Women's College Basketball Game of the Week: No. 2 South Carolina vs No. 5 LSU

The weather in SEC territory has cooled down a bit, but its basketball competition is just heating up. Fifth-ranked LSU will put its undefeated season to a test on Friday when they flee an unusually snowy Baton Rouge to take on defending champion South Carolina.

This game is a feature of the three most recent national champions, with the Gamecocks taking the crown in 2022 and 2024, and the Tigers winning their first title in program history in 2023.

It’s also expected that high numbers will be put on the scoreboard as LSU is third in the nation in scoring, with 90.6 points per game. South Carolina stands at 12th, with 82.7 points per game.

The last time these two teams met was in the 2024 SEC Championship, in which the Gamecocks got a gritty 79-72 win to keep their perfect season alive. That game saw a lot of hustle and bustle that ended in six players being ejected. Tempers will be high again as these teams battle for the top dog in the SEC.

South Carolina stands strong at 18-1, with its only loss coming to undefeated and top-ranked UCLA. Since falling to the Bruins back in November the Gamecocks have been rolling through the competition. They hold a 13-game win streak, six of which came over ranked opponents and all have been double-digit victories.

The Gamecocks returned almost their whole squad from last year's 38-0 season, which means one thing, they know how to win.

The highlight of South Carolina’s experience is fifth-year senior Te-Hina Paopao. The California native is in her second season in Columbia after transferring over from Oregon.

Paopao is one of four Gamecocks to have started every game this season. Her presence is known when it comes to both scoring and sharing the ball, averaging 11.1 points and 2.8 assists per game.

Another notable name is freshman Joyce Edwards, who has fit right in with the highly experienced South Carolina squad. Edwards leads the team in points per game (12.1), and has performed well enough to be considered a finalist for both SEC and National Freshman of the Year.

The key to the Gamecocks powerful offense is their bench production. South Carolina’s bench averages 42.7 points per game, which is the most in the nation. On the other side, the Tigers see 24.8 bench points per game. If this is what the game comes down to, it should be a smooth win for the Gamecocks.

If there is one thing LSU knows how to do it's putting the ball in the basket. When it comes to points per game the Tigers are led by Flau’Jae Johnson (19.9), Aneesah Morrow (18.7) and Mikaylah Williams (16.4), any one of which could step up big on any given day.

Morrow is an all-around threat, recording 18 double-doubles in 20 games this season. Morrow’s high scoring average is largely due to her ability to crash the boards, as she leads the nation with 14.2 rebounds per game.

Johnson was only a freshman when she helped lead LSU to a national championship in 2023, and she has improved significantly since then. Johnson has scored double-figures in every game this season, most recently a 19-point performance against Florida.

Williams is the reigning SEC Freshman of the Year and has seen even more production in her sophomore season. Similar to Morrow and Johnson, Williams is almost guaranteed to have a double-digit performance. She is coming off back-to-back 20-plus point performances against Vanderbilt and Florida.

The Tigers have not beaten South Carolina since 2012, but Kim Mulkey hopes to lead her team over the hump, but she’ll have to find a way to out-coach Dawn Staley

The matchup was originally scheduled for Thursday night, but due to winter weather will now be played at 5 p.m. on Friday and can be streamed on ESPN.

Gianna Dowling is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email gmd5738@psu.edu.