The Lady Gamecocks look to climb the polls and follow up a great performance on Sunday vs a hot Ole Miss program.
The South Carolina Gamecocks look to tip-off against Ole Miss, making a late-season push for a higher ranking. Although the Rebels 9-9 overall and 3-9 in the SEC, they are not a team to take lightly, being 2-1 in their last 3 contests, with the loss being to 5th ranked Texas A&M in a barn burner, almost pulling the upset.
Led by F Shakira Austin, who has recorded 4 straight games with a double-double, the Rebels will need multiple players to step up in order to pull the upset at home and increase their record for the SEC tournament.
For South Carolina, this Should be an easy win but must keep an “any given night” mindset to avoid disappointment which can happen if the Gamecocks come out slow on Thursday night
What to look for?
With only 4 points on Sunday against the Wildcats, look for Aliyah Boston to start taking the game over, and returning to her dominance under the basket against another quality big in Shakira Austin
Look for Zia Cook to once again be the first option as a shooter, being the teams leading scorer averaging 15.9 pts per game, as she has scored double digits in 10 consecutive games. Look for that streak to continue
The Gamecocks will look to be able to get out early, as it will need to come with quality minutes from the bench after early substitutions.
Keys To The Game
If the Gamecocks want to flex the muscle and prove they are really a number one seed in the NCAA tournament, it will be important to start off hot and finish hotter. If the Gamecocks play their second-half ball and bring it to the first half, we will see a 20+ point blowout. They need to go straight at Ole Miss and play aggressively from the first tip.
It is also important to share the wealth and pass the ball for open shots, and not to be selfish. In the last 5 games, the Gamecocks have had a high of 11 assists.
Prediction: Ole Miss plays a tight game and keep it close in the first half, but the Lady Gamecocks pull away in a big third quarter to beat the rebels by a score of 71-56