Challenging 9-day stretch awaits Staley, Gamecocks
The final buzzer concluding South Carolina’s routine 81-62 victory over Ole Miss Thursday night at Colonial Life Arena signaled the start of the most demanding nine-day stretch in the history of Gamecocks women’s basketball.
Starting Sunday, USC faces No. 10 Texas A&M on the road (Jan. 31), No. 12 Kentucky in Columbia (Feb. 4) and top-ranked Connecticut (Feb. 8) in front of a sold-out Colonial Life Arena crowd and national TV audience on ESPN2 in what should be the most hyped women’s basketball game in program history.
Clearly, USC’s perfect record is at serious risk.
“I look at (the next three games) as one game and that’s Texas A&M,” USC head coach Dawn Staley said after USC improved to 10-0 at home. “It’s a really important game for us for a lot of reasons. The standings, tiebreakers, all of those things play a part in our psyche.
“The more distance we can put between us and the next team in the SEC, we’ll be in great shape. We want to win this league again. Only two programs have won it three years in a row. We want to be a part of that number. We feel like we have the players and the experience to do that. That’s one of our goals.”
Staley faces a tricky proposition this week – how does she keep her team focused like a laser beam on Texas A&M when human nature (and ESPN) demands the Gamecock players begin concerning themselves with the three-time defending national champions and the probable No. 1 vs. No. 2 battle on the second Monday in February.
Social media and 24-hour sports cable channels being what they are, keeping Texas A&M solely on the minds of her players undoubtedly won’t be easy for Staley with the UConn battle lurking on the horizon. But it is necessary as the Aggies should be a difficult opponent to subdue in College Station, Tex.
Texas A&M edged Alabama, 59-56, Thursday night in Tuscaloosa, so the Aggies will retain sole possession of second place in the SEC with a 5-2 mark coming into Sunday’s clash.
Nonetheless, escaping the endless UConn chatter (hype?) over the next week or so could prove impossible for Staley and the Gamecocks.
“The coaches, for sure, are (focused exclusively on Texas A&M),” Staley said. “Our players are an in the moment type of team. They only think about the opponent that is in front of them. Do they watch TV and do they hear people talk about the (UConn) matchup? Absolutely. I’m hoping they’re watching it. But they are going to keep things in perspective.
“Again, Texas A&M is a huge game for us. That’s what we told our players that at the end of this game. They are the next best team record-wise. We want to make sure we’re focused in on the task at end. Connecticut is going to be there on Feb. 8. They’re not going anywhere. We have a lot in front of us before we get to that.”
Victories over Texas A&M and Kentucky would improve the Gamecocks to 10-0 in the league and would virtually wrap up the regular season title barring a major collapse by USC down the stretch in February.
Every other SEC team would have at least three losses, giving the Gamecocks a commanding – and likely insurmountable – lead in the standings with six SEC contests remaining on the schedule.
In other words, if USC has a 10-0 SEC record a week from now, nobody is catching the Gamecocks.
SEC STANDINGS (After Games of Jan. 28)
South Carolina 8-0
Texas A&M 5-2
Mississippi State 5-3
Florida 5-3
Vanderbilt 4-3
Missouri 4-4
Kentucky 4-4
Arkansas 4-4
Tennessee 3-4
Georgia 3-5
Auburn 3-5
Ole Miss 2-5
Alabama 2-6
LSU 2-6
