South-Carolina
Thoughts on adding Ta’Niya Latson, losing Chloe Kitts after 2 South Carolina exhibitions
ATLANTA — South Carolina women’s basketball got two different looks at the 2025-26 team before the season officially begins, learning some good and bad through the two exhibition wins.
The Gamecocks beat UNC 91-82 on Oct. 30, after beating Division II Anderson 112-31 on Oct. 24. There are four new faces two the roster, two from the portal in Ta’Niya Latson and Madina Okot along with two freshmen in Ayla McDowell and Agot Makeer.
Coach Dawn Staley and the No. 2 Gamecocks open the season against Grand Canyon on Nov. 3 (7 p.m. ET) at home, her first real look at her 10 players as South Carolina aims for a fourth national championship.
With two exhibition games in the books and four days until wins and losses matter, here’s what stands out about this South Carolina team so far.
South Carolina has scorers but 3-point shooting still a work in progress
Latson didn’t come to South Carolina to shoot 3-pointers, but she did come after averaging 21 or more points the last three seasons for Florida State. She finished with 19 on 7-of-12 shooting from the floor against UNC, piggybacking off a 14-point night against Anderson.
She is getting more comfortable in South Carolina’s system and her mid-range magic was on display against the Tar Heels.
Latson got help from her fellow starters with sophomore forward Joyce Edwards scoring 27 against Anderson and 12 against UNC. Okot finished with double digits both games (17 and 11) and Tessa Johnson went 7-of-11 from the floor for 19 points against UNC.
The Gamecocks shot 53.1% from the field against Anderson and 50% against UNC but from behind the 3-point line they were 4-of-18 both games (22.2%). It’s an area to work on, especially if teams take away options inside.
South Carolina will need to be a multidimensional offense this season, especially in SEC play.
What Dawn Staley said about 2025-26 South Carolina roster’s chemistry
Staley lost starting forward Chloe Kitts to an ACL tear in the preseason, which put a wrench in her first five’s chemistry. Edwards and Kitts played really well down low last season, something Staley was looking to build off this season.
At times the last two games but against UNC especially, it looked like South Carolina was shooting early in the shot clock or late on a closeout, likely due to some miscommunication.
“This is a totally different basketball team,” Staley said. “We don’t have the continuity, chemistry and flow that we need. It’s a lot better, even than when we played against Anderson.”
Staley said with so many scorers, her players are still learning sometimes making that extra pass “stabs a defense just a little deeper.”
How Chloe Kitts injury is impacting South Carolina
Losing Kitts meant Edwards’ role would get bigger but Staley will need help from everyone. Until game action, it was hard to see where exactly South Carolina would struggle most without her.
It was a quality night from Okot in her debut on Oct. 24 but she found herself in foul trouble early against UNC. That forced some early minutes from Maryam Dauda, who looked more dominant in the paint. She relied on her 3-point shot a lot last year but looks stronger now and attacked the offensive boards especially against UNC.
She had 10 points and five rebounds against UNC.
Adhel Tac is improving, too, but has only scored nine points in 23 minutes across two games. She is 6-foot-5 and if Dauda is giving Edwards rest at the forward spot, Tac will need to score if Okot is in foul trouble.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
The 2025 South Carolina high school football season rolled into the playoffs on Friday, November 7, and High School On SI has a list of final scores from the weekend.
