2020–21 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team

Intercollegiate basketball season

2020–21 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball
SEC tournament champions
NCAA tournament, Final Four
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 4
APNo. 6
Record26–5 (14–2 SEC)
Head coach
  • Dawn Staley (13th season)
Assistant coaches
  • Lisa Boyer
  • Fred Chmiel
  • Jolette Law
Home arenaColonial Life Arena
Seasons
2020–21 SEC women's basketball standings
  • v
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 Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 4 Texas A&M 13 – 1   .929 25 – 3   .893
No. 6 South Carolina † 14 – 2   .875 26 – 5   .839
No. 13 Tennessee 9 – 4   .692 17 – 8   .680
No. 10 Georgia 10 – 5   .667 20 – 6   .769
No. 15 Arkansas 9 – 6   .600 19 – 8   .704
No. 18 Kentucky 9 – 6   .600 18 – 8   .692
Alabama 8 – 8   .500 16 – 9   .640
LSU 6 – 8   .429 9 – 13   .409
Mississippi State 5 – 7   .417 10 – 9   .526
Missouri 5 – 9   .357 9 – 13   .409
Ole Miss 4 – 10   .286 15 – 12   .556
Florida 3 – 11   .214 12 – 14   .462
Auburn 0 – 15   .000 5 – 19   .208
Vanderbilt 0 – 3   .000 4 – 4   .500
Vanderbilt suspended their season on January 18, 2021
† 2021 SEC tournament winner
As of March 21, 2021
Rankings from AP poll


The 2020–21 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team represented the University of South Carolina during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Gamecocks, led by thirteenth-year head coach Dawn Staley, played their home games at Colonial Life Arena and competed as members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They finished the season 26–5 (14–2 SEC), won the SEC tournament, and won a bid to the NCAA tournament where they advanced to the Final Four and lost to Stanford.

Previous season

The Gamecocks finished the season with a 32–1 overall record and a 16–0 record in conference play. The Gamecocks won the SEC tournament. The Gamecocks therefore received an automatic bid to the 2020 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, however the tournament was not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and were de facto named mythical national championship by finishing first in the major wire service polls, the AP Poll and Coaches Poll. On December 31, 2020, during the Florida game, the program raised a banner to recognise the claim.

Offseason

Departures

South Carolina Departures
Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Notes
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan 21 F 6'2" Senior Pembroke Pines, FL Graduated; Drafted sixth overall by the Minnesota Lynx.
Tyasha Harris 52 G 5'10" Senior Noblesville, IN Graduated; Drafted seventh overall by the Dallas Wings.

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Eniya Russell
PG 		Baltimore, MD St. Vincent Pallotti High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 96
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Preseason

SEC Media Poll

The SEC media poll was released on November 17, 2020 with the Gamecocks selected to finish in first place in the SEC.[1]

SEC media poll
Predicted finish Team
1 South Carolina
2 Kentucky
3 Texas A&M
4 Arkansas
5 Mississippi State
6 Tennessee
7 LSU
8 Alabama
9 Georgia
10 Missouri
11 Ole Miss
12 Florida
13 Vanderbilt
14 Auburn

Preseason All-SEC teams

The Gamecocks had two players selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

