South Carolina women's basketball: Pre-postseason mailbag

While South Carolina waits for the SEC tournament quarterfinals to begin on Friday, I opened up the floor for questions about women’s basketball going into the postseason.

Questions and answers were originally on The Insiders Forum. Here are the highlights.

(Questions have been edited for clarity.)

Cockburn: Any update on Ashlyn Watkins’ rehab? Any chance for a hardship waiver?

I don’t have an exact update, but Watkins has been at practices and games and traveling with the team, so that’s a positive. She’s not wearing one of those giant whole-leg braces, either. Staley said they are going to apply for a waiver, but I honestly don’t see what grounds they have since Ashlyn played half a season. But the way the NCAA has been lately, you never know.

Fear the Spur: What’s the chance that Raven Johnson is back next year?

I think there’s a good chance. She didn’t have a great season, revenue sharing starts next season, and Toronto and Portland don’t begin playing until 2026, which opens up a couple dozen more roster opportunities.

DarkCock: Any theory on how Joyce Edwards was first-team All-SEC but MiLaysia Fulwiley was Sixth Woman of the Year?

I have no idea, except that the coaches seem to try to spread out the awards to make sure everybody gets something.

CocksOnTop: If you had to pick the 2025-26 starting five today, who would you choose?

Raven Johnson or Maddy McDaniel (if Johnson doesn’t return) at point, MiLaysia Fulwiley at guard, Tessa Johnson on the wing, Chloe Kitts at the four, and Joyce Edwards in the middle. That’s a small lineup, so I think Dawn Staley would like it if there were a mystery post that could step into the starting lineup and move someone to the sixth woman role.

The Coast is Clear: Does South Carolina add a post from the portal? Can the Gamecocks count on Ashlyn Watkins to return next season? What kind of progress do you expect from Adhel Tac and Maryam Dauda?

It’s too early to guess who will be in the portal – no big names have entered yet. Markeshia Grant made a good point that a lot of the portal recruiting is done behind the scenes by players talking to each other. I’m sure there are posts out there looking at South Carolina and thinking, “I could go there and be the new Coates/Wilson/Boston/Cardoso.”

I think you have to assume you won’t have Watkins next season. Like you said, some players come back from an ACL in 6 months, some need more like 18. But even if it’s 12 months, Ash is going to have to make a decision about whether she wants to use her last year of eligibility on half a season.

I’m not ready to give up on Tac. There’s too much to like. She needs to get stronger and work on her footwork/balance, two things she couldn’t do for two years because of injuries. A lot of times posts take a while to develop in the SEC anyway.

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The Coast is Clear: What type of contributions do you expect from the incoming freshmen next year? Agot Makeer looks very thin.

Makeer is very thin, yes, but she’s mostly a perimeter player so I don’t think it will matter too much. Makeer is the more talented of the two, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s actually Ayla McDowell that plays more next year. She’s a rebound/defend/hustle player who can also shoot pretty well, and there will always be minutes for that kind of player. Think about Bree Hall as a freshman.

The Coast is Clear: Who will replace Bree Hall as the defensive stopper?

Tessa Johnson has already taken on Breezy’s role this season. She’s a better scorer but not quite as good defensively. But I think you are asking who other than Tessa? It might be McDowell, for the reasons above.

washington cock: What does South Carolina have to do to secure a one seed?

I think if the Gamecocks make it to Sunday, they clinch a one seed. If they win, they definitely have a one seed and maybe even the second overall seed. Winning two games would give South Carolina 16 Quad 1 wins. That’s the most in the country and two times as many as Notre Dame/NC State/Duke/UConn/Maryland/Ohio State. I just can’t see the committee suddenly deciding that quality wins don’t matter, or continuing to say, “Well, they were bad against UConn, so we are going to throw out the entire rest of the season.”

Upstate Cock: Do you think Chloe Kitts might transfer to Florida to play with her sister Kylee?

If they wanted to play together, Kylee would have tried to come to South Carolina instead of quickly committing to Florida.

HopkinsCock56: Will the cocaching staff ever work with Raven Johnson on her shooting technique (or have they)? It’s the only thing holding her back from being an elite player. Is it too late to mess with it?

First, let’s recognize that Johnson’s shooting form has gotten a lot better since her redshirt freshman season. But like you said, it’s hard to undo a lifelong bad form. It’s not something you can really mess with during the season.

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