USC Gamecocks 2024-25 Season: Part Two | Page 35 | The Boneyard

USC Gamecocks 2024-25 Season: Part Two

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Ta'Niya Latson, come on down! :oops:

But seriously, this wasn't our year. I thought there were positive steps taken by a number of players, but the limitations of others were too much to overcome. That said, one player stood out to me as a true fighter. I adore the fight of Raven and hope she sticks it out for one more year. She is a DAWG and deserves one more crack at glory.

All that said, congrats to UConn! This isn't like the Taurasi (though I, personally, don't hate DT3)/Stewart teams where you can pick out one player and make her the villain/enemy. This UConn team may be the most likable UConn champion EVER--even more so than those Maya Moore-led teams. Paige can never, ever, be a villain--and that's part of what makes her endearing. Azzi smiles in her sleep--who can hate her? And Sarah is, perhaps, the most talented player they've ever had--but only receives a fraction of the attention she deserves. I guess I could "hate" the old man, but what's the point? :p

We lost to a better team. I would also say that we lost to a program that had more things figured out this year than we did. Not only do they look to be miles ahead on offense, they're also better defensively. They prep better. We don't need to make wholesale changes, but tweaks here and there would be beneficial. A young offensive-minded assistant coach would be helpful, for starters.
 
When SC cut the lead to 7 just before the half only to have UConn hit a corner 3 to put the lead back to 10, i thought that was a key basket. SC had me nervous also as the 3rd quarter played; they were very active and got a lot of the 50-50 balls, plus UConn’s center got her 4th foul early and had to sit, and SC got the foul bonus early. UConn went to small ball with Strong being the center. UConn’s defense was incredibly active too, and SC was hurt by not shooting well due to defensive pressure, and they didn’t have good center play as well. What a game by Sarah Strong!
 
Conndog said:
When SC cut the lead to 7 just before the half only to have UConn hit a corner 3 to put the lead back to 10, i thought that was a key basket. SC had me nervous also as the 3rd quarter played; they were very active and got a lot of the 50-50 balls, plus UConn’s center got her 4th foul early and had to sit, and SC got the foul bonus early. UConn went to small ball with Strong being the center. UConn’s defense was incredibly active too, and SC was hurt by not shooting well due to defensive pressure, and they didn’t have good center play as well. What a game by Sarah Strong!
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That was on Tessa, but Fulwiley made the same mistake at a critical point in the 3rd. After the first 5:00, we did not play an A or B+ game, but it would not have mattered without a C game or worse from UConn.

This is the first time since 2019 I’ve thought, “whelp. They’d beat us in a 7 game series too; they’re just better.”

Congratulations to UConn. All year, I thought we were the second best team and someone (maybe us) would get Betts in the tourney. But once Fudd moved from faster Pao Pao to “oh… That’s why she was #1 in her class!”, y’all were the best team in the country by a decent margin.
 
SCGamecock said:
Hate the lost, but UConn was just better than the field this year. No contest.

I thought I would be more upset, but I think a part of me felt like this was UConn’s year the moment they took down UCLA.

Glad Paige got her ring. She’s such a great advocate for the sport and this cements her legacy at UConn. I don’t root for a lot of Huskies, but her and Stewie are definitely some of my favorite players. Congrats Connecticut!
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My sentiments as well. Congrats UConn!
 
triaddukefan said:
Imma be nice today
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South fans Yall will be back and contend for the top again next year
SCGamecock said:
Hate the lost, but UConn was just better than the field this year. No contest.

I thought I would be more upset, but I think a part of me felt like this was UConn’s year the moment they took down UCLA.
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I say this with all due respect..... when your team gets their arse whipped... it doesn't feel as bad.... hard to be upset, it just wasn't meant to be. Its those nail-biting , down to the wire losses those are the ones that make you sick to your stomach and throwing furniture around the house
 
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SCGamecock said:
Breezy and Sania should be proud of what they’ve accomplished at SC. Great careers. Raven has a decision to make, but whatever it is, I really hope she gets a fair shot to show what she can do.

Now we turn the pa(ige) to next season. I expect us to be right back in the Final Four.
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Azzi what you did there.:p

Not terribly disappointed by the loss. Easier with it being a blowout. Those three #1‘s plus the talented roster of role players were just too much. Wish we can get another #1 recruit. Eleven years since our last (and only), has been too long.

Going to miss Te-Hina too even if her outside shooting dipped some from last year. She was hugely important to this team’s trajectory the last two years. Hope Tessa is ready to take over Pao’s outside shooting spot and regain where she left off from ‘24 season. I believe Raven will be back. Her mom endorses it and her Latson comments seem to point to likely saying.

On to the portal. How many, if any, will we lose. What can Dawn and staff bring in, and who will be the new fifth member of the staff to help her out on the trail?
 
Geew1992 said:
This didn’t age well
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druski-shrug.gif
 
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triaddukefan said:
I say this with all due respect..... when your team gets their arse whipped... it doesn't feel as bad.... hard to be upset, it just wasn't meant to be. Its those nail-biting , down to the wire losses those are the ones that make you sick to your stomach and throwing furniture around the house
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Like last night? Because, whew...I don't know when I'm going to get over that! :oops:
 
WBBTakeover said:
We'll see you there! A pissed off Joyce is a dangerous Joyce. Breakout season incoming. :cool:
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Same with Fulwiley. I feel like Fulwiley is on the precipice of putting it all together. Once it all clicks, I don't think there is a single guard in the nation that can contain her. Those two are going to be the heartbeat of next year's team.
 
