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Message: [QUOTE="YKCornelius, post: 5287646, member: 9864"] Hmmmm.....the theme of the Gamecocks losing junior Ashley Watkins halfway through the season, and the speculation of how her subsequent absence impacted both blowout losses to the Huskies, has been raised by quite a few posters. It is an interesting conversation. It goes hand in hand with the hopeful, positive speculation that SC fans have regarding Ashlyn's productivity going into next year. However, while I appreciate the optimism of Gamecock posters regarding Ashlyn Watkins going into her senior year, I do not share in that optimism. Over 14 games this past year she averaged only 7.2 ppg and 6.1 rpg as the second or third big coming off the bench. Both were lower than than the previous year (9.2 and 7.4, respectively) while playing alongside Cardoso. With Cardoso gone, wouldn't it make sense for Watkins' averages to go up, not down? Ashlyn has proven to be a defensive presence. but has not yet proven to be an offensive threat. Watkins is undeniably athletic and certainly changes the SC flow when she is in the game. Well, so was and so did Fulwiley. I think SC is an outstanding program, and next year's team should be favorites for the SEC crown, and therefore a favorite for a number one seed in the NCAAT, and for making it to the FF. That said, for the Gamecocks to improve as a team from this past year, Watkins is going to have to make [B]significant improvement[/B] offensively. SC lost over 30 ppg to departing players. Ashlyn's three year average of 7.3 ppg, while taking 5-6 FGA, and a 54.7% FT percentage simply won't suffice. Heading into her final year, hopefully she is putting in a lot of summer work in order to get much, much better. Not just for Gamecock Nation. The 2026 WNBA draft is less than 11 months away. [/QUOTE]

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