The South Carolina women’s basketball team fell short in the 2024-25 season, losing to the UConn Huskies in the National Championship in Tampa, Fla. Now, the Gamecocks are preparing for the upcoming season, putting the previous loss behind.
The Gamecocks return seven players on the 11-man roster, bringing in a pair of transfers in senior guard Ta’Niya Latson from Florida State and senior center Madina Okot from Mississippi State.
Okot averaged 11.3 points and 9.6 rebounds per game in her lone season with the Bulldogs in 34 games played. Latson comes as the big-ticket transfer addition, as a 25.2 point-per-game scorer with the Seminoles on 45.1% shooting from the field. Her point total led the entire country on a per-game basis, and ESPN ranked Latson as the No. 1 recruit heading into the transfer portal period before she landed with South Carolina.
Head coach Dawn Staley spoke on the impact of having Latson in the fold of South Carolina’s backcourt.
“Her maturity, her practice habits ... She’s really coachable,” Staley said. “She just wants to win. She wants to get better.”
Latson was teammates with South Carolina senior guard Raven Johnson at Westlake High School in Atlanta, Ga. The pair won three state championships together, and Johnson voiced her excitement to be back with her old running mate.
“I just read her,” Johnson said. “It’s like another (former South Carolina center Kamilla Cardoso) honestly. I love her, and I’m glad she’s here.”
Johnson is back for year five with South Carolina, announcing her decision to return to the team just minutes after Latson’s portal announcement back on April 8. Johnson is expected to retain point guard duties for the Gamecocks, providing a veteran presence after former guard Bree Hall and former forward Sania Feagin graduated and went to the WNBA.
“It’s important for our point guards to have a voice on our teams,” Staley said. “Not only do we need her voice, we need her example of how to play the position and how to run our basketball team.”
Johnson has averaged 5.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game in 114 games played with South Carolina. A 2024-25 SEC All-Defensive team selection, Johnson is looking to take her offense to a new level in the upcoming season.
“This off-season, I was very much focused on details, on scoring really,” Johnson said. “Being consistent, looking for myself a little bit. I feel like if I look for myself a little bit more, it will open up others.”
Freshman guards Agot Makeer and Ayla McDowell are the last of the newcomers for Staley’s roster. Makeer was ranked as the No. 4 recruit in the 2025 women’s basketball recruiting class according to 247sports, while McDowell was ranked at No. 27.
“They’re good listeners … They are really good basketball players, really smart,” Staley said. “I think both of them can shoot the ball … I’m hoping that holds true throughout the season.”
Staley said, while there has been a lot to like from the newcomers, the off-season has been "like no other" in the sense of not having the entire roster in Columbia for practice at once. Sophomore forward Joyce Edwards most recently represented Team USA in the FIBA 3x3 Nations League, competing in Chile.
Edwards participated in three events for Team USA over the summer, including the Nations League team, the 2025 FIBA Women's AmeriCup and USA Basketball 3X Nationals. Junior guard Tessa Johnson, senior forward Chloe Kitts and sophomore guard Maddy McDaniel joined Edwards for the USA Basketball 3X Nationals which took place in May.
Additionally, Makeer and McDowell represented Canada and Brazil, respectively, in the FIBA U19 Women's World Cup in Czechia over the summer. Staley said the team began learning some offensive concepts this summer, which is "not much," according to Staley.
“We’re a little bit far behind,” Staley said. “But this team really works hard. They are extremely coachable. We are gaining ground.”
While the Gamecocks still have over a month before the regular season tips off, the team continues to work in the preseason with the players all together. Raven Johnson said the work the team accomplishes now will only help out in the long run.
“That’s the goal, to get back to the National Championship,” Johnson said. “It’s very hard to get back there, so that’s what we’re doing in the summer, in the preseason … it’s going to prepare us for March Madness.”
What's next?
The Gamecocks open up the regular season on Nov. 3, hosting former South Carolina assistant coach Winston Gandy and the Grand Canyon Antelopes. Before the regular season tips off, South Carolina has exhibitions with Anderson University on Oct. 24 and with North Carolina on Oct. 30.