Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] On this episode of Cox Talking Gamecocks. Women's basketball is Sweet 16 bound, and the baseball team has a tough weekend. Okay, here we go.
[00:00:53] Okay. Welcome to episode 307 of Cox Talking Gamecocks. I am your host, Tim Cox, where I will keep every episode from 1801 to 2001. And how sweet it is, Gamecock Nation. It is sweet to sit here on a Monday and say, yep, sweet 16 bound, yet again, very, very exciting stuff. I'm going to get into all that in a few minutes here, but, boy, it makes the weekend oh, so sweet. And then just in general, like, the tournament, men's, women's just. I've been watching so much college basketball, my eyes are about to pop out of my head, and I just wouldn't have it in any other way. It is that time of year, and it's just the best.
[00:01:46] Sorry if my voice is a little raspy. I think my allergies heard that it was the first day of spring and decided to act up immediately. So that's just. That's just how it goes, I guess. But nonetheless, not going to let a little raspy voice, little allergies stop me from talking Gamecock sports. Let's jump into it here. Got a lot to cover here, but really excited to get to the women's basketball team as soon as possible here. But first, let's do a little bit of a weekend recap. Starting Friday, we had softball in action, taking on Texas Tech winning 5 to 2. It's awesome to see them rolling. LSU men's tennis. Excuse me. Men's tennis took on LSU 4 to 2 and got that W.
[00:02:42] Women's tennis took on Oklahoma and they lost four to two.
[00:02:49] And then on Saturday here, softball took on Texas Tech again and got the W1 to nothing. Then they were back in action on Sunday and dropped the opportunity for a sweep 6 to 5 against Texas Tech. But still, nice series win there for the ladies. It was a little tricky in those first two weekends of SEC play. Kind of lost some of that momentum. Great to see them pick it back up. Granted, Texas Tech is not in the SEC, but that's still a Power 4 program there. So that was a big win there. Men's tennis on Sunday took the L to Mississippi State 4 3. Women's tennis was in action Sunday. They beat Arkansas 4 nothing.
[00:03:39] And then women's. That's actually it. That's it for the weekend recap there. Shout out to all the student athletes, as always, and shout out to the softball team. They're going to Keep battling. They're going to keep having their moments there. It seems like Coach Chastain again is getting that thing going there. So hopefully when they take on LSU this upcoming weekend, we can see some of that momentum carry into the SEC play. But very, very good weekend there. But none other, no weekend action was better than what we saw from the women's basketball team. So, so exciting to see the women in the Big Dance once again.
[00:04:29] Not that that was ever in question, but getting that number one seed, albeit, you know, this Birmingham Region two. But you're at home. You know, you have those first two rounds in Colombia, and yes, there's mixed crowds. People are in town visiting their team, trying to catch some of the the action and whatnot. But the fams are in force. They're just simply are. And that makes a difference. And that's the reward that you get for having such a good regular season there. And I do got to believe that they made a difference here. So let's go game by game, and then we'll talk about where things are. At game one, the ladies took on Tennessee Tech. And you know, the word clinic gets thrown out around from time to time. This was an absolute clinic. The ladies got the opening round W108 to. To 48. Just really having their way with it from. From the opening tip. And, you know, that's. I think that's what you should expect, you know, like again, essentially a home game, the number one seed versus the 16.
[00:05:50] There's going to be a talent gap. There's going to be maybe a little bit of shock and awe in this game here. So it's exactly what you're supposed to do. But, boy, that's a big score.
[00:06:03] Winning by 60 points, that is no joke there. Opening quarter just dominated Carolina, putting up 33 and 27 in the second. So by halftime, the writing was on the wall. This game was over. It allowed for Don to empty the bench in this one, which is so great, and our depth is our strength. But whenever you can play those players who are towards the end of your bench in an NCAA tournament setting, it means a lot because they can sort of get those nerves out of their system. You get everyone involved, everyone's engaged, moving forward, and it's just fantastic. Some player highlights here. Joyce Edwards went for 22 points. Welcome to the NCAA tournament. You had Malaysia Folt Wylie going for 15. Tournament. Tessa in action with 11 points and Chloe Kitts with 10 points. So that was the opening round.
[00:07:04] It was very exciting to see that there were some good games. Across this tournament in the opening round, including that of our second round opponent, which was Indiana.
[00:07:18] So Sunday afternoon, Carolina takes on Indiana, a team that had given us fits in this tournament last year. And I think you had both coaches reminding their team of that. And it's very different messages. You know, South Carolina and Dawn, it was probably like, look, yes, we've had a lot of success in this tournament, and we've had a lot of success this year. It doesn't mean anything because this team in Indiana pushed us last year, and they have a very talented and capable roster themselves. So come out here, do what we do, and dominate. Whereas Indiana, the message was probably like, look, you went toe to toe with this team last year when they went undefeated and won the national championship.
