No. 1/1 South Carolina heads back out on the road this week, traveling to Auburn for an 8 p.m. ET tipoff on Thu., Feb. 1.
The Auburn Series
The Gamecocks are 29-21 all-time against Auburn, including a 17-3 mark in the Dawn Staley era (beginning 2008-09). South Carolina has won 14 straight in the series.
The teams played twice last season with South Carolina winning by an average of 43.5 points. In the 83-48 win at Auburn (Feb. 9, 2023), the Gamecock defense held the Tigers to just seven points in the opening quarter and never looked back.
By the Numbers
7.2 – The Gamecocks’ 7.2 made 3s per game are the most of the Staley era and the most since the 2003-04 team averaged 7.2.
+11.1 – South Carolina has out-scored its opponents in the second quarter by an average of 11.1 points, helping it trail at the half just twice this season.
+26.6 – The Gamecocks’ +26.6 scoring margin in SEC play leads the league and includes just one game decided by single digits (at #9/9 LSU).
SEC Sayings
South Carolina has been the benchmark in the SEC over the last decade, amassing seven regular-season titles since 2013-14 and finishing no lower than second in that time. Since that season, the Gamecocks have a 152-15 record (.910) in league action.
The Gamecocks have also had a lock on the SEC Tournament, winning seven titles since claiming their first in 2015. They became the first program to win four consecutive tournaments, claiming the crowns 2015-18.
In the last decade, three Gamecocks have been named SEC Player of the Year a combined seven times, two have collected six SEC Defensive Player of the Year honors, two have been the league’s Sixth-Woman of the Year, three have been the league Freshman of the Year, one has been the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and Staley has been the Coach of the Year six times.
Both the coaches and media picked South Carolina to finish second behind LSU this season.
Bench Mob
The quality of South Carolina’s depth ranks among the best in the nation. The Gamecocks’ six-woman bench is fourth in the nation with an SEC-best 34.1 points per game. The South Carolina bench has out-scored its opponents’ starters six times this season, and the Gamecocks’ top scorer in a game has been off the bench five times.
Three for All
Long the Achilles heel for the Gamecocks, outside shooting has become a steady weapon for this season’s team. The Gamecocks lead the nation in accuracy, hitting 42.5…