South Carolina High School Football Scores, Results & Live Updates (SCHSL) – November 7, 2025
Abbeville 63, Great Falls 0
Andrew Jackson 34, Ninety Six 15
Atlantic Collegiate 14, Woodland 0
Bamberg-Ehrhardt 65, St. John’s 0
Batesburg-Leesville 42, Eau Claire 0
Belton-Honea Path 56, Palmetto 7
Bethune-Bowman 34, Ridgeland/Hardeeville 30
Bishop England 24, Lower Richland 7
Blackville-Hilda 15, McCormick 0
Blythewood 42, Clover 23
Boiling Springs 16, Mauldin 14
Camden 38, Greer 20
Carvers Bay 59, Allendale-Fairfax 0
Catawba Ridge 13, Fort Mill 3
Central 56, Kingstree 6
Cheraw 17, Andrews 7
Chester 50, Blacksburg 6
Clinton 56, North Central 7
Crescent 53, Union County 14
Daniel 14, Dreher 10
Dillon 49, Fox Creek 8
East Clarendon 14, Lake Marion 0
Emerald 31, Fountain Inn 35
Fairfield Central 50, Chesnee 21
Flora 49, York 14
Fort Dorchester 24, Lexington 21
Fountain Inn 35, Emerald 31
Gaffney 28, Eastside 10
Gilbert 38, Bluffton 21
Gray Collegiate Academy 63, Brookland-Cayce 7
Greenville 42, Nation Ford 35
Hampton County 56, Lake City 22
Hanahan 38, Waccamaw 21
Hartsville 45, Crestwood 8
Hillcrest 35, Riverside 14
Hilton Head 52, South Aiken 24
Hunter-Kinard-Tyler 56, Lee Central 14
James Island 48, Wando 0
Johnson 12, Calhoun County 0
Johnsonville 48, Branchville 14
Lake View 28, Hardeeville 6
Lamar 49, Calhoun Falls Charter 0
Latta 34, Baptist Hill 14
Lewisville 62, Whitmire 0
Liberty 35, Pelion 14
Lucy G. Beckham 38, North Myrtle Beach 21
Lugoff-Elgin 42, Socastee 6
Marlboro County 49, Swansea 13
Mountain View Prep 28, St. Joseph’s Catholic 27
Newberry 54, Aynor 14
North Augusta 44, Midland Valley 6
Oceanside Collegiate Academy 49, Georgetown 15
Orangeburg-Wilkinson 25, Keenan 12
Philip Simmons 57, Whale Branch 12
River Bluff 24, Cane Bay 13
Rock Hill 47, Spring Valley 0
Saluda 33, Mid-Carolina 13
Scott’s Branch 32, Hannah-Pamplico 14
Seneca 28, Lancaster 21
Silver Bluff 39, North Charleston 12
South Florence 47, Darlington 7
South Pointe 63, Beaufort 13
Southside Christian 55, Chapman 15
Spartanburg 45, JL Mann 3
Strom Thurmond 49, Chesterfield 0
Summerville 65, West Ashley 21
Timberland 46, Barnwell 8
Wagener-Salley 14, Dixie 9
Ware Shoals 38, Ridge Spring-Monetta 0
West Florence 42, Conway 7
Westside 49, Pickens 21
Westwood 41, St. James 14
Wilson 36, May River 28
Woodruff 49, West-Oak 7
Wren 42, Blue Ridge 28
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — A student at Fort Dorchester High School was detained Friday morning by a school resource officer after claiming he had a weapon, the North Charleston Police Department reported.
According to police, a staff member at the high school informed the school resource officer about the student who allegedly told another student he had a weapon. The SRO then went to the cafeteria to address the situation.
Once there, the officer found the student who matched the description given by the staff member. When the officer asked the student to remove his hands from his hoodie pocket, the student claimed he had a weapon, police said.
The resource officer then drew his firearm and told the student to lie on the ground. After doing so, the student was detained and no one was harmed.
A search of the student found no weapon, according to Dorchester School District Two.
“The district is fully cooperating with the North Charleston Police Department,” an email to parents reads. “All district safety policies and procedures were followed and will continue to be upheld throughout this process. The district has additional security and personnel to support students and staff throughout the day.”
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At this time, no charges were filed against the student. The investigation remains active, police said.
South-Carolina
Dawn Staley addresses ‘ducking’ with South Carolina basketball vs UConn back on schedule
COLUMBIA — South Carolina women’s basketball won’t play UConn this season, the first time in 11 seasons but will resume the rivalry in 2026 and 2027.
“It’s important,” Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley said Nov. 6 about adding the series back on the schedule. “We’ve been accused of ducking and all that crap. Like, come on, we played UConn for the past 11 seasons, now is time to duck? We could have ducked 7, 8, 9 years ago.”
It was announced on Nov. 5 that the Gamecocks will play the Huskies in Uncasville, Connecticut, on Nov. 24, 2026, at Mohegan Sun Arena in the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase.
A day later, it was revealed that South Carolina and UConn will play in 2027 in the Ally Tipoff at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Staley confirmed that the reason why the series contract was not renewed for this season was because the Big East shifted to 20 conference games, which made it hard to schedule. UConn already had a non-conference contract to follow through with Tennessee and Notre Dame.
The online discourse that Staley referred to came after it was announced the two teams wouldn’t play this season, just after UConn beat South Carolina twice in 2024-25. The Gamecocks lost at home in February then again in the national championship game, both by more than 20 points.
“It’s a great competition for us and for women’s basketball,” Staley added.
Before the 2025 title game, Staley was undefeated in national championship games and had previously become the first coach to beat UConn’s Geno Auriemma in a championship game.
Staley, who is in her 18th season, didn’t win against Auriemma until 2020. South Carolina won four straight from 2021-24.
What is Dawn Staley’s record vs Geno Auriemma?
Staley is 1-1 against Auriemma in national championship games and 5-10 against him overall, winning four straight from 2021-24.
Overall, the Gamecocks are 5-11 in the series, which is tied 2-2 in neutral site games. South Carolina beat UConn in Columbia in 2024, part of its undefeated season that ended with a national championship win.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
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