South Carolina women's basketball Rapid Reaction: No. 7 UConn
No. 4 South Carolina suffered a totally unexpected 87-58 loss at home to no 7 UConn. Here’s what stood out to me from the game.
– That was completely shocking. I can’t remember the last time South Carolina just forgot to show up like that. Maybe the loss at Missouri in 2021, or maybe the last home loss against NC State in 2020. It was so bad that Dawn Staley gave the Gamecocks an F.
“We got beat and we got beat bad,” Staley said. “Major implosion for us.”
UConn didn’t do anything special. South Carolina simply failed to execute any part of its game plan. They turned down open shots for contested shots, refused to attack the rim, and never did figure out that the Huskies wanted to shoot threes.
“Defensively, it was trash,” Te-Hina Paopao said.
I can only find two positives: it’s that this wasn’t a conference loss, and UConn didn’t expose South Carolina in any way, they just didn’t show up.
If I have to find a third, South Carolina held Paige Bueckers to 12 points on 3-12 shooting. She also had 10 assists and seven rebounds, but that’s a stat line that you see and expect to win.
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– I think Sarah Strong read some of the stories about the Freshman of the Year battle with Joyce Edwards. She was locked in and finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
Edwards wasn’t bad either. She finished with 17 points, five rebounds, and two blocks.
– If I have to point to one thing as a turning point (and I don’t think it ultimately made a difference), it was MiLaysia Fulwiley picking up her second with 3:37 left in the first quarter. She had to sit after less than two minutes of playing time.
Both fouls were ticky-tack, but she isn’t disciplined enough for Dawn Staley to leave in and trust not to pick up a third. Fulwiley was a sparkplug, and UConn didn’t have anyone who could handle her (notice how many fouls she drew in the second half), but she couldn’t make an impact from the bench.
