations, we can switch probably a little bit more than we normally do. That’s what we need to be really concerned about.”

[GamecockCentral for $1: In-depth coverage and a great community]

2. Feagin’s turn
In Cardoso’s absence, Ashlyn Watkins and Chloe Kitts will probably start and be counted on to pick up some of the slack. Sakima Walker, who normally plays mostly in blowouts, will also play more, and Staley is happy with her preparation this week in practice. 

More than those three, South Carolina is counting on Sania Feagin to step into the void. Feagin averages 6.5 points and 3.2 rebounds this season. She is shooting 60% from the field and is a versatile offensive playmaker.

At times Feagin has struggled on defense and with consistency. Usually when that happens, Staley simply leans on a different player, but for the next two games that won’t be an option. Staley is confident Feagin is up to the challenge. 

“Feagin is really one of my favorite players. She probably knows, but I’m hardest on her,” Staley said. “I’m super hard on her because I see so much talent and I see her sometimes lack confidence. She wants it so bad. It almost works against her. How she’s been playing the last couple of weeks, she’s into it. She’s present. She practices hard. She communicates. You can hear her, her energy.”

3. Point guard duel
Thursday night’s matchup will feature two prolific point guards going head-to-head.

Missouri senior point guard Mama Dembele did not play in the first game against South Carolina due to injury. Dembele leads the SEC in assists at 6.8 per game, and ranks fourth nationally. She also scored 18 points against Tennessee on Sunday.

South Carolina sophomore Raven Johnson averages 5.4 assists, good for third in the SEC and 30th in the nation. She is second in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.5:1.

[On3 App: Get South Carolina push notifications from GamecockCentral]

4. Attendance tracker
Going into Thursday’s game, South Carolina is averaging 16,122 fans for its ten home games. South Carolina is almost certain to lead the nation in attendance again, so now FAMs can focus on history. 

With five home games remaining, South Carolina needs to average at least 17,454 for the remaining games to set the all-time average attendance record. 

Tennessee set the current attendance record of 16,565 in 1998-99.

5. Scouting the Tigers
Hayley Frank, Missouri’s leading scorer and rebounder, missed the Tiger’s last game at Tennessee. She was declared day-to-day with an undisclosed injury. Frank has not been officially cleared, but is expected to play Thursday.

South Carolina has prepared as though Frank will play. Earlier this season Fank had 16 points against South Carolina, but Staley was happy with the way Watkins defended Frank in the second half. 

Missouri has lost four straight games to fall into a three-way tie at the bottom of the SEC standings. 

Missouri plays a five-out offense which can give South Carolina trouble when shots are falling and if South Carolina’s defensive rotations are slow. In the first meeting, Staley replaced Cardoso with Watkins to get quicker on defense. 

Missouri has given South Carolina fits when they meet in the Show-Me-State, but in the Palmetto State it has been all Gamecocks. South Carolina is a perfect 6-0 in their home Columbia. 

The Ws
Who: #1 South Carolina (21-0, 9-0) vs Missouri (11-11, 2-7)
When: 7:00 pm, Thursday, February 8
Where: Colonial Life Arena
Watch: SEC Network

Discuss South Carolina women’s basketball on The Insiders Forum!