South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball: Difference between revisions

South Carolina Gamecocks
South Carolina Gamecocks
	2018–19 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team
University	University of South Carolina
All-time record	851–525 (.618)
Athletic director	Ray Tanner
Head coach	Dawn Staley (11th season)
Conference	SEC
Location	Columbia, South Carolina
Arena	Colonial Life Arena ; (capacity: 18,000)
Nickname	Gamecocks
Colors	Garnet and black;
Uniforms
NCAA tournament champions
	2017
NCAA tournament Final Four
	2015, 2017
NCAA tournament Elite Eight
	2002, 2015, 2017, 2018
NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen
	1982, 1990, 2002, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
NCAA tournament second round
	1982, 1988, 1990, 2002, 2003, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
NCAA tournament appearances
	1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 2002, 2003, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
AIAW tournament Final Four
	1980
AIAW tournament Elite Eight
	1980
AIAW tournament Sweet Sixteen
	1980
AIAW tournament appearances
	1978, 1979, 1980, 1981
Conference tournament champions
	Metro Conference: 1986, 1988, 1989; SEC: 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
Conference regular season champions
	Metro Conference: 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991; SEC: 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017

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Revision as of 16:40, 25 March 2019

The South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team represents the University of South Carolina and competes in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The program enjoyed success under head coach Nancy Wilson during the 1980s in the Metro Conference, when it won five regular season conference championships and three conference tournament championships. Under current head coach Dawn Staley, the Gamecocks have been one of the top programs in the country, winning the National Championship in 2017.

History

The first Gamecocks women's basketball team to compete at an intercollegiate level was in 1923 when they were called the Pullets.

The modern era of South Carolina women's basketball began when the Carolina Chicks took to the court in January 1974 under the guidance of Pam Backhaus. The inaugural team compiled a record of 15–7 and were the South Carolina AIAW Champions. In 1977, with Pam Parsons as the head coach the women's basketball team, they changed their nickname to the Lady Gamecocks and made post-season trips every year during her four-year tenure.

During its eight seasons in the Metro Conference, the Lady Gamecocks won the regular season championship five times and the conference tournament three times.^[2]

When South Carolina joined the SEC, success was hard to come by during their first decade in one of the strongest conferences in women's basketball. They initially struggled to compete under head coaches Nancy Wilson and Susan Walvius. Walvius' teams in 2001–02 and 2002–03 broke through to finish 25–7 and 23–8, respectively, earning trips to the NCAA tournament and reaching the Elite Eight in 2002.

Walvius resigned after the 2007–08 season and Dawn Staley was named the new head coach of the team now known as simply, "Gamecocks" on May 7, 2008.

Under Coach Staley, the Gamecocks have improved or equaled their win total every season during her first seven years leading the program, culminating with a 34-3 record in 2014–15. That year they won the SEC Regular Season Championship, the SEC Tournament Championship and the NCAA East Region Championship. The season ended in the NCAA Final Four with a last second one-point loss to Notre Dame in the national semi-finals.

The following year, the Gamecocks went undefeated in conference play, only to be stymied in the Sweet 16 by Syracuse. In 2016–17, the Gamecocks garnered their third straight sweep of the SEC regular season and tournament titles en route to their second Final Four. They defeated conference rival Mississippi State in the national championship game to win their first-ever national title.

In the 2018 SEC tournament, the Gamecocks defeated Mississippi State to win the SEC tournament, South Carolina is the only team to win the SEC tournament for four straight years. Their season came to an end when they were defeated by Connecticut in the elite eight.

Head coaches


Name	Years	Seasons	Games	Won	Lost	Pct.
Pam Backhaus	1974–1975 1976–1977	3	78	41	37	.464
Frankie Porter	1975–1976	1	22	7	15	.318
Pam Parsons	1977–1981	5	144	101	43	.747
Terry Kelly	1982–1984	3	82	50	32	.610
Nancy Wilson	1984–1997	13	380	231	149	.608
Susan Walvius	1997–2008	11	325	165	160	.508
Dawn Staley	2008–present	11	369	273	96	.740
All-Time		45	1076	851	525	.618

