No breaks were taken for South Carolina women's basketball this past month. The team went undefeated in December, and has remained unbeaten throughout the new year.
Now sitting at a record of 17-1, its 10 straight wins have helped rebound from its only loss of the season to then-No. 4 Texas.
The No. 3-ranked Gamecocks haven't seen much movement since then in the Associated Press' Top 25, still trailing 15-0 Connecticut and 17-0 Texas. Their narrow 79-77 victory over No. 22 Louisville in the ACC/SEC challenge on Dec. 4 would give way to the team's perfect record in the final month of the calendar year.
Across the team's final five games of 2025, the unit averaged a margin of victory of 53.2 points. South Carolina scored over 100 points as a team in three of the five contests. Earlier in the season, a 121-49 victory over Queens marked the largest offensive output under head coach Dawn Staley and the third best in program history.
Sophomore forward Joyce Edwards exploded in December, notching scoring outputs of 25, 29, 34 and 29. She's averaging 20.7 points per game while also leading the team in steals.
Senior guard Ta'Niya Latson also had herself a day against NC Central, where she posted a season-high of 32 points thanks to a 5-6 day from beyond the arc.
Senior center Madina Okot's three consecutive double-doubles were complimented with a season-high 27-point day against Florida Gulf Coast. The outing marked her fourth game this season scoring over 20 points, already doubling her total from last season.
The Gamecocks held all five opponents under 60 points, while holding NC Central, South Florida and Florida Gulf Coast all under a total of 45.
South Carolina earned its first win in conference play at home on New Year's Day, trouncing Alabama 83-57 at Colonial Life Arena thanks to 25 points from Edwards and 17 from senior guard Raven Johnson.
"I love SEC ball," said Raven Johnson said. "Every night when you lace your shoes up, who doesn't want to have competition?"
Hitting the road against Florida, the Gamecocks continued to stack wins in an 11-point victory that saw four of South Carolina's starters in double-figure scoring. The game was ultimately decided in the paint when the Gators were out-rebounded 59-36. Both Edwards and Okot grabbed double-digit boards, with Okot notching a season-best 17 total rebounds.
South Carolina's latest road win came against the Arkansas Razorbacks in a 93-58 blowout, including 22 points from Edwards and another double-double from Okot. A team-high three triples from junior guard Tessa Johnson aided en route to her 19-point day.
Most recently, the Gamecocks defeated Georgia by a score of 65-43 at home on Jan. 11. Edwards and Okot led the way with 14 points apiece. The team shot just 2-17 from three and 25-66 from the field but forced the Bulldogs to an even worse 17-63 overall. Only five players for Georgia notched a point, and only three Bulldogs made more than two field goals.
"Defense going into Texas is going to be really important," freshman guard Agot Makeer said. "It's good that we have one thing down. We'll make adjustments in practice, and then our offense will be good on Thursday."
At 4-0, South Carolina joins Vanderbilt and Tennessee as the only teams in the SEC yet to lose a conference game.
Staley was active in recruiting over the past 30 days as well. French prospect Alicia Tournebize committed to South Carolina over break, bringing a 6-foot-7 frame that makes her the team's tallest player. She'll join the team this spring and add rim protection for the team ahead of continuing conference play. The 18-year-old freshman could make her debut in Thursday's game against No. 2 Texas.
"She's been having to do orientations and all that," said Staley. "Only classes in front of her ... She'll get out there on Tuesday and Wednesday."
The Gamecocks also landed top-5 recruit Jerzy Robinson, a 6-foot-1 guard from California, who immediately became Staley's top ranked recruit of the class. She joins forwards Kaeli Wynn and Kelsi Andrews as fellow top-20 ranked recruits to commit to South Carolina during the course of the season. Andrews comes from Florida's IMG Academy, while Wynn joins Robinson as the second California-based prospect in the class.
What's next?
South Carolina looks to right its wrongs this Thursday against the Longhorns, the only team to hand the Gamecocks a loss this season. This will be the first game against Texas to count towards conference play, as their first meeting came in the Players Era tournament in Las Vegas.
Tipoff of the nation's highest ranked matchup this season is at 7 p.m. at Colonial Life Arena. The game will be streamed on ESPN2.