Dawn Staley picks “South Carolina’s favorite” from bitter rival Clemson’s roster: “Guard that does a lot for them”

Dawn Staley's South Carolina Gamecocks play the in-state rivals Clemson Tigers on Wednesday (5 pm ET) at the Littlejohn Coliseum. The Gamecocks (4-0) are coming off a dominant win against the East Carolina Pirates (95-44), while the Tigers also have an undefeated record behind three victories.

With that, Staley commended Clemson's playing style as her roster practiced hours before the matchup. She also appreciated Tiger's guard Loyal McQueen for her versatile impact on the floor.

"They spread you out, I mean, they got nine transfers, Loyal McQueen, who's the South Carolina's favorite," Staley said on Tuesday.

"Just the guard that does a lot for them. But they do what they do well, they stay within, if you can shoot the three ball - you shoot it. If you're a downhill driver, they're going to put us back on our heels and we just got to play our defense kind of leading into that."

Senior Loyal McQueen is having her best college season this year. Across the first three games, she is averaging 17.3 points, 6.0 assists and 3.7 rebounds on more than 45% shooting.

McQueen is coming off back-to-back 20-point performances against Presbyterian Blue Hose and North Carolina Central Eagles, combining for 42 points and 11 assists on 58.2% shooting. She will be a primary defensive assignment for Dawn Staley's roster, which will look to eliminate McQueen's ability to score from inside the perimeter.

Dawn Staley gets necessary reinforcements before the game against Clemson

When asked about Tessa Johnson’s status against Clemson, Dawn Staley summoned the answer from the sophomore guard, who was practicing behind her.

"Tessa, what's your status for tomorrow?" Staley shouted.

"I'm playing," Johnson replied.

Tessa Johnson opened her season with a 15-point performance against Michigan Wolverines. Gamecocks needed all her points as the Wolverines kept the scoreboard close for most of the game. She got injured against NC State just nine minutes into the matchup.

Johnson only averaged 6.6 points and 1.7 rebounds last season. However, she can step it up whenever Dawn Staley requires. She posted her career-high and team-high 19 points in the 2024 NCAA Finals against Iowa Hawkeyes, going 7-11 from the field.