2018–19 roster

2017–18 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	Nelly Perry	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	RS So	Brimm Medical Arts	Camden, NJ
G	1	Bianca Cuevas-Moore	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)	RS Sr	Nazareth Regional	Bronx, NY
G	2	Te'a Cooper	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	Jr	McEachern HS Tennessee	Powder Springs, GA
G	3	Destanni Henderson	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	Fr	Fort Myers	Fort Myers, FL
G	4	Doniyah Cliney	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	Sr	Malcolm X Shabazz	Newark, NJ
F	5	Victaria Saxton	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	Fr	Model	Rome, GA
G	10	Bianca Jackson	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	So	Brewbaker Tech Magnet	Montgomery, AL
F	21	Mikiah Harrigan	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	Jr	Flanagan	Pembroke Pines, FL
C	23	LaDazhia Williams	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	So	Lakewood Ranch	Bradenton, FL
G	24	Lele Grissett	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	So	Hillside	Durham, NC
F	32	Elysa Wesolek	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	Fr	Northwood Academy	Charleston, SC
F	35	Alexis Jennings	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	Sr	Sparkman HS Kentucky	Madison, AL
G	52	Tyasha Harris	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	Jr	Heritage Christian	Noblesville, IN

Head coach

Dawn Staley (Virginia)

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Year-by-year results

Conference tournament winners noted with # Source^[3]

Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason	Coaches' poll	AP poll
Pam Backhaus (Independent) (1974–1975)
1974–75	Pam Backhaus	18–12	–		AIAW Region II
Frankie Porter (Independent) (1975–1976)
1975–76	Frankie Porter	7–15	–
Frankie Porter:		7–15 (.318)	–
Pam Backhaus (Independent) (1976–1977)
1976–77	Pam Backhaus	8–18	–		SCAIAW
Pam Backhaus:		26–30 (.464)	–
Pam Parsons (Independent) (1977–1982)
1977–78	Pam Parsons	24–10	–		AIAW Region II
1978–79	Pam Parsons	27–10	–		AIAW Region II, NWIT Champions		15
1979–80	Pam Parsons	30–6	–		AIAW Third Place		4
1980–81	Pam Parsons	21–11	–		AIAW Region II
1981	Pam Parsons	7–0	–
Pam Parsons:		109–37 (.747)	–
Terry Kelly (Independent, Metro) (1982–1985)
1982	Terry Kelly	16–8	–		NCAA Sixteen
1982–83	Terry Kelly	16–12	–
1983–84	Terry Kelly	18–12	7–3
Terry Kelly:		50–32 (.610)	7–3 (.700)
Nancy Wilson (Metro, SEC) (1984–1997)
1984–85	Nancy Wilson	18–10	8–3
1985–86	Nancy Wilson	19–11	9–1	1st	NCAA First Round
1986–87	Nancy Wilson	18–12	8–4
1987–88	Nancy Wilson	23–11	10–2	1st	NCAA Second Round (Play-In)	24
1988–89	Nancy Wilson	23–7	10–2	1st	NCAA First Round	22	17
1989–90	Nancy Wilson	24–9	13–1		NCAA Sweet Sixteen	16	19
1990–91	Nancy Wilson	22–9	12–2		NCAA First Round
1991–92	Nancy Wilson	13–15	2–9	12th (SEC)
1992–93	Nancy Wilson	17–10	5–6	T-6th
1993–94	Nancy Wilson	14–13	2–9	T-10th
1994–95	Nancy Wilson	12–15	1–10	T-10th
1995–96	Nancy Wilson	16–12	2–9	T-11th
1996–97	Nancy Wilson	12–15	1–11	T-11th
Nancy Wilson:		231–149 (.608)	83–69 (.546)
Susan Walvius (SEC) (1997–2008)
1997–98	Susan Walvius	13–15	3–11	T-11th
1998–99	Susan Walvius	11–16	0–14	12th
1999–2000	Susan Walvius	13–15	3–11	11th
2000–01	Susan Walvius	11–17	6–8	T-6th
2001–02	Susan Walvius	25–7	10–4	T-2nd	NCAA Elite Eight	6	13
2002–03	Susan Walvius	23–8	9–5	T-5th	NCAA Second Round	18	16
2003–04	Susan Walvius	10–18	1–13	12th
2004–05	Susan Walvius	8–21	2–12	12th
2005–06	Susan Walvius	17–12	7–7	7th	WNIT First Round (Bye)
2006–07	Susan Walvius	18–15	6–8	T-7th	WNIT Sixteen
2007–08	Susan Walvius	16–16	4–10	T-9th	WNIT First Round (Play-In)
Susan Walvius:		165–160 (.508)	51–103 (.331)
Dawn Staley (SEC) (2008–present)
2008–09	Dawn Staley	10–18	2–12	11th
2009–10	Dawn Staley	14–15	7–9	T-7th
2010–11	Dawn Staley	18–15	8–8	T-5th	WNIT Second Round
2011–12	Dawn Staley	25–10	10–6	T-4th	NCAA Sweet Sixteen	21	25
2012–13	Dawn Staley	25–8	11–5	T-4th	NCAA Second Round	14	17
2013–14	Dawn Staley	29–5	14–2	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen	8	9
2014–15	Dawn Staley	34–3	15–1	1st	NCAA Final Four	3	4
2015–16	Dawn Staley	33–2	16–0	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen	3	5
2016–17	Dawn Staley	33–4	14–2	1st	NCAA Champions	1	1
2017–18	Dawn Staley	29–7	12–4	T-2nd	NCAA Elite Eight	6	7
2018–19	Dawn Staley	23–9	13–3	2nd			- style="background:#fafafa; border-top: 2px solid #aaaaaa;"	Dawn Staley:	273–96 (.740)	122–52 (.701)
Total:		851–525 (.618)
National champion Postseason invitational champion Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion Conference tournament champion

