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

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1. Undefeated again?
With a win on Sunday, South Carolina can wrap up its second consecutive undefeated season. No SEC team has ever gone undefeated in back-to-back seasons since the conference went to a 16-game schedule (Tennessee had undefeated 14-0 seasons in 2003-04), let alone had consecutive undefeated overall regular seasons.

Nobody particularly wants to talk about it. You don’t talk about a no-hitter in progress. But more than that, last season was a lesson that regular season accomplishments are hollow without more.

That being said, going undefeated in consecutive seasons is an extraordinary accomplishment. It is made even more exceptional by the fact that the Gamecocks replaced their entire starting lineup and two-thirds of their points and minutes played.

It’s something to celebrate. 

2. Lineup changes
South Carolina made some lineup changes against Arkansas. Too many, actually, as the Gamecocks were assessed an administrative technical for making a change to the starting lineup too close to tipoff.

The coaches wanted to try a different lineup that had Ashlyn Watkins starting alongside Kamilla Cardoso, who was making her return to action after missing two games for rest. But Watkins is in the running for Sixth Woman of the Year, and the coaches became concerned that if she started another game (her seventh) she might be ineligible for the award.

So Sania Feagin got her first career start. It seemed to work out well all the way around. Watkins scored a career-high 21 points. Cardoso and Chloe Kitts, who sacrificed her starting spot, each scored in double figures. And Feagin grabbed a career-high eight rebounds.

“Feagin played great,” Dawn Staley said. “Feagin was absolutely great in her starting role for us.”

Hopefully, it’s the end of the lineup changes, though. Staley confirmed that Kitts will return to the starting lineup on Sunday, meaning the “usual” lineup should be intact for the rest of the season.

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3. Senior Day Sellout and Remembering Nikki McCray
Sunday’s game is officially a sellout, the fifth of the season. South Carolina will not break the single-season average attendance record, but the Gamecocks will once again lead the nation in attendance.

Doors open at 10:30 to accommodate the sellout crowd. Senior Day festivities begin at 11:40. Kamilla Cardoso, Te-Hina Paopao, and Sakima Walker will be honored.

All three have an optional COVID season remaining and could opt to return. Staley has not discussed a potential return with any of the three, but on Friday she made a joking pitch for one more year.

“We kind of want to get through Senior Day and hopefully it’s sold out and they can feel the atmosphere like no other and decide to come back,” she said.

The first 3,000 fans will receive a Senior Day giveaway. Rally towels will also be given out. 

South Carolina and Tennessee will also continue their season-long celebration of Nikki McCray-Penson, the former Lady Vol player and Gamecock assistant coach who passed away last summer after a lengthy battle with breast cancer. 

South Carolina and Rutgers (where McCray coached at the time of her passing) played an exhibition in October that served as a fundraiser for a local breast cancer charity. McCray’s family was honored then and again at the Gamecocks’ game in Knoxville two weeks ago.

In memory of McCray, Prisma Health’s mammogram truck will be at Colonial Life Arena from 10 am to noon doing screenings every 15 minutes. Interested fans can schedule an appointment either on PrismaMyChart or by calling 803-434-3300 and must bring their insurance card and ID to their appointment.

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4. Around the SEC
South Carolina, LSU, and Ole Miss are locked into the top three seeds in the SEC tournament, in that order. Kentucky, Georgia, and Missouri are locked into the bottom four seeds. 

Vanderbilt, Mississippi State, and Auburn are locked into single-bye seeds, but they each want to win to impress the selection committee.

The biggest races to watch are Tennessee-Alabama and Florida-Arkansas-Texas A&M. Alabama is a game behind Tennessee but has the tiebreaker. If Alabama beats Texas A&M and Tennessee loses to South Carolina, the Crimson Tide would clinch the fourth seed and double bye. 

Florida is a game behind both Arkansas and Texas A&M but has the tiebreaker on both. If Florida beats Auburn and either team ahead of the Gators loses, Florida moves out of the bottom four. 

If it ends in a three-way tie, I think Arkansas would be the team to fall into the bottom four, but we are getting into multiple tie-breakers so we’ll let the folks in Birmingham sort it out.

5. Scouting the Lady Vols
Long time, no see. 

South Carolina beat Tennessee 66-55 in Knoxville on February 15. Tennessee led most of the game, but South Carolina picked up its play after halftime and the game was tied by the end of the third quarter and then South Carolina pulled away in the fourth quarter for a double-digit win. 

After a sluggish start, South Carolina’s defense was relentless in the fourth quarter. Tennessee had as many turnovers as points, scoring just seven points on 2-9 shooting. Rickea Jackson led all scorers with 19 points but was held scoreless in the fourth quarter as South Carolina wore her down.

“To play them two weeks ago means it’s fresh on the players’ minds, which that’s helpful. It’s fresh on Coach Boyer’s mind because she’s got the Tennessee scout. It helps that you’re not going to change much in two weeks. You may add a wrinkle here or there but for the most part you’re getting who they are.”

Limiting Jackson from the outset will be South Carolina’s first priority.

The Ws
Who: #1 South Carolina (28-0, 15-0) vs Tennessee (17-10, 10-5)
When: Noon ET, Sunday, March 3 (Doors open at 10:30)
Where: Colonial Life Arena
Watch: ESPN

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