# 2024–25 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team

The 2024–25 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team represents the University of South Carolina during the 2024–25 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Gamecocks, led by seventeenth-year head coach Dawn Staley, play their home games at Colonial Life Arena and compete as members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

## Previous season

The Gamecocks finished the season undefeated with a perfect 38–0, including 16–0 in SEC conference play. They won the regular season and SEC tournament championships and received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, where they defeated Iowa in the championship game to win their third national championship.

## Offseason
### Departures

South Carolina Departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Notes | Ref |
| Kamilla Cardoso | 10 | C | 6'7" | Senior | Montes Claros, Brazil | Drafted third overall by the Chicago Sky | |
| Sahnya Jah | 24 | F | 6'0" | Freshman | Alexandria, VA | Transferred to Arizona | |

### 2024 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight |
| Joyce Edwards F | Camden, SC | Camden HS | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | N/A |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 98 ||||||
| Maddy McDaniel G | Upper Marlboro, MD | Bishop McNamara HS | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | N/A |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 97 ||||||
| Adhel Tac F | Grand Prairie, TX | South Grand Prairie HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | N/A |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 96 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: ||||||

### Incoming transfers

South Carolina Incoming Transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Previous school | Ref |
| Maryam Dauda | 30 | F | 6'4" | Junior | Bentonville, AR | Arkansas | |

## Preseason
### SEC Media Poll

SEC media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | South Carolina |
| 2 | Texas |
| 3 | LSU |
| 4 | Oklahoma |
| 5 | Ole Miss |
| 6 | Alabama |
| 7 | Tennessee |
| 8 | Kentucky |
| 9 | Florida |
| 10 | Vanderbilt |
| 11 | Mississippi State |
| 12 | Auburn |
| 13 | Texas A&M |
| 14 | Georgia |
| 15 | Missouri |
| 16 | Arkansas |
Source:

