After injuries, close games and much adversity, the South Carolina women’s basketball team is grateful to find itself back in the Final Four for the second time in three years.
“Just really thankful,” said coach Dawn Staley as she opened her press conference after a win over Florida State that put her team in the Final Four once again. “God has been good to our program. He’s been good to me personally.”
This relief from Staley comes after her Gamecocks' tough road to finally get to where they are now. This Final Four run did not come easy.
Before their first game of the NCAA Tournament against UNC Asheville, the Gamecocks were given crushing news. Their star Alaina Coates would not be able to play at all in the tournament due to an ankle injury.
In Coates, the Gamecocks lost one of their biggest leaders and a player who had averaged a double-double on the season.
Yet still, they cruised past UNC Asheville with a 90-40 victory. Then they were forced to take on Arizona State.
Against the Sun Devils, South Carolina saw another key player go down. Originally it was believed that Allisha Gray had injured her knee, yet days before their next game, Staley announced that Gray would be able to play against twelfth-seeded Quinnipiac. Crisis averted.
In the Bobcats, South Carolina was handed one of the hottest teams in the nation. Quinnipiac had already knocked off fifth-seeded Marquette and fourth-seeded Miami. Against the Hurricanes, Quinnipiac had shot 58 percent from three point range.
Yet with a strong defensive showing, South Carolina ended Quinnipiac’s Cinderella story with a 100-58 victory.
And alas, South Carolina found itself one win away from the Final Four with Florida State standing in its way.
Throughout the game against the Seminoles, South Carolina was challenged. Coach Staley spoke to this when she said, “We won despite turning the ball over. We won despite their runs.”
All-American A’ja Wilson also was hampered by foul trouble, yet still the Gamecocks found a way to win by sticking to their game plan.
“We exploited putting the ball on the floor and challenging hem to stop us one-on-one,” Staley said. “That was the game plan, to attack their feet, and put them back on their heels.”
Kaela Davis was huge for South Carolina as she epitomized the game plan of driving the ball to the basket. She scored 23 points on 10-15 shooting from the field and went 3-4 from the free throw line.
“Since we’ve gone to a smaller lineup, it’s created more scoring opportunities for Kaela, more driving lanes for her to get to the basket and more opportunity for her to pull up, as well,” said Staley on Davis’ performance. “She’s seeing it and she’s hitting those holes like a running back.”
Somehow, some way, this South Carolina team finds itself back in the Final Four. Despite losing a player averaging a double-double, having the scare of potentially losing another key player, facing a Cinderella and having its All-American struggle, this team has made it to Dallas. And despite being on the opposite coast of the country when they made it to the Final Four, the feeling of happiness is starting to sink in.
“It just seems like everybody was kind of far away, and it almost, it took you back, because you’re like, did this really happen?” coach Staley said on returning to the Final Four. “Are we going to the Final Four? But it sank in.”