South Carolina women's basketball: Three things we learned from the win over USF

Following a weeklong exam break, South Carolina ran its winning streak to five with an inconsistent 78-62 win over USF. Here are three things we learned.

1. The mental lapses are still there
South Carolina played lights out to start the USF game. The Gamecocks built leads of 18-4 and 22-6 and assisted on six of their first seven baskets. 

Then they faded and the Bulls played the Gamecocks even in the second quarter. The same thing happened in the second half: South Carolina built a 26-point lead and then got outplayed so badly in the fourth quarter that Dawn Staley called a timeout with two minutes left to tear into her team.

“Sometimes when we get out to a quick start, we think it’s going to be a lopsided win. So we really just focus on offense and then we get really careless and undisciplined defensively,” Staley said. “We were undisciplined. We were reaching. We were gambling. Once we got back to our disciplined style of play, we can create our own momentum.”

What frustrates Staley is that the Gamecocks can play the way she wants them to. It seemed like they had turned the corner following the loss to UCLA and had gotten the lapses out of their collective system. 

“You get greedy. You think they have it. Like, this is it. This is our norm now, our standard, and then you backslide a little bit and it’s just that fight,” Staley said. “You’ve got to continue to fight for the way that we need to play, no matter who we’re playing, and it’s impactful basketball. They’re young, though. They fall victim to the crowd, pleasing the crowd. Offensively, they get really up for making baskets. They forget about how we built our lead and we build our lead on what we’re able to do defensively.”

[GamecockCentral has gift subscriptions]

2. Joyce Edwards continues to get better
Edwards quietly filled up the box score with 15 points along with two rebounds, two assists, and two blocks. Her 15 points were a career-high. Edwards looks comfortable and is playing more and more like she did in high school.

Edwards credited Staley’s decision to have the team scrimmage against each other instead of the Highlighters as one reason for her career-high. 

“Honestly it’s my teammates,” she said. “We’re practicing against each other more and going against them helps me. They push me. They give me opportunities to score. I’m just putting my trust in them.”

There were still some freshman moments. A nice pick and roll between Edwards and MiLaysia Fulwiley got Edwards switched onto 5-6 point guard Mama Dembele in the post. Dembele, a graduate senior, was able to pull the chair out from under Edwards for a turnover. Score one for veteran guile over youthful size and talent.

3. When in doubt, Paopao
Te-Hina Paopao hasn’t scored more than 11 points since the UCLA loss, and that and her 23-point game against NC State are her only “big games” of the season. But Paopao has been the Gamecocks’ rock.

Whenever South Carolina starts to lose composure or focus, Paopao seems to be the one who makes a play to right the ship. For most of her career, Paopao making a play meant making a three, but this season she’s also grabbing rebounds, getting defensive stops, and setting up teammates. 

South Carolina hasn’t needed Paopao’s scoring much during the five-game winning streak, but I have no doubt she’s capable of scoring 20 points again if that’s what the Gamecocks need. 

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