Notable players

Gamecocks in the WNBA


Player	Draft	Seasons	Notes
Shannon Johnson	1999 – Orlando	11	(1999–2009) Last with the Seattle Storm
Shaunzinski Gortman	2002 – 9th by Charlotte	5	(2002–2006) Last with the Seattle Storm
Jocelyn Penn	2003 – 9th by Charlotte	2	(2003–2004) Last with the San Antonio Stars
Tiffany Mitchell	2016 – 9th by Indiana	3	(2016–Present) Indiana Fever
Alaina Coates	2017 – 2nd by Chicago	2	(2017–Present) Chicago Sky
Allisha Gray	2017 – 4th by Dallas	2	(2017–Present) Dallas Wings, 2017 WNBA Rookie of the Year
Kaela Davis	2017 – 10th by Dallas	2	(2017–Present) Dallas Wings
A'ja Wilson	2018 – 1st by Las Vegas, 2018 WNBA Rookie of the Year	1	(2018–Present) Las Vegas Aces

Also drafted:

Teresa Geter – 2002 – 36th by Washington
Petra Ujhelyi – 2003 – 16th by Phoenix
Aleighsa Welch – 2015 – 22nd by Chicago

Retired jerseys

South Carolina has retired two jersey numbers. ^[4]

No.	Player	Career
13	Martha Parker	1985–1989
53	Sheila Foster	1978–1982

Attendance

Over the years, the Gamecocks have played in three different venues. At first games were played at the Blatt P.E. Center. Later games moved to the Carolina Coliseum, which saw the first sell out for a women's basketball game on January 17, 2002. That day, 12,168 fans turned out to see the South Carolina Gamecocks take on the Tennessee Lady Vols.

On November 22, 2002, the Lady Gamecocks opened the newly constructed Colonial Center (later renamed the Colonial Life Arena). A near sell out crowd of 17,712 saw the Lady Gamecocks defeat the Clemson Lady Tigers. The first sell out with 18,000 in attendance occurred on February 8, 2016 against the University of Connecticut Huskies in a match up of the two top ranked teams in the country.

Top 10 crowds at Colonial Life Arena for Women's Basketball games:


Date	Attendance	Opponent	Result
02-08-2016	18,000	Connecticut	L 66–54
02-26-2017	18,000	Kentucky	W 95–87
02-01-2018	18,000	Connecticut	L 58–83
11-22-2002	17,712	Clemson	W 72–58
01-11-2015	17,156	Kentucky	W 68–60
11-13-2015	16,815	Ohio State	W 88–80
01-02-2015	16,465	Auburn	W 77–58
12-06-2015	16,429	Duke	W 66–55
02-28-2016	16,240	LSU	W 75–39
02-18-2016	16,186	Georgia	W 61–51
01-10-2016	15,934	Missouri	W 83–58

Starting with the 2013–14 season, the South Carolina Gamecocks became one of the national leaders in attendance for Women's Basketball. In 2014–15, the Gamecocks led the nation in attendance with 12,540 fans per game. They followed this up with an average attendance of 14,364 in 2015–16, a season where every home game had at least 10,000 fans in attendance.

