SEC notebook: South Carolina-LSU showdown, Tennessee-Texas clash, things we learned in Week 3

However, when LSU (20-0) and South Carolina (18-1) meet at 5 p.m. ET on Friday inside Colonial Life Arena, the Tigers will have a chance to return the favor to the Gamecocks, a program that enters the contest riding 53 consecutive SEC regular season wins and 68 straight home wins. The last time South Carolina lost a home game was Dec. 3, 2020, when North Carolina State defeated the Gamecocks, 54-46, and “the freshies” were sophomores in Dawn Staley’s program.

“… We [LSU Tigers] know what we face next,” said LSU head coach Kim Mulkey in her news conference on Sunday after the Tigers’ 80-63 win against Florida. “A tremendous challenge.”

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LSU enters this game as one of two women’s basketball teams still undefeated in the country. The Tigers greatest test to this point of the season comes days after winter storm Enzo created blizzard-like conditions across Louisiana and turned Baton Rouge into winter wonderland, resulting in the clash between the two AP top 5 programs to be postponed from Thursday to Friday because of travel issues on LSU’s behalf. 

Although the Tigers’ ability to practice has been limited, there likely hasn’t been a shortage of watching film on the Gamecocks as well as LSU’s desire to conquer the reigning national champ. The trio of Johnson (20.0 ppg, 2.9 apg, 1.7 steals), Morrow (18.7 ppg, 14.2 rpg while shooting 54.6% from the floor, leads the SEC in offensive and defensive rebounds) and Williams (16.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.8 apg while shooting 89.5% from the charity stripe) lead the way for a Tigers’ program that sits third nationally in scoring offense, sixth in offensive rating (115.0) 20th in defensive rating (79.7) and 12th in pace, according to HerHoopsStats.

LSU also comes in sixth in the nation in field goal percentage (48.9%), second in offensive rebounds per game (17.4), seventh in defensive rebounds per game (30.8) and second in total rebounds (48.2). The biggest reason behind the Tigers’ success on the glass stems from the play of Morrow, who sits at 92 double doubles in her career.

Morrow and the Tigers’ ability to rebound will be put to the test against a Gamecocks’ squad that also excels in rebounding, ranking third in the SEC in total rebounds per game (43.9) and 10th nationally as well as 19th in offensive (15.0) and defensive rebounds (28.9) per contest.

Despite the absence of Ashlyn Watkins, the Gamecocks have not missed a beat with their presence in the interior over their last four games — three of their last four victories coming  against ranked opponents — that Watkins has not played due to her ACL injury, outrebounding those opponents 183-155. However, although winning the total rebounding category, Texas A&M and Texas notched a far greater margin of offensive rebounds against South Carolina versus the output of offensive boards from Alabama and Oklahoma that includes the Sooners interior force in Raegan Beers, who was limited to eight total rebounds in OU’s loss on Sunday.

However, the biggest difference maker in those games was South Carolina’s ability to defend (holding their last four foes to less than 55 points), shooting the ball well from the floor and beyond the arc as well as winning the battle for second chance and bench points in three of those last four matchups. The Gamecocks enter Friday’s contest led by Joyce Edwards (12.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg), Bree Hall (6.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg), Sania Feagin (7.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg), Te-Hina Paopao (11.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.8 apg while shooting 49.1% from the floor and 40.2 % from three) and Chloe Kitts (9.5 ppg, a team-high 7.6 rpg while shooting 52.8% from the field and a team-high 86.4% from the free throw line).

The Gamecocks’ depth has been a great equalizer with MiLaysia Fulwiley spearheading those efforts with 11.2 points per game, along with the play of Tessa Johnson and Maryam Dauda.

South Carolina has won the last 16 contests — that includes last year’s SEC title victory —  against LSU.

Tennessee: Two top five tests for Volunteers

Heading into the third week of SEC play, Volunteers head coach Kim Caldwell told reporters that her players needed to be a “little bit tougher” if Tennessee (15-3) wanted to compete among the best in the conference. However, Caldwell’s plea for change remains the same after the Vols secured a solid win against Mississippi State but later dropped its third one-possession game (Oklahoma and LSU) of the season in a loss on Sunday to Vanderbilt.

“They [Commodores] outplayed us from the very beginning of the game to the very end of the game,” Caldwell said in the postgame news conference after the Vols’ 71-70 loss to the Commodores. “… We are inconsistent. We take plays off, we only turn it on when we want to. That would be the third game we’ve put ourselves in a hole and climbed our way back and then lost by one possession. 