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 15, 2024* 9:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 1 | at Memphis Hoops for St. Jude Tip Off Classic | W 106–63 | – | 19 – Edwards | 13 – Kitts | 4 – Tied | FedExForum (8,748) Memphis, TN |
| October 28, 2024* 7:00 p.m. | No. 1 | Clayton State | W 126–42 | – | 24 – Fulwiley | 11 – Edwards | 6 – Edwards | Colonial Life Arena (3,179) Columbia, SC |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 4, 2024* 7:30 p.m., TNT | No. 1 | vs. Michigan Hall of Fame Series | W 68–62 | 1–0 | 19 – Kitts | 14 – Kitts | 4 – Paopao | T-Mobile Arena Paradise, NV |
| November 10, 2024* 3:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 1 | vs. No. 9 NC State Ally Tipoff | W 71–57 | 2–0 | 23 – Paopao | 9 – R. Johnson | 3 – Paopao | Spectrum Center (15,424) Charlotte, NC |
| November 14, 2024* 7:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | No. 1 | Coppin State | W 92–60 | 3–0 | 23 – Fulwiley | 10 – Kitts | 5 – Paopao | Colonial Life Arena (15,550) Columbia, SC |
| November 17, 2024* 2:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | No. 1 | East Carolina | W 95–44 | 4–0 | 14 – Kitts | 7 – Kitts | 6 – McDaniel | Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC |
| November 20, 2024* 5:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 1 | at Clemson Rivalry | W 77–45 | 5–0 | 13 – Paopao | 11 – Watkins | 3 – Tied | Littlejohn Coliseum (5,008) Clemson, SC |
| November 24, 2024* 4:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 1 | at No. 5 UCLA | L 62–77 | 5–1 | 18 – Paopao | 7 – Kitts | 4 – McDaniel | Pauley Pavilion (13,659) Los Angeles, CA |
| November 28, 2024* 1:30 p.m., FOX | No. 4 | vs. No. 15 Iowa State Fort Myers Tip-Off | W 76–36 | 6–1 | 13 – Tied | 11 – Edwards | 4 – McDaniel | Suncoast Credit Union Arena (2,122) Fort Myers, FL |
| November 30, 2024* 11:00 a.m., WSN | No. 4 | vs. Purdue Fort Myers Tip-Off | W 99–51 | 7–1 | 14 – Fulwiley | 9 – Tied | 4 – McDaniel | Suncoast Credit Union Arena (1,913) Fort Myers, FL |
| December 5, 2024* 9:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 3 | No. 8 Duke ACC–SEC Challenge | W 81–70 | 8–1 | 21 – Kitts | 11 – Kitts | 4 – R. Johnson | Colonial Life Arena (15,677) Columbia, SC |
| December 8, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 3 | vs. No. 9 TCU Coast-to-Coast Challenge | W 85–52 | 9–1 | 20 – Fulwiley | 12 – Kitts | 4 – Paopao | Dickies Arena (8,004) Fort Worth, TX |
| December 15, 2024* 2:00 p.m., SECN | No. 3 | South Florida | W 78–62 | 10–1 | 15 – Edwards | 8 – Watkins | 6 – R. Johnson | Colonial Life Arena (16,501) Columbia, SC |
| December 19, 2024* 7:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | No. 2 | Charleston Southern | W 82–46 | 11–1 | 20 – Edwards | 7 – R. Johnson | 5 – McDaniel | Colonial Life Arena (15,154) Columbia, SC |
| December 29, 2024* 2:00 p.m., SECN | No. 2 | Wofford | W 93–47 | 12–1 | 13 – R. Johnson | 8 – Tied | 4 – Paopao | Colonial Life Arena (17,711) Columbia, SC |
| January 2, 2025 7:00 p.m., SECN | No. 2 | at Missouri | W 83–52 | 13–1 (1–0) | 17 – Fulwiley | 11 – Watkins | 2 – Tied | Mizzou Arena (5,154) Columbia, MO |
| January 5, 2025 2:00 p.m., SECN | No. 2 | at Mississippi State | W 95–68 | 14–1 (2–0) | 17 – Kitts | 10 – Kitts | 5 – Tied | Humphrey Coliseum (6,164) Starkville, MS |
| January 9, 2025 5:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 2 | Texas A&M | W 90–49 | 15–1 (3–0) | 12 – Feagin | 7 – Kitts | 6 – Paopao | Colonial Life Arena (15,479) Columbia, SC |
| January 12, 2025 1:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 2 | No. 5 Texas | W 67–50 | 16–1 (4–0) | 11 – Tied | 10 – R. Johnson | 3 – Tied | Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC |
| January 16, 2025 7:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | No. 2 | at No. 19 Alabama | W 76–58 | 17–1 (5–0) | 21 – Edwards | 13 – Kitts | 5 – Tied | Coleman Coliseum (3,669) Tuscaloosa, AL |
| January 19, 2025 3:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 2 | No. 13 Oklahoma We Back Pat | W 101–60 | 18–1 (6–0) | 17 – Edwards | 7 – Feagin | 8 – R. Johnson | Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC |
| January 24, 2025 5:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 2 | No. 5 LSU Rivalry | W 66–56 | 19–1 (7–0) | 14 – Edwards | 7 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC |
| January 27, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 2 | at No. 18 Tennessee | W 70–63 | 20–1 (8–0) | 18 – Edwards | 7 – Kitts | 4 – Paopao | Thompson–Boling Arena (12,033) Knoxville, TN |
| February 2, 2025 12:00 p.m., SECN | No. 2 | Auburn | W 83–66 | 21–1 (9–0) | 18 – Edwards | 9 – Kitts | 7 – R. Johnson | Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC |
| February 6, 2025 6:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | No. 2 | at Georgia | W 74–42 | 22–1 (10–0) | 13 – Fulwiley | 9 – Feagin | 5 – Feagin | Stegeman Coliseum (6,031) Athens, GA |
| February 9, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 2 | at No. 4 Texas | L 62–66 | 22–2 (10–1) | 13 – Fulwiley | 6 – Feagin | 3 – Tied | Moody Center (10,517) Austin, TX |
| February 13, 2025 7:00 p.m., SECN | No. 4 | Florida | W 101–63 | 23–2 (10–1) | 28 – Edwards | 12 – Kitts | 7 – Paopao | Colonial Life Arena (16,708) Columbia, SC |
| February 16, 2025* 1:00 p.m., ABC | No. 4 | No. 7 UConn College GameDay | L 58–87 | 23–3 | 17 – Edwards | 5 – Tied | 3 – R. Johnson | Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC |
| February 20, 2025 7:00 p.m., SECN | No. 6 | Arkansas | W 95–55 | 24–3 (12–1) | 18 – Edwards | 13 – Kitts | 6 – T. Johnson | Colonial Life Arena (16,638) Columbia, SC |
| February 23, 2025 3:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+ | No. 6 | at Vanderbilt | W 82–54 | 25–3 (13–1) | 17 – Edwards | 12 – Edwards | 4 – Paopao | Memorial Gymnasium (7,805) Nashville, TN |
| February 27, 2025 9:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 6 | at Ole Miss | W 75–59 | 26–3 (14–1) | 22 – Feagin | 13 – Kitts | 10 – Kitts | SJB Pavilion (5,064) Oxford, MS |
| March 2, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 6 | No. 15 Kentucky | W 78–66 | 27–3 (15–1) | 16 – T. Johnson | 10 – Kitts | 6 – Paopao | Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC |
| SEC Tournament |||||||||
| March 7, 2025 12:00 p.m., ESPN | (1) No. 5 | vs. (8) Vanderbilt Quarterfinals | W 84–63 | 28–3 | 25 – Kitts | 10 – Kitts | 5 – Paopao | Bon Secours Wellness Arena Greenville, SC |
| March 8, 2025 4:30 p.m., ESPN2 | (1) No. 5 | vs. (5) No. 10 Oklahoma Semifinals | W 93–75 | 29–3 | 21 – Edwards | 6 – Johnson | 5 – Tied | Bon Secours Wellness Arena Greenville, SC |
| March 9, 2025 3:00 p.m., ESPN | (1) No. 5 | vs. (2) No. 1 Texas Championship | W 64–45 | 30–3 | 15 – Kitts | 9 – Kitts | 4 – R. Johnson | Bon Secours Wellness Arena (13,532) Greenville, SC |
| NCAA Tournament |||||||||
| March 21, 2025* 4:00 p.m., ESPN | (1 B2) No. 2 | (16 B2) Tennessee Tech First round | | | | | | Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. B2=Birmingham 2. All times are in Eastern Time. Source: |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Final |
| AP | 1 (27) | 1 (31) | 1 (31) | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 (1) | 2 (1) | 2 (1) | 2 | 2 | 2 (1) | 2 (1) | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 2 (9) | 2 (8) | |
| Coaches | 1 (27) | 1 (29) | 1 (28) | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 (1) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 (2) | 2 (1) | 2 (2) | 4 | 6 | 6 | 5 (1) | 2 (8) | 2 (7) | |