WBB Preview: Gamecocks face Alabama in Monday-night matchup

7 p.m., Monday, Feb. 22, 2016

Foster Auditorium, Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Broadcast: SEC Network

Radio: Gamecock Radio Network

With just three wins needed for a perfect conference record, South Carolina’s women’s basketball team will head to Tuscaloosa for a matchup against 14-12 Alabama. The Crimson Tide are just 3-10 in SEC play and Gamecock head coach Dawn Staley is undefeated against them during her coaching tenure.

The Gamecocks have often gotten off to slow starts this season and will look to jump out to an early lead against the Crimson Tide. Staley’s squad has played strong defense as of late, holding their last two opponents under 60 points. However, in those games, the Gamecocks averaged just 61.5 points per game, well under their season average of 74.2, which ranks second in the SEC.

South Carolina secured its third-straight SEC title last Wednesday against Georgia on Thursday with a 61-51 win. In that game, guards Khadijah Sessions and Tiffany Mitchell combined for 32 points on 8-20 shooting and SEC Player of the Year candidate A’ja Wilson added 16 points and nine rebounds in the game.

South Carolina will look to get the ball inside and feed the frontcourt duo of Wilson and junior Alaina Coates against the Tide, who have struggled against bigs at times this year.

While SEC play can be one of those “any given night” type of situations, I think the Gamecocks will be looking for a big win against the Tide, to boost both their resume and their confidence. The Gamecocks have looked timid at times over the past month, and though they are still undefeated in the SEC, they looked somewhat sloppy in a few of their games, some that seemed closer than they should be.

South Carolina has three games left against teams with a combined 8-33 conference record to find its rhythm before SEC tournament play begins on March 2. Often college basketball is more about who’s hot than who’s the best, and South Carolina has the chance to get rolling in these final three games and build momentum heading into postseason play.

Personally, I think they’ll do that. Having already clinched the SEC, I believe we’ll see Staley’s team play faster or looser against Alabama and I think the offense will improve dramatically on the 43.6 percent clip at which they’ve shot over the past week.

Keys to Victory

1. Start fast

2. Take high percentage shots

3. Be aggressive

— South Carolina is 9-0 on the road this season, but have won by an average margin of just 11.2 points per game in those contests, including three straight single-digit victories.

— The Crimson Tide have won only three SEC contests this season. However, two of those three victories were over LSU and Ole Miss, South Carolina’s last two opponents. In fact, the three teams have combined for only three conference victories against teams not named LSU, Ole Miss, Alabama, or Georgia.

— South Carolina is ranked No. 2 in RPI. Ironically, the only team to beat the Gamecocks, undefeated UConn, is ranked third. Notre Dame is ranked first in total RPI, also with a loss to UConn as the only blemish on its record.

— The Gamecocks have held their last two opponents to just a total of just 107 points on 34.8 percent shooting. South Carolina also forced 40 total turnovers against Tennessee and Georgia. Conversely, the Gamecocks have committed the fewest turnovers in the SEC.

— Sophomore forward A’ja Wilson has made a strong case for SEC Player of the Year. She ranks second in the conference with 16.7 points per game, fourth with 8.9 rebounds per game, first with 3.2 blocks per game and second among qualified players with a 53.8 shooting percentage.

After playing Alabama, the Gamecocks will travel to Ole Miss on Thursday before hosting LSU in the regular season finale on Sunday.

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