“If [the team] could just figure out how to be consistent, we wouldn’t keep having this problem. We are resilient but we do it to ourselves.”

Part of Tennessee’s struggles to show up includes a lack of effort and struggles to rebound, according to Caldwell. The Vols must make necessary changes as Tennessee’s next five opponents will come against four teams — Texas, South Carolina on Monday, UConn and LSU — currently ranked in the AP top 10 over the next 17 days starting Thursday on the road against the Longhorns.

Texas enters the contest after a huge victory against Big Ten blueblood Maryland in the Coretta Scott King Classic and a dominant win against Auburn. Madison Booker (15.8 ppg) anchors a Longhorns’ offense that averages the fourth most points in the nation per game (87.5) and limits their opponents to 55.5 points per contest (15th best in the country). Taylor Jones (11.3 ppg, 6.6 rpg), Kyla Oldacre (10.7 ppg, 7.1 rpg) and Rori Harmon (10.3 ppg) round out the double-digit scoring production for Texas. 

Defensively, head coach Vic Schaefer’s squad also sits in the top 10 in steals per game while forcing the third most turnovers nationally (24.8) per game. When it comes to SEC play, Texas has forced a total of 113 turnovers and registered 126 points from those turnovers as well as limited its opponents in second chance points in 18 of 20 games this season.

For a team that has struggled to rebound and box out in critical moments, it will be very important to keep the team’s top rebounders in Oldacre, Jones, Booker and Moore off the glass.

“It’s going to be a challenge,” said Tennessee assistant coach Jenna Burdette. “We need to get stops on the defensive end so they [Longhorns] can’t get set up in their press and hopefully we can keep our pace going. We have to really settle in on our defense.”

The Volunteers have won eight of the last 12 contests, including three of the last four against the Longhorns. However, Texas is 4-2 against ranked teams and a 9-0 at home this season. After a game against Texas, Tennessee will return for a primetime matchup on Monday against the Gamecocks.

Texas: Big tests for the Longhorns

After the Longhorns’ disappointing loss on Jan. 12 to the Gamecocks, Texas (18-2) bounced back with a dominant win against Auburn (74-57) and Sunday’s victory against Maryland (89-51) to keep pace as one of the SEC’s top four teams this season. However, this week’s matchups against the Volunteers and Mississippi will serve as key tests to see where the Longhorns stand as a Tier 1 program in the league.

In Schaefer’s weekly press conference on Wednesday, he praised the Volunteers’ ability to score, their shooting prowess from beyond the arc and their five players averaging double figures in points per game that include Talaysia Cooper (18.4 ppg white shooting 50% from the field), Jewel Spear (13.2 ppg), Ruby Whitehorn (13.1 ppg), Samara Spencer (11.6 5.5 apg) and Zee Spearman (10.9, 6.2 rpg).

“Nineteen [points per game], 17, 14, 10.5 and 10,” Schaefer said of UT’s starters per game.

Tennessee will seek to put pressure on the Longhorns guards with full court pressure as well as pushing the pace to not allow Texas to get set in its half court defense. The Vols have gone through spurts where they are missing in action in offensive rebounding with the game on the line, despite leading the nation in offensive rebounds per game (20.1). 

The presence of Oldacre, Jones and Moore in the paint could be the difference in a win for the Longhorns. Tennessee’s top rebounders — Spencer, Whitehorn and Cooper — are averaging four or more rebounds per contest. But in addition to winning the battle on the glass, Texas must guard the 3-point line as the Vols enter the game first nationally in scoring offense, 3-pointers per game (11.7) and 3-point attempts per game (34.9).

Meanwhile, Mississippi brings physicality and hangs its hat on defense, leading the SEC in scoring defense (allowing 52.9 ppg) and ranking ninth in the nation in defensive rating. Like Texas, the Rebels also have a mixture of veteran players and key freshman like Sira Thienou, (leads the team in scoring with 12.9 ppg while shooting 55.8% from the floor and 42.2% from beyond the arc), who should certainly be in the running for SEC Freshman of the Year with her play on the hardwood.

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Kentucky

The Wildcats have not lost a game since Dec. 5 when North Carolina defeated Kentucky. Currently, Kentucky (16-1) is one of three teams — South Carolina and LSU — that remains unblemished in SEC play. In a way, Kentucky is still flying under the radar with much of the attention and praise shining on the defending national champs and the Tigers undefeated run through this point of the season. 

