Dawn Staley makes her feelings known on Georgia Amoore, Kenny Brooks after South Carolina beats Kentucky

Dawn Staley's No. 6 Gamecocks (27-3, 15-1 SEC) defeated No. 15 Kentucky 78-66 at the Colonial Life Arena on Sunday. South Carolina mounted an eight-point advantage at the break and never allowed the Wildcats to taste the lead.

However, compared to recent games against UK (22-6, 11-5 SEC), Sunday was a bigger challenge.

Staley talked about the Big Blue Nation's basketball caliber and praised coach Kenny Brooks' efforts to raise the school's level.

"He's got a really talented squad, they got chemistry, they work well together and they got a really good point guard (Georgia Amoore)," she said in the post-game conference (at 0:50).

Staley highlighted how Amoore has elevated Brooks' playbook and led Kentucky to a successful 22-6 season run.

"When you got a point guard that can distribute a basketball, that can create her own shot, that can knock down threes, that can read defenses - I mean she puts people in great positions to just have to make a basket. And when you have a leader like that, it's going to give you opportunities to win and win a lot of basketball games."

The 2023 NCAA championship-winning coach asserted that Brooks has ultimately helped make the SEC a much more competitive environment.

South Carolina and Kentucky met twice last season. USC won both games with ease with an average score differential of 55 points.

While South Carolina led for the majority of Sunday's game, Kentucky showcased better chemistry, fluency and ability to score. The Wildcats prevented the defending champions from gaining momentum in the first quarter and again in the fourth.

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Georgia Amoore and Kenny Brooks might meet Dawn Staley's SC again

Kentucky earned the fourth seed to advance to the SEC tournament. Dawn Staley's South Carolina Gamecocks, who were tied with Texas with a 15-1 conference record, earned the first bid through a coin toss.

The Wildcats and South Carolina received two byes and will directly begin play in the quarterfinals. However, in case both teams win their first conference tournament games, UK and USC will meet again in the semifinals.