[00:08:12] This year, they're still very, very good, but just know that you can do this, so go out there and don't give an inch.
[00:08:21] And I think that that's what you saw in that first half. I mean, we've seen some tough opening quarters from South Carolina this year. We've seen some sluggish periods of play, and that's what we saw in that first half there. I mean, especially in that first quarter, Carolina was behind the 8 ball 12 to 9, and things just didn't seem.
[00:08:48] Things seemed a little off rhythm, if you will. You know, Indiana was just playing at their pace. South Carolina couldn't really get it going, especially early in that first quarter. And so South Carolina was behind the eight ball in this with a slight, you know, deficit going into that second half. And so naturally, your mind goes to places of, oh, my gosh, like, this is March Madness. This is, you know, is this going to be a situation here?
[00:09:23] But then I think what you saw in that third quarter and in that fourth quarter is championship DNA from the Gamecocks. And I think it's coaching. I think Dawn Staley, with her championship pedigree, knowing her team, knowing what this tournament is, basically told the group to settle down, rely on what we do well. We got to go play good defense, we got to get points in transition, and we got to let our guards do what they can do.
[00:09:56] And then on top of it, we need to go lean on some of these veterans and understand that they might have had a bad first half, but we need to look at them to turn on the jets and have a good second half and play what they can. Talking about someone like maybe Chloe Kitts, Sanai Fagan, Tahina, Powpow. Right? So that's what you saw. That's exactly what you Saw in the third quarter. South Carolina's best players were making plays early in that second half, which allowed for a very successful third quarter, and one where South Carolina pulled ahead, was able to build a little bit of a lead, and then fend things off in the fourth. Kind of cooled off a little bit, but you relied on some good defense and timely buckets to close this game out.
[00:10:51] So it was by no stretch of the imagination, easy South Carolina getting the win, and then it ends up, on paper, a little more comfortable, 64 to 53. But Indiana was fighting the entire way. And again, South Carolina having to come back in this game.
[00:11:10] But I think that it's a testament, and you're seeing it in real time.
[00:11:19] Like, that's the women's game, right? Like, that's what our team can do.
[00:11:25] Throughout this regular season in SEC play, like, there have been some tough stretches.
[00:11:32] It hasn't always worked out, but when the team settles in and then especially later in games, the depth starts to flex, players start to settle in maybe a little bit more, and you get on a run where you had a couple of big buckets, whether it's Breezy, Tessa Tahina getting a big three, you get a stop, and then you get a score, and then the blink of an eye. South Carolina scored 5, 7, 10 points and has either pulled away or has now taken the lead, whatever it may be. And that's where this team is so dangerous.
[00:12:15] Where in this game. Yeah, the first half did not go our way, but we hung around, kept it within distance, right? Kept it within reach. And then. And then Dawn Staley and her staff were able to right the ship. You're able to get your players some good looks.
[00:12:33] And then, you know, we talk about a player like Chloe Kitts, she just didn't look like herself in that first half, you know, like her second half. That's where all of her production came from.
[00:12:49] So you're probably sitting there at the half like, okay, clearly, like, Chloe is gonna get going, and when she does, everything else should fall into place. We're gonna need some big shots from our veterans, but we're gonna lean on this entire roster. I mean, and that's what you saw, like, player highlights. You know, you have Chloe, she went for 10 and 11, Saniya went for 10, Bri hall went for 11 points.
[00:13:17] But then you go down, and it's not this crazy. Like I talked about the last game, like, no one went for 20. No one went for 15.
[00:13:25] You know, Joyce Edwards went for five, Malaysia went for three.
[00:13:31] So it was really a team effort where you looked up and down this roster and everyone's just contributing and everyone's contributing just enough and it was timely. Tessa Johnson with nine points.
[00:13:44] So that's, I think the championship DNA where this team was able to shake off a bad first half, like the entire first half was just not exactly what you wanted to do and especially that first quarter.
[00:14:02] And you're going up against a team in Indiana that, you know, they had a fine season themselves, they had a good first game in the tournament, they have some good players, you're able to shake it off and you're able to get the W and you got to survive in advance, you know, I mean, that's the tournament. You know, you can have a bad first half and things can go really sideways. Not every game is going to be pretty. I mean, even when South Carolina has made final fours and has won national championships, there's been hard fought games. You're not playing these teams regularly. There's not this ton of tape against them. But this is where this game, I think you saw a little bit of that home court advantage happen.
[00:14:55] I gotta believe that the fans made a difference in this one. Absolutely.