At face value, some may view Kentucky’s toughest SEC challenges to this point have been the Bulldogs and Commodores, two of the SEC’s 10 teams that are currently projected to make the NCAA tournament in March. The Wildcats’ other league wins include Florida, Auburn and Georgia, three teams with a combined record of 4-14 in conference play. Kentucky has won 15 of 16 games by at least 10 points with all of their current SEC wins coming by at least 14 or more points, marking the first time in program history.

Kentucky enters Thursday riding a nine-game winning streak and facing a road matchup against Texas A&M before returning home on Sunday to face Arkansas. All five of the Wildcats starters are averaging double figures. As a team, Kentucky sits sixth in the nation in assists per game (19.4%) and 12th in field goal percentage defense (34.4%), second best in the conference. The Wildcats also lead the nation in blocked shots (7.1 per game) and have held 13 of their 17 opponents — which includes their five SEC wins — to less than 39% shooting from the floor. After this week, Kentucky will face its toughest conference tests going into the final days of January and moving into the first of February.

Alabama

The Crimson Tide responded Sunday with a dominant win against Arkansas after losing to South Carolina. Even with Alabama playing at home against the Gamecocks, the Crimson Tide still faced a tall task in slowing down South Carolina offensively as well as still playing without second leading scorer Sarah Ashlee Barker, who hasn’t played since Jan. 2 because of a lower leg injury. Zaay Green (16.8 ppg, 4.4 apg while shooting 56.7% from the floor) and Aaliyah Nye (14.3 ppg while shooting 42.9% from beyond the arc) continue to lead the way for the Crimson Tide, along with key contributions from Essence Cody, Karly Weathers and Diana Collins. Kristy Curry will need to continue to get contributions from others not named Green and Nye as Alabama faces a dangerous Vanderbilt team on Sunday. 

Mississippi

Moments after the Rebels’ 71-63 win on Sunday against Mississippi State, Rebels head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin told the SEC Network broadcast she felt that the victory against the Bulldogs could be what her team needed to reach its long-term goals for this season. Even so, continuing to play well for Mississippi (13-5) starts with remaining solid on the defensive side of the ball, something Yo is still instilling within this team, despite leading the SEC in scoring defense and fifth nationally, eighth in the country in steals per game (12.7), 19th in blocks (4.9) and 10th in forcing turnovers (23.4) per contest.

“We’re really trying to get this team to buy into the defensive end and what it looks like for us,” Coach Yo said Tuesday in her weekly news conference. “Our knock has always been offensively, we cannot make shots. Well, we have that [offense] but we can’t lose the defense. If we bring both of those together, that’s the team that no one is going to want to play in March.”

In addition to the Bulldogs’ victory, the Rebels notched a win against Florida and will now have a chance to secure a ranked win on Sunday afternoon against Texas. A key factor in the Rebels’ victory against the Bulldogs was the play of Madison Scott (11.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 3.9 apg while shooting 48% from the floor), who was more aggressive in her scoring opportunities, as well as the play of freshman Sira Thienou. Scott finished with a career-high 30 points, notching 20 or more points for the seventh of her career and the first Mississippi player to register 30 points this season. 

Yo said she would love to see Scott be more assertive in scoring.

“When Maddy [Scott] takes a lot of shots, she’s going to score points,” Yo said. “… The issue we’ve had from her is that she doesn’t take enough shots. She’ll leave a game with five shots, eight shots, that’s not enough.”

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Meanwhile, Thienou garnered nine of the Rebels’ 16 steals in the win and has totaled 29 steals since Mississippi began SEC play and averaged 4.8 per game to go along with double-digit production in points.

It is no secret that Thienou is in the running for this year’s SEC Freshman of the Year honor. However, for the 6’1 guard to fulfill that goal, Yo said it is time for her to take her game to the next level.

“Sira [Thienou] is no longer a freshman,” Yo said. “This is a time of season where she has to grow up. But, we need her to step up. … for the greater good of the team. We need her to continue to be consistent and continue to mature.”

Currently, the Rebels are one of two teams in the SEC with two losses but are not ranked like their counterparts Tennessee and Oklahoma, programs with three losses in league play. However, the Rebels NET ranking (13) is higher than both Tennessee (14) and Oklahoma (16). 

Oklahoma

With six SEC games under their belt, the Sooners are still a mixed bag. In some games, Oklahoma will merely outscore its opponents using the three ball as well as scoring in transition. In other contests, the Sooners find themselves committing countless turnovers that result in points for opposing teams while also failing to defend and shoot the ball well. In OU’s 101-60 loss on Sunday to the Gamecocks, the Sooners committed 22 turnovers that resulted in 32 points for South Carolina, coupled with the Gamecocks shooting 48.1% from the floor and 35.7% from beyond the arc. That’s not a recipe for success in any game, especially not the SEC.

