Gamecock Notables

• The Gamecocks and Hoosiers are meeting in the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season. Both teams return a majority of those who played in the 2024 Sweet 16 game, which South Carolina won 79-75 after holding off a late Hoosier run.
• South Carolina continued its hot shooting in the postseason with the team hitting 52.8 percent from the field across the SEC and NCAA Tournaments, including Friday’s 67.2 percent accuracy, which is the third-best in the Dawn Staley era.
• The Gamecocks are 28th in the nation with 16.9 assists per game, and their average has increased in the postseason to 19.0. South Carolina handed out 25 assists on its 43 made field goals in Friday night’s first-round victory.
• South Carolina continues to lead the nation in bench points at 42.2 per game, which is 10 more than the second-place team. The Gamecocks’ 66 bench points on Friday night were the most in the history of the NCAA Tournament.
• The Gamecocks’ paint dominance has them leading the nation at 43.1 paint points per game, nearly two more than Notre Dame’s 41.5 per game. In the postseason, that number has grown to 51.5 per game with South Carolina out-scoring its opponents in that space by 29.0 points per game.
• Playing the toughest schedule in the country, South Carolina is second in the nation in scoring margin at +23.8. In their 12 wins over ranked opponents, the Gamecocks have a +20.0 margin of victory.
• Junior Chloe Kitts is capping the best season of her career with an even better postseason effort. Over the last four games, the forward is scoring 15.0 points per game on 70.0 percent shooting and is second on the team in assists at 3.0 per game.
• Freshman Joyce Edwards has had no slow down in her first postseason games, leading the team with 16.5 points per game, including Friday’s 22-point outing that made her just the sixth Gamecock freshman to net at least 20 in an NCAA Tournament game.
• MiLaysia Fulwiley leads the team in assists this postseason with 3.75 per game to go with her 13.5 scoring average.

By the Numbers

5 – Five Gamecocks average double-figure points in the postseason, including three players off the bench.

14,521 – If Sunday’s game draws at least 14,521 fans, South Carolina will break the NCAA average attendance record.

The Indiana Series

The Gamecocks are 4-2 all-time against the Hoosiers, including a 1-1 mark in the Dawn Staley era with both teams ranked in the top 20 in both those games.

The two teams last met in the 2024 NCAA Tournament with South Carolina claiming a 79-75 victory in Albany on Mar. 29 to advance to the Elite Eight. The Gamecock defense slowed the Hoosiers early to take an 11-point lead after the first quarter. They added another six to their lead by halftime, but Indiana turned the tables in the second half, shooting 55.2 percent over the final 20 minutes, including 7-of-16 (.438) from 3-point range. The Hoosiers were within two points with just 1:08 to go when Raven Johnson hit a 3-pointer with 53 seconds to go. The Gamecocks hit enough free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.

NCAA Tournament Take

South Carolina is in its 21st NCAA Tournament and its 13th straight under head coach Dawn Staley. The Gamecocks are 51-17 overall in the event, including a 17-0 mark at home, with 14 Sweet 16 appearances (including 10 straight), eight Elite Eight seasons, six Final Four showings and three National Championships.

The Gamecocks have been the tournament’s overall No. 1 seed three times (2022, 2023, 2024) and a regional No. 1 seed nine times. They are 35-5 as a No. 1 seed.

In her 25th season as a head coach, Staley has taken a team to the NCAA Tournament 19 times. She is 45-15 at the event, including a 43-9 mark at South Carolina and a 17-1 mark over the last three tournaments.

Bench Mob

Head coach Dawn Staley’s 13-player roster gives her the ability to make a full line change with little drop off.

This season, the Gamecock bench leads the nation with 42.2 points per game – 10 points more than the second-place team – to account for 51.9 percent of the total offense, which rises to 59.0 percent of the offense (36.1 ppg) against ranked opponents and 72.9 percent (42.3 ppg) in SEC play. The South Carolina bench has out-scored its opponents’ bench by 27.0 points per game, including 21.1 against ranked teams and 24.1 in SEC play. The bench has outscored the opponent’s starting lineup 17 times, including four ranked teams, and outscored the entire opposing team nine times.

The group set an NCAA Tournament record with 66 bench points in the Gamecocks’ tournament opener against Tennessee Tech (Mar. 21).

On the glass, the bench averages 16.0 rebounds per game (41.5 percent of team total) compared to just 8.6 rebounds per game for their opponents’ bench.