GamecockFam said:
Same with Fulwiley. I feel like Fulwiley is on the precipice of putting it all together. Once it all clicks, I don't think there is a single guard in the nation that can contain her. Those two are going to be the heartbeat of next year's team.
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Milaysia getting humbled might be the best thing for her. I think the talent is there but maybe the discipline/focus isn’t. Getting embarrassed on a big stage like this might motivate her to put in a lot of work in the off season to improve her game.
 
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LwrcasefaN said:
Respect to Feagin. Sure she had other options, but she stayed and I think she will be impactful at the next level. Her midrange shot improved exponentially.
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Coach Staley made a comment in one recent interview that she expects Feagin to be a lottery pick. I wonder if she has some inside info...but honestly it makes sense to me. Feagin is just starting to tap into her potential and this is a relatively weak class, so I could see a lottery team drafting her on that potential. I think at a minimum a WNBA team will be getting a solid bench player who has potential to blossom into a starter.
 
visitingcock said:
Warning acknowledged.

So, are we gonna get any top 30 recruits? Supposedly, not looking good. Some are blaming Dawn for her summer in Paris. Some are blaming the recent unnamed event, some are saying zDawn is not impressed with the 25 class anyway. Others are saying hold on, it’s too early to write this class off.

Thoughts?
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Jim Calhoun never landed top recruits. As a matter of fact, people hated our incoming class of 2010. We were told we even landed the wrong Lamb. That class won two titles.

Many people thought the game may have passed Geno by. He's too old dontchaknow, and he hasn't won anything since 2016. The nuances of the truth be damned

What am I saying? Conventional wisdom is rarely wise. Dawn and SC will remain national title contenders, as will UConn. And the women's game will continue to evolve and get stronger
 
BRS24 said:
Y'all. Let me tell you how much I appreciate the discourse between UConn and SC fans here in the BY, because lordy. There's a whole lotta mess on the bird site and it's ... stupid.
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I was thinking you meant on the South message board ... Cause chickens are birds (and quite tasty if prepared correctly). I gueas you were referring to somewhere else.
 
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SC had a great season but things felt off compared to last year. Cardoso was no doubt missed as was Watkins after her injury, but the team just felt as though there wasn't the same chemistry wise or as efficient on offense. Cardoso hid some shooting ills by cleaning up the glass so well, but I expected a little more of a fight in the two UConn games that wasn't there. There will be a few roster spots to come open and I will be curious to see what happens portal wise. They are still the 2nd best program in the nation but will probably do some retooling.

They disappointed only compared to their lofty standards so it was a fine year overall and the team has nothing to be ashamed of.
 
BRS24 said:
Y'all. Let me tell you how much I appreciate the discourse between UConn and SC fans here in the BY, because lordy. There's a whole lotta mess on the bird site and it's ... stupid.
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Well, a lot of those fans on Twitter are not actually basketball fans. A bunch of Johnny-come-latelys that picked a side based on who was winning when they started watching and now just like participating in twitter feuds. I left that site for a reason.
 
MSSportsGuy said:
SC had a great season but things felt off compared to last year. Cardoso was no doubt missed as was Watkins after her injury, but the team just felt as though there wasn't the same chemistry wise or as efficient on offense. Cardoso hid some shooting ills by cleaning up the glass so well, but I expected a little more of a fight in the two UConn games that wasn't there. There will be a few roster spots to come open and I will be curious to see what happens portal wise. They are still the 2nd best program in the nation but will probably do some retooling.

They disappointed only compared to their lofty standards so it was a fine year overall and the team has nothing to be ashamed of.
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Honestly you could just feel it from the first game of the year--SC just looked off in the Michigan game and never really came close to playing at the level they did a year ago. I don't think anyone should feel disappointed by a runner up season but if I'm being candid, I don't think this team reached its potential like the previous 3 South Carolina teams were able to.
 
MSSportsGuy said:
SC had a great season but things felt off compared to last year. Cardoso was no doubt missed as was Watkins after her injury, but the team just felt as though there wasn't the same chemistry wise or as efficient on offense. Cardoso hid some shooting ills by cleaning up the glass so well, but I expected a little more of a fight in the two UConn games that wasn't there. There will be a few roster spots to come open and I will be curious to see what happens portal wise. They are still the 2nd best program in the nation but will probably do some retooling.

They disappointed only compared to their lofty standards so it was a fine year overall and the team has nothing to be ashamed of.
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I think runners-up is a great season result for this team, but there were definitely some games or stretches of games where the team felt off.

I honestly think it is probably good for chemistry the seniors are graduating. I'm not criticizing any of them and I'm grateful for all they did for the program, but if fans can see a younger player is better, the younger player and her teammates obviously know. I wonder if Dawn's loyalty to veterans may have led to some of the dissonance we seemed to see at times this year.

Again, we achieved this team's post-Watkins ceiling, so it worked out in the end. But it was a bumpy road at times, even in some of the "comfortable" wins. And if your program can keep someone like Cordosa or Feagin happy to come off the bench until their final year, it's more than worth the occasional season of grumbles.
 
I really hope Ashlyn Watkins is 100% by the end of the season. Not only is she by far our best matchup for Strong, but she might be the optimal combination of strength and quickness to defend her in the nation.
 
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