On the bright side, OU picked up a win against Missouri prior to the loss to South Carolina and Raegan Beers, who was a game-time decision ahead of Sunday’s clash, registered 23 points and eight rebounds. However, her teammate Payton Verhulst, one of the top 20 scorers in the SEC, was held to three points after scoring 38 against the Tigers. As Sooners coach Jennie Baranczyk continues to make adjustments for the program heading into the second month of SEC play, the Sooners (15-4) must find a way to lower their number of turnovers and find a rhythm of consistency against some of the more elite teams in the conference. Currently, OU is 3-3 with victories against Tennessee, Texas A&M and Missouri with both the Aggies and Tigers sitting in the 70 threshold for NET rankings. In the loss column, the Sooners have dropped contests against Texas, Mississippi State and the Gamecocks, three teams currently projected to make this year’s NCAA tournament with NET rankings within the top 35 in the nation.

Vanderbilt

Don’t look now but the Commodores are starting to get some national attention for their play after securing the last-second win on Sunday against the Volunteers. Vanderbilt (15-4) picked up a win against Tennessee at home for the first time since 2014. The Commodores’ victory had history written all over it. It was the program’s 900th win and it generated a proud dad moment for Monroe Blakes, who saw both of his children — Commodores’ Mikayla and Jaylen Blakes — knock down game-winning buckets within 24 hours of each other that resulted in Vanderbilt wins. Monroe was a former player and member of the Hall of Fame at D-II St. Michael’s College in Vermont. So, basketball runs deep in the Blakes’ family.

More importantly, head coach Shea Ralph is building something special in Nashville. Despite the 83-77 loss on Jan. 13 to LSU, the Commodores registered a strong performance and showed that they could score and fight back against the best of the SEC. On Sunday against the Vols — although it was a last-second win — Vanderbilt is making strides behind the play of Blakes (20.2 ppg) and Khamil Pierre (22.3), two of the SEC’s top five scorers. Pierre also sits second in the league in rebounding behind Morrow, fifth in field goal percentage and third in steals and offensive rebounds. Blakes ranks fourth in free throw percentage, sixth in steals and 14th in 3-pointers made in the conference. As a team, the Commodores sit eighth nationally in scoring offense (86.0 ppg), 11th in offensive rating (112.8) and 29th in pace (75.8) per contest.

Vanderbilt, a team that currently holds a NET ranking of 22, has a chance to build on its resume on Thursday with a game against Arkansas before going on the road Sunday to face a ranked Alabama squad on Sunday.

Mississippi State

The biggest storyline of Sam Purcell’s weekly news conference on Wednesday pretty much remained the same as the Bulldogs head coach continued to harp about the number of turnovers Mississippi State is committing in games.

Mississippi State (15-5) is one of three SEC teams with four losses — to Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee and most recently Mississippi on Sunday — through six conference games. However, it’s not that the Bulldogs aren’t starting games strong. As Purcell sat at the table, he referred to a note card, rattling off multiple examples of Quad 1 games that the program has played in this season that include non-conference opponents like Utah, South Florida and Georgia Tech as well as four SEC foes like South Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee and the Rebels. In those seven contests, the Bulldogs went 3-4. As teams adjusted to MSU’s hot starts in games, Purcell reiterated the underlying theme that turnovers have been the Achilles heel for the program and must continue to be corrected in order for MSU to be a special team.

“Turnovers are the counter adjustment [from other teams],” Purcell said Wednesday in his weekly news conference. “When you give other teams opportunities on points off turnovers, those have been the dagger for us. Can we simplify the playbook? What can we do passing wise to stop some of this? …It’s not as simple as one thing. It’s dead ball turnovers on inbounds, its passing turnovers, its dribbling turnovers. We’re just trying to show them what great of a team we can be.”

Mississippi State committed 26 turnovers that led to 23 points for Mississippi in the Rebels’ win on Sunday. Purcell was disappointed in that outcome. However, with a game on Thursday against Auburn and a road matchup on Sunday against Missouri, the Bulldogs have a chance to redeem themselves and could potentially get back to .500 in SEC play ahead of next week. Currently, MSU sits 34 in the latest NET rankings.

