Dawn Staley explains what Maryland could do to beat South Carolina in Sweet 16

Modified Mar 27, 2025 11:10 GMT

NCAA Womens Basketball: NCAA Tournament Second Round-Indiana at South Carolina - Source: Imagn — Dawn Staley in the win over Indiana. - Source: Jeff Blake, Imagn

The South Carolina Gamecocks, coached by Dawn Staley, are going for back-to-back national championships. On Sunday, the first seed of Birmingham Regional 2 toppled the ninth-seeded Indiana Hoosiers, 64-53, in the second round of this year's March Madness.

They now mive on to their Sweet 16 matchup against the fourth-seeded Maryland Terrapins on Friday, another emerging team looking to dethrone the reigning national champions.

In an interview with South Carolina television station WIS News 10 on Wednesday, Staley discussed the current women's college basketball postseason. The tenured tactitian shared her thoughts on what Maryland could do to pull off an upset against them in the Sweet 16 matchup.

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For Staley, she said that it all boils down to the way Maryland shoots the 3-ball along with their full-court defense, which makes them a high-octane, fast-paced team. On the year, the Terrapins are shooting from beyond 3-point arc at a rate of 35.4%, making 183 of 517 attempts in the entire campaign.

The tenured tactician pointed out that if the game went into the 80's in terms of scoring, it may go into the opponents' way. So, she said that the emphasis for the Gamecocks will be to try and keep the score in the 70's while trying to win in the intangibles category, from 50-50 balls to deflections.

This season, South Carolina is led by the likes of sophomore slasher MiLaysia Fulwiley, who's averaging 11.8 markers, 2.9 boards, 1.9 dimes and 1.6 swipes a game along with stalwart Chloe Kitts, who's tallying 10.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per contest.

The South Carolina Gamecocks are aiming to be the fourth program to win consecutive national titles

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If they defend their 2024 national championship in this year's March Madness, a second straight national title for the South Carolina Gamecocks in women's college basketball history will make them just the fourth program to accomplish the feat. A national chip will also give the storied school its fourth title, all of which have been won under Dawn Staley.

The three other programs to win the NCAA national title at leasat twice in a row are the UConn Huskies, doing so in 2000 to 2004, 2009 to 2010 and 2013 to 2016, the Tennessee Volunteers. from 1996 to 1998, and the USC Trojans, from 1983 to 1984.

About the author

Koby del Rosario is a college sports journalist at Sportskeeda who took up BS in Advertising Management at De La Salle University, one of the big "four" universities in the Philippines. Koby has over four years of experience with Complex PH, M2.0 Communications, The LaSallian, Daily Tribune, and Time Attack Manila.

Koby's favorite college team would have to be the North Carolina Tar Heels. Apart from being MJ's alma mater, Koby has always been fond of the Jordan silhouettes that release in the school's colors (being a sneakerhead himself).

His past favorite college players would have to be Russell Westbrook (UCLA) and Markelle Fultz (Washington). With Russ, his 1-2 punch with Kevin Love during their UCLA days was something Koby marveled at as Russ became his favorite player to watch post-Kobe.

Besides playing basketball, Koby enjoys nightlife, collecting sneakers, and playing video games. Apart from hosting parties and taking pictures for parties/bars/clubs, Koby is learning to DJ as a hobby with all sorts of house and hip-hop as the main genres.

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Edited by Bhargav