South Carolina and USC Chase March Madness Glory Despite Loss of All-Americans
The Resilience of South Carolina and Southern California
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina and Southern California are making a strong push in the women’s NCAA Tournament, both hoping to secure a spot in the Sweet 16. Their journey has not been easy, especially considering the challenges they faced at the start of the season.
The absence of key players like Chloe Kitts and JuJu Watkins was a major setback for both teams. Kitts, a senior forward for South Carolina, suffered a knee injury during practice in October and has been sidelined for the entire season. Similarly, JuJu Watkins, a standout player for Southern California, tore her ACL during last year’s NCAAs and has also been unable to play this season. Despite these setbacks, both athletes have remained active by supporting their teammates through the rehabilitation process.
These injuries left both the top-seeded Gamecocks (32-3) and the ninth-seeded Trojans (18-13) scrambling to fill the voids on their rosters. However, both teams are just one win away from advancing to the Sweet 16 in Sacramento, California.
“Losing a player like JuJu, everyone had to step up into a new role, whether it’s being a leader or doing what you can for the team,” said USC forward Laura Williams.
Trojans coach Lindsay Gottlieb emphasized that the transition began during last year’s NCAA Tournament when her team won a round of 16 game to reach the Elite Eight despite Watkins’ injury. This experience allowed Gottlieb to build a roster knowing Watkins wouldn’t be available this season. She added players like transfers Kara Dunn from Georgia Tech and Londynn Jones from UCLA to strengthen the team.
“I don’t think any of us allowed us to lower the standard,” Gottlieb said. “But we also didn’t really reference JuJu in terms of, oh, if we had her. We knew she wasn’t going to be available on the court in that capacity.”
South Carolina coach Dawn Staley took a similar approach to dealing with the absence of Chloe Kitts. While the Gamecocks would miss a high-energy rebounder, scorer, and defender inside, Staley focused on moving forward without dwelling on what could have been.
“I think it’s our job as coaches to hit it once and move on,” Staley said. “Staley said she still doesn’t discuss with players what a healthy Kitts might have meant to South Carolina’s season.”
“But young people also are resilient. They find a way,” Staley continued. “If we don’t harp on it, they’re not going to harp on it. They’re just going to keep playing the way we prepped them.”
A Dramatic Finish
USC managed to secure a 71-67 overtime win over Clemson in the opening round Saturday. The game looked like it was about to end with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Clemson’s Mia Moore at the end of regulation. However, officials reviewed the play using a stopwatch to determine the 4.4 seconds of action and found that the shot came after time had run out.
Gottlieb watched the ending multiple times and believed the referees made the correct call. “As hard as it is to have such a close call either way, you want to get it right and I think they did,” she said.
Staley was on the court during the finish and initially thought Moore’s shot was good. After reviewing the footage on her iPad, she changed her mind and agreed with the officials.
“Where the game is decided by what you call, you can go back and see it and correct it, yes, I think it’s a powerful tool,” she said.
Uncle Dale
Wendale Farrow is on the other side of the USC-South Carolina matchup. Farrow, who is in his first year on the Gamecocks staff, spent seven seasons under Gottlieb at California and USC. Because of this, Gottlieb’s children refer to him as “Uncle Dale.”
Despite his past connections, Farrow has not let emotions interfere with his new responsibilities. He has been handling South Carolina’s scouting report on USC heading into the weekend. “It’s really cool to have someone who was in the room with them last year, that knows the highs and lows and creating an edge for us to win the game,” Staley said.
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