Win over LSU a reminder that women’s college basketball runs through South Carolina

Dawn Staley strolled around the baseline at Colonial Life Arena, hands outstretched and high-fives washing over her.

With each step, Staley was swarmed by many of the 18,000 members of Sunday’s sellout crowd. They snapped pictures, slapped hands and embraced. Nine of her former South Carolina players gathered around her at center court for a photo of their own. One fan perched just behind the Gamecocks’ bench bestowed Staley, a North Philadelphia native and outspoken Eagles fan, a plastic chain with a massive Eagles logo affixed to it.

Staley says she never dreamed of these moments when she took the job at South Carolina 15 years ago. But Sunday’s 88-64 domination of No. 3 LSU is simply the latest reminder of the shifting paradigms surrounding the program.

Take a hard look: Right now, the center of the women’s college basketball universe is Columbia, South Carolina.

“When I took the job here, I just wanted to win,” Staley said. “I wanted to put a product on the floor that really people can be proud of. And I didn’t see the crowd. I didn’t say, ‘Let’s fill Colonial Life Arena.’ They did that. Our fams did it.“

Women’s college basketball has its historical bluebloods — Tennessee, Connecticut and Stanford, to name a few. But Sunday wasn’t about those prolific programs. The sport’s conscious shifted away from those fabled teams to a matchup between an upstart and the sport’s newly dominant squad.

LSU had exploded onto the national scene under three-time national title winning coach Kim Mulkey after toiling in mediocrity for much of the last decade. Transfer forward Angel Reese has drawn deserved attention as a National Player of the Year candidate for her play this winter. The Tigers, also unblemished heading into the weekend, had become increasingly considered in national title discussions.

But being the best entails knocking off the sport’s elite. And that team still resides in the Midlands of the Palmetto State.

“I don’t see anybody beating them,” Mulkey conceded postgame. “It’s South Carolina and then everybody else.”

Saturday’s tussle between No. 1 South Carolina and No. 3 LSU lived up to its billing. Fans packed Colonial Life Arena to the brim. The atmosphere boiled as the Tigers clawed back from an early 18-2 deficit. The decibels cranked up as the Gamecocks pulled away late.

Coaxed on by the raucous crowd, South Carolina clamped down on Reese, who struggled to 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting. Boston and front-court mate Kamilla Cardoso nary gave Reese the breathing room she so desperately craves in the way she typically sneaks around and through opposing post players.

Fighting desperately deep in the post as she tried to keep LSU within striking distance late in the third quarter, Reese began backing down Boston. Flipping toward the basket, Reese reached skyward with the ball, only to have it swatted back into her chest and tied up by Boston to grant the Gamecocks possession.

“In scout, coaches talked about how she’s relentless on the boards,” Boston said. “We knew that, and so just putting a body on her, making sure that even if we don’t get it, as long as she doesn’t get it, it’s OK.”

The game got away from Mulkey and her squad. Such is life when facing a South Carolina team that’s piled up five-star recruits so prolifically that Nick Saban might blush. One haymaker after another, the Gamecocks and the electric crowd that roared at their behest slugged the home squad past those pesky Tigers.

Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised. South Carolina has won 19 consecutive games against Associated Press Top 25 opponents. The Gamecocks, too, are riding a 39-game win-streak inside the friendly confines of Colonial Life Arena. Yet, days like Sunday continue to feel like program-altering moments.

Tailgaters lined the parking lots in and around the stadium before noon. Those at the front of the lines to get into the building at 12:30 p.m. estimated they’d been there for three hours. The get-in rate for a ticket minutes before tipoff was still running well over $200 on the secondary market.

“Maybe somebody is out there flipping channels and they’d never seen a women’s game before and they watched (Sunday’s game) for five minutes,” Mulkey said. “That’s a good thing. That’s a positive thing. It’s great for women’s basketball and especially good for the SEC.”

Nothing on Sunday is legacy-defining for a coach in Staley whose resume is as sparkling as they come. She’s one of just four active coaches with multiple national titles. Her squads have won the Southeastern Conference a dozen times between regular season and the league tournament championships.

Still, the afternoon was further proof to those who would insinuate otherwise: The capital of women’s college basketball is no longer in central Connecticut or eastern Tennessee.

Women’s college basketball in 2023 still runs through Columbia, South Carolina.