Year	Games	Overall W–L	Overall Win Pct	NCAA W–L	NCAA Win Pct	Total Attendance (SEC/Nat Rank)	Avg Attendance (SEC/Nat Rank)
2013–14	16	16–0	1.000	0–0		101,935 (3rd/13th)	6,371 (3rd/10th)
2014–15	16	16–0	1.000	2–0	1.000	196,684 (1st/1st)	12,293 (1st/1st)
2015–16	17	16–1	0.941	2–0	1.000	244,196 (1st/1st)	14,364 (1st/1st)
2016–17	16	15–1	0.938	2–0	1.000	196,431 (1st/1st)	12,277 (1st/1st)
2017–18	17	15-2	0.882	2-0	1.000	225,064 (1st/1st)	13,239 (1st/1st)
Totals	82	78–4	0.951	8–0	1.000	964,310	11,760

Between losses to Texas A&M on February 10, 2013 and Connecticut on February 8th 2016, the Gamecocks won 45 consecutive games at home.

Player awards

National awards

Wade Trophy

A'ja Wilson – 2018

Honda Sports Award

A'ja Wilson – 2018

Naismith College Player of the Year

A'ja Wilson – 2018

John R. Wooden Award

A'ja Wilson – 2018

USBWA Women's National Player of the Year

A'ja Wilson – 2018

AP College Player of the Year

A'ja Wilson – 2018

Coach of the Year

Dawn Staley – 2014 – Basketball Times

All-Americans

Tiffany Mitchell – 2015

A'ja Wilson – 2016, 2017,2018

Dawn Staley Award

Tiffany Mitchell – 2015

SEC Awards

Coach of the Year

Susan Walvius – 2002

Dawn Staley – 2014, 2015*, 2016

Player of the Year

Tiffany Mitchell – 2014, 2015

A'ja Wilson – 2016, 2017, 2018

Defensive Player of the Year

Ieasia Walker – 2013

A'ja Wilson – 2016

Freshman of the Year

Kelsey Bone – 2010

Alaina Coates – 2014

A'ja Wilson – 2015

6th Player of the Year

Alaina Coates – 2014*

SEC Tournament MVP

Aleighsa Welch – 2015

Tiffany Mitchell – 2016

A'ja Wilson – 2016

WBB Scholar Athlete of the Year

Aleighsa Welch – 2015

Denotes Co-Player / Co-Coach

Metro awards

Coach of the Year

Nancy Wilson – 1985, 1991

Player of the Year

Brantley Southers – 1986

Martha Parker – 1988, 1989

Beth Hunt – 1990

Newcomer of the Year

Martha Parker – 1986

Schonna Banner – 1987

Tournament MVP

Brantley Southers – 1986

Martha Parker – 1988

Beth Hunt – 1989

References

^ "Colors – Communications and Public Affairs | University of South Carolina". Retrieved July 16, 2019.
^ "South Carolina Women's Basketball History".
^ "History" (PDF). University of South Carolina. Retrieved 10 Aug 2013.
^ "SOUTH CAROLINA ATHLETICS HISTORY". Gamecock.

External links

Official website

[1] "Colors – Communications and Public Affairs | University of South Carolina". Retrieved July 16, 2019.

[2] "South Carolina Women's Basketball History".

[History-3] "History" (PDF). University of South Carolina. Retrieved 10 Aug 2013.

[4] "SOUTH CAROLINA ATHLETICS HISTORY". Gamecock.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

@@ Line 277: / Line 277: @@
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 | '''[[A'ja Wilson]]'''
-| [[2018 WNBA draft|2018]] – 1st by [[Las Vegas Aces|Las Vegas]]
+| [[2018 WNBA draft|2018]] – 1st by [[Las Vegas Aces|Las Vegas]], [[WNBA Rookie of the Year Award|2018 WNBA Rookie of the Year]]
 | 1
 | (2018–Present) [[Las Vegas Aces]]

v t e South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball
Venues	Carolina Coliseum (1974–2002) Colonial Life Arena (2002–present)
Rivalries	Clemson
Culture & lore	History Cocky "The Fighting Gamecocks Lead the Way" The Freshies Garnet Army Full Court Press
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders Retired jerseys
Seasons	1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Southeastern Conference women's basketball
Teams	Alabama Crimson Tide Arkansas Razorbacks Auburn Tigers Florida Gators Georgia Lady Bulldogs Kentucky Wildcats LSU Tigers Mississippi State Bulldogs Missouri Tigers Oklahoma Sooners Ole Miss Rebels South Carolina Gamecocks Tennessee Lady Volunteers Texas Longhorns Texas A&M Aggies Vanderbilt Commodores
Championships & awards	SEC women's basketball tournament Player of the Year
Conference challenges	Big 12/SEC Women's Challenge (2013–2023) ACC–SEC Challenge (2023–present) Coast-to-Coast Challenge (2024-present)
Seasons	1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25