[00:15:01] So huge win here. The women yet again are in the sweet 16. It just feels like our second home at this point. It's absolutely great. But look, it's just like this whole season teaching moments, continuous development, you know, like need to look at how can we maybe shake things up a little bit, you know, like how can we keep maximizing getting touches for Sinai and Khloe, you know, how do we let our guards settle in and get in a rhythm early and often.
[00:15:36] So all good things, all very exciting. South Carolina in the next round will take on the winner of Alabama and Maryland. So you're either looking at continuation of the SEC or Maryland, a team that South Carolina has played in recent memory. So going to be very exciting to see how that goes. That game will be happening Friday.
[00:15:59] The Sweet 16 matchup Friday afternoon. Time is still somewhat TBD and then we're going to see, you know, just looking ahead, teams left in the bracket, Duke waiting to see the winner of North Carolina and Virginia. So you have a lot of top seeds still out there in our quadrant. So hopefully Carolina keeps rolling and we get to enjoy this that much longer. But we'll see, we'll talk about it before the next episode. But Friday afternoon, get ready because it's about to be sweet.
[00:16:37] But talking about things that are not so sweet in these last few minutes here, talking the baseball team and it was not a great weekend for the Yardcocks out in Arkansas. The guys actually were swept pretty convincingly, actually. Game one, the guys got run ruled 12 to 2.
[00:16:59] Game two, the guys lost 12 to 3. And then Sunday, it was a little bit of battling.
[00:17:06] The guys were hanging in there, but ultimately gave up a ton of runs in the eighth inning to lose 11 to 4. So, you know, this one is really tough. And it makes that last Sunday, two Sundays ago, at this point, that loss that slipped through our fingers, it makes it sting that much more.
[00:17:30] And it's funny, I was thinking about it, it almost feels like the stuff I'm going to say, like, it almost feels like the men's basketball team, where, you know, the SEC is just so good. Not that that's news to anybody in baseball, but the SEC is so good. And when you look at the South Carolina roster, there's a few players that you think can carry you and who can do some good things.
[00:17:59] And we've seen flashes from some other guys, too. You know, got like a guy like Boholins, right.
[00:18:07] But when some of your leaders and veterans aren't able to produce offensively, it seems to be a pretty bad situation for South Carolina.
[00:18:18] And the pitching, you know, Sunday you had. You had Jarvis Evans on. On the bump, a really weird situation with Dylan sq. I don't know if y'all saw this story. Apparently he was in the bullpen before the game and he got hit with a baseball in his head. Like someone hit the baseball, like home run. And he's in the concussion protocol. So if that doesn't say something about this season, I don't know what does. But you had Jarvis Evans Sunday. Who, who, who did? Okay, ultimately, the. The bullpen collapsed sort of in the end there, but starting pitching was not really able to provide anything. I mean, Saturday you have eight runs in the first by Arkansas, Jake McCoy not even getting out of the first inning, taking the loss, you know, and then in game one, third inning, you're giving up four runs, yet he had given up one before that. Brandon Stone takes the loss, going three innings. So starting pitching was a little bit of a concern going into this. You thought maybe there was some depth there that could carry you. Some guys can maybe take the next step.
[00:19:33] It's been a tough go for it in SEC play for Paul Manieri and this staff to find that answer. I don't know what that answer is. You gotta hope SQ can get healthy.
[00:19:48] I don't know. But the starting pitching seems to be a big issue. Right now, walks are an issue. Giving up the big hits issue.
[00:20:00] And look, this was, you know, you're on the road against Arkansas, but, you know, you still got to play clean. Like, it's even that much more. You know, you can't have errors. You can't give guys easy bases.
[00:20:13] So the other side of this is it's still early.
[00:20:19] If a couple of things can get corrected here, if a couple of guys can have some more timely hitting, you could hang in there. But it's a quick, quick start, bad start, rather, in the SEC for South Carolina, and you got to find answers quick. Otherwise, this could get ugly.
[00:20:42] So up next for South Carolina, the guys are playing in the Queen City, my new neck of the woods, taking on UNC Tuesday night in Charlotte. So this is no easy task either. A tough Power 4 midweek game. You have to find a way to win this if you can win this game. And then you're looking ahead at home against Tennessee. If you can find a way to split that series and go three one this week, that could be a serious momentum getter. But one thing at a time here. The guys have to beat UNC on Tuesday to stop this skid, get some momentum. The crow to the game is just have that starter get through these first few innings rather unscathed. The starter cannot give up more than three runs or so. You know, get through four or five innings, have the bullpen carry the rest of the way. Timely hitting, no errors. That's a thousand crows to the game there. Just play good baseball and find the win. But with that, y'all, that wraps up this episode. Please follow me on social media, Twitter or X is Cox gamecox. Instagram is just the name of the show. Cox Talking Gamecocks. And please, like, subscribe and review the podcast. I appreciate all y'all. Go Cox.