First team

Aliyah Boston


Second team

Zia Cooke

Roster

2020–21 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Olivia Thompson 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) So Lexington HS Lexington, SC
G 1 Zia Cooke 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) So Rogers HS Toledo, OH
G 2 Eniya Russell 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) Fr St. Vincent Pallotti HS Baltimore, MD
G 3 Destanni Henderson 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) Jr Fort Myers HS Fort Myers, FL
F 4 Aliyah Boston 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) So Worcester (Mass.) Academy Saint Thomas, USVI
F 5 Victaria Saxton 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Jr Model Rome, GA
G 11 Destiny Littleton 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) RS Jr The Bishop's School
Texas 		San Diego, CA
G 12 Brea Beal 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) So Rock Island HS Rock Island, IL
F 15 Laeticia Amihere 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) So Kings Way Christian Mississauga, ON
G 24 Lele Grissett 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Sr Hillside HS Durham, NC
F 32 Elysa Wesolek 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) Jr Northwood Academy Charleston, SC
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 25, 2020*
Noon, SECN+ 		No. 1 College of Charleston W 119–38  1–0
  19 – Saxton   12 – Tied   4 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena (3,500)
Columbia, SC
November 28, 2020*
3:30 pm 		No. 1 vs. South Dakota
Crossover Classic 		W 81–71  2–0
  19 – Tied   9 – Tied   4 – Boston  Sanford Pentagon 
Sioux Falls, SD
November 29, 2020*
3:30 pm 		No. 1 vs. Oklahoma
Crossover Classic 		Canceled due to COVID-19 Sanford Pentagon 
Sioux Falls, SD
November 29, 2020*
3:30 pm 		No. 1 vs. No. 21 Gonzaga
Crossover Classic 		W 79–72  3–0
  23 – Henderson   7 – Beal   4 – Cooke  Sanford Pentagon 
Sioux Falls, SD
December 3, 2020*
7:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 1 No. 8 NC State
Jimmy V Classic 		L 46–54  3–1
  11 – Tied   15 – Amihere   6 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena (3,500)
Columbia, SC
December 6, 2020*
12:00 pm, ESPNU 		No. 1 at No. 23 Iowa State
Big 12/SEC Women's Challenge 		W 83–65  4–1
  19 – Cooke   15 – Boston   7 – Henderson  Hilton Coliseum (864)
Ames, IA
December 17, 2020*
8:00 pm 		No. 5 Temple W 103–41  5–1
  23 – Cooke   9 – Boston   7 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
December 31, 2021
 No. 5 Florida W 75–59  6–1
(1–0) 		 28 – Boston   16 – Boston   5 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
January 4, 2021
5:00 pm 		No. 5 at Alabama W 77–60  7–1
(2–0) 		 20 – Henderson   10 – Tied   5 – Henderson  Coleman Coliseum 
Tuscaloosa, AL
January 10, 2021
 No. 5 at No. 10 Kentucky W 75–70  8–1
(3–0) 		 22 – Henderson   12 – Boston   3 – Henderson  Memorial Coliseum 
Lexington, KY
January 14, 2021
8:00 pm 		No. 5 at Vanderbilt W 106–43  9–1
(4–0) 		 20 – Saxton   12 – Grissett   9 – Henderson  Memorial Gymnasium 
Nashville, TN
January 18, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 4 No. 17 Arkansas W 104–82  10–1
(5–0) 		 26 – Boston   16 – Boston   10 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
January 21, 2021
6:30 pm, SECN 		No. 4 No. 22 Georgia W 62–50  11–1
(6–0) 		 16 – Tied   11 – Tied   3 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
January 24, 2021
1:00 pm, SECN 		No. 4 at LSU W 69–65  12–1
(7–0) 		 20 – Boston   14 – Boston   8 – Henderson  Pete Maravich Assembly Center 
Baton Rouge, LA
January 28, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN 		No. 4 at No. 21 Mississippi State W 75–52  13–1
(8–0) 		 19 – Cooke   12 – Boston   3 – Cooke  Humphrey Coliseum 
Starkville, MS
January 31, 2021
3:00 pm, SECN 		No. 4 Alabama W 87–63  14–1
(9–0) 		 21 – Cooke   13 – Boston   6 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
February 4, 2021
7:00 pm, SECN+ 		No. 2 at Auburn W 77–58  15–1
(10–0) 		 17 – Cooke   9 – Amihere   9 – Henderson  Auburn Arena 
Auburn, AL
February 8, 2021*
7:00 pm, FS1 		No. 1 at No. 2 UConn L 59–63 OT 15–2
  17 – Boston   15 – Boston   3 – Tied  Harry A. Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, CT
February 11, 2021
7:00 pm, SECN 		No. 1 Missouri W 77–62  16–2
(11–0) 		 15 – Cooke   12 – Boston   3 – Tied  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
February 14, 2021
Noon, SECN 		No. 1 LSU W 66–59  17–2
(12–0) 		 19 – Henderson   13 – Boston   4 – Cooke  Colonial Life Arena (3,500)
Columbia, SC
February 18, 2021
7:00 pm, SECN 		No. 2 at No. 21 Tennessee L 67–75  17–3
(12–1) 		 17 – Boston   16 – Boston   6 – Henderson  Thompson–Boling Arena (2,512)
Knoxville, TN
February 21, 2021
3:00 pm, ESPN 		No. 2 No. 17 Kentucky W 76–55  18–3
(13–1) 		 21 – Cooke   13 – Amihere   3 – Boston  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
February 25, 2021
1:00 pm, SECN 		No. 5 Ole Miss W 68–43  19–3
(14–1) 		 17 – Cooke   11 – Boston   4 – Henderson  Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
February 28, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN2 		No. 5 at No. 3 Texas A&M L 57–65  19–4
(14–2) 		 15 – Tied   11 – Boston   6 – Henderson  Reed Arena 
College Station, TX
SEC Tournament
March 5, 2021
5:00 pm, SECN 		(2) No. 7 vs. (7) Alabama
Quarterfinals 		W 75–63  20–4
  22 – Cooke   13 – Boston   5 – Henderson  Bon Secours Wellness Arena 
Greenville, SC
March 6, 2021
8:30 pm, ESPNU 		(2) No. 7 vs. (3) No. 13 Tennessee
Semifinals 		W 67–52  21–4
  22 – Cooke   13 – Boston   5 – Henderson  Bon Secours Wellness Arena (2,662)
Greenville, SC
March 7, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN2 		(2) No. 7 vs. (4) No. 16 Georgia
Championship 		W 67–62  22–4
  27 – Boston   10 – Boston   3 – Henderson  Bon Secours Wellness Arena 
Greenville, SC
NCAA tournament
March 21, 2021*
6:00 pm, ESPN 		(1 H) No. 6 vs. (16 H) Mercer
First Round 		W 79–53  23–4
  20 – Tied   18 – Boston   4 – Henderson  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
March 23, 2021*
7:00 pm, ESPN 		(1 H) No. 6 vs. (8 H) Oregon State
Second Round 		W 59–42  24–4
  19 – Boston   11 – Beal   2 – Tied  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
March 27, 2021*
1:00 pm, ABC 		(1 H) No. 6 vs. (5 H) Georgia Tech
Sweet Sixteen 		W 76–65  25–4
  17 – Cooke   7 – Amihere   7 – Henderson  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
March 30, 2021*
7:00 pm, ESPN 		(1 H) No. 6 vs. (6 H) Texas
Elite Eight 		W 62–34  26–4
  16 – Cooke   8 – Tied   7 – Henderson  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
April 2, 2021*
6:00 pm, ESPN 		(1 H) No. 6 vs. (1 A) No. 2 Stanford
Final Four 		L 65–66  26–5
  25 – Cooke   16 – Boston   3 – Henderson  Alamodome 
San Antonio, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
H=HemisFair A=Alamo.
All times are in Eastern Time.
[2]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Gamecocks tabbed as 2021 SEC Women's Basketball champs".
  2. ^ "Gamecocks Release Women's Hoops Non-Conference Schedule". GamecocksOnline.com. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
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