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Florida

Like Mississippi State, the Gators sit at four SEC losses through six games. The Gators (11-9) lost to Mississippi and most recently LSU on Sunday. However, there were glimpses of positive play from Florida against the Tigers before LSU’s defense placed the clamps on Gators’ offense down the stretch of the contest. For Florida, the biggest points remain the same. The Gators are young. As they continue to get further into SEC play with their talent, Kelly Rae Finley’s squad will begin to put together more wins. However, the wins won’t come until Florida does a better job of limiting turnovers and being consistent for all four quarters of a game. The Gators currently sit as one of the next four teams out in the latest NCAA women’s basketball bracketology and are 54 in the latest NET rankings. Florida will go on the road Sunday to face Auburn.

Auburn

Among the final teams within the current top 60 in NET rankings is Auburn, a program that sits at 59. After five consecutive losses to begin SEC play, the Tigers picked up their first win in league play on Sunday in a victory against Missouri. The Tigers (10-9) received great contributions from Taylen Collins and DeYona Gaston as the duo combined for 24 points while bench production from Celia Sumbane and Yuting Deng combined for 26 of the Tigers’ 75 points in the contest. At this point, it’s no secret that Auburn goes as Gaston goes. But, if Johnnie Harris’ squad can continue to get strong performances from players beyond Gaston and Collins — particularly off the bench — this could be a major asset for the Tigers. Auburn will go on the road Thursday to face Mississippi State before returning home on Sunday to face Florida.

Texas A&M

The Aggies picked up their second win of the season against Georgia in a tight affair last week. After a week off, Texas A&M (9-8) returns to action Thursday, beginning a tough slate of ranked opponents on Thursday at home against Kentucky and a road matchup on Sunday against LSU. Texas A&M is 8-3 at home this season and is 4-3 in the all-time series against Kentucky at home. Kentucky enters Reed Arena riding a nine-game winning streak and is the seventh ranked opponent that the Aggies have faced this season.

While things sit in favor of the Wildcats entering Thursday’s contest, Texas A&M has won eight of the last nine games between the two teams. The Aggies play with a ton of grit and have shown that they will fight to the very end as they clawed their way back from an eight-point deficit to defeat UGA. But more than anything, with players like Jada Malone leading the team in field goal percentage (64.7%, 9.4 ppg) and leading scorer Aicha Coulibaly (12.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg), don’t write off what could be a solid outing on Thursday from the Aggies against the Wildcats. Texas A&M also averages more than 25 points per game off the bench versus Kentucky, a team that sits next to last in the country in bench points per contest (9.0). 

Missouri

The Tigers (11-10) are the only remaining team that has not won a game in SEC play. Auburn defeated Missouri on Sunday to hand the Tigers their sixth consecutive conference loss. The slate does not get much easier for the Tigers as they face Mississippi State on Monday night. Grace Slaughter, Ashton Judd and Laniah Randle continue to be the bright spots for the Tigers this season. Currently, Missouri sits at 79 in the latest NET rankings.

Georgia

The Bulldogs dropped a close matchup last week to Texas A&M before losing to Kentucky on Sunday. Despite the loss, Georgia (9-11) fought back, cutting the deficit to 12 points twice in the final two minutes of the contest. However, Kentucky prevailed with timely shots and free throws down the stretch to pull away. Trinity Turner, one of UGA’s four freshmen players on the team, posted a strong performance against the Wildcats, finishing with 19 points while De’Mauri Flournoy was a big help for the Bulldogs off the bench with 19 points. Georgia will face its second ranked opponent in conference play on Sunday when the Bulldogs go on the road to face Oklahoma. 

Arkansas

The Razorbacks (8-12) picked up their fourth loss in SEC play on Sunday in a 94-62 loss at home against Alabama. And for Arkansas, the SEC slate will remain tough, going on the road Thursday against the Commodores before making the trip to Lexington, Kentucky to face the Wildcats. By the end of the weekend, Arkansas will have played five ranked opponents in its first seven games of SEC action. Despite the brutal schedule, Izzy Higginbottom hasn’t cooled off in her production on the hardwood. The SEC’s leading scorer is averaging 23.6 points per game and also sits as the nation’s fifth leading scorer behind South Dakota’s Grace Larkins, Southern California’s JuJu Watkins, Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo and Florida State’s Ta’Niya Latson. 

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SEC games this week

Thursday, Jan. 23

Kentucky at Texas A&M

Auburn at Mississippi State

Arkansas at Vanderbilt

Tennessee at Texas

Friday, Jan. 24

LSU at South Carolina

Sunday, Jan. 26

Arkansas at Kentucky

Vanderbilt at Alabama

Georgia at Oklahoma

Texas at Mississippi

Florida at Auburn

Texas A&M at LSU

Monday, Jan. 27

South Carolina at Tennessee 

Mississippi State at Missouri