“It throws off a little bit of a cadence of playing in the SEC”: Dawn Staley comments about postponement of LSU vs South Carolina

Dawn Staley understands the excitement for the big matchup set to take place at Columbia, South Carolina, between the No. 2 Gamecocks and No. 5 LSU Tigers. She is also aware of the effect a postponement to the game made in regards to the scheduling of league play in the Southeastern Conference.

On Friday, Staley joined ESPN's MJ Acosta-Ruiz on SportsCenter to discuss a host of topics. These included the rival showdown with LSU, her viral "big hat," her Eagles jersey for the NFC championship game and the rise of the new Women's 3-on-3 league, Unrivaled.

They began with the first topic, as Staley explained the impact of the game being pushed from Thursday to Friday while affirming the matchup is still anticipated by the community in South Carolina:

"I think it throws off a little bit of a cadence of playing in the SEC where you play Thursday, Sunday, you push it back one game. You had one extra day of prep. And I think our players would have much rather play today than tomorrow," Staley said at the 0:25 mark.

"But sometimes the weather dictates when you have to play unless you got on a plane and came and practiced. They're here. Everybody's anticipating this big matchup and so are we as coaches and players and fans, and the entire city and state of Columbia, South Carolina. We're ready to rock and roll."

How Dawn Staley's South Carolina enter LSU matchup

A matchup against an LSU squad that is only two years removed from their last national championship will always be big for Dawn Staley and the reigning champs.

This encounter marks the eighth time Staley meets Tigers coach Kim Mulkey. Staley leads 5-2 in the head-to-head matchup, with the last game happening in the 2024 SEC Championship as the Gamecocks came out on top.

South Carolina has an opportunity to put an end to LSU's perfect record of 20-0, heading into the game with an 18-1 record that includes an active win streak of 13 games. They are averaging 82.7 points on 47.2% shooting from the field and 34.4% from beyond the arc, blowing out opponents by 27.6 points per game.

After this game, Dawn Staley and the No. 2 Gamecocks will have another ranked matchup with the No. 17 Tennessee Volunteers at the Thompson-Boling Arena on Jan. 27 at 7 p.m. ET.