The Gamecocks defeated Tennessee, 70-63, to remain undefeated in SEC play.
Ruby Whitehorn (12) and Talaysia Cooper (11) scored 10-plus points for the Lady Vols. Tennessee converted 3-of-26 three-point attempts.
Samara Spencer (6) led the Lady Vols in assists and Zee Spearman (9) was Tennessee’s leader in rebounds.
The Lady Vols lead the all time women’s basketball series against South Carolina, 51-17, dating to 1972. The Gamecocks did not defeat Tennessee from March 7, 1980-Feb. 17, 2011.
Tennessee will next play on Feb. 2 against Missouri at Food City Center. Tipoff is slated for 3 p.m. EST and can be watched on SEC Network+.
The Lady Vols lead the all time women’s basketball series against South Carolina, 51-16, dating to 1972. The Gamecocks did not defeat Tennessee from March 7, 1980-Feb. 17, 2011.
Tennessee junior guard Ruby Whitehorn enters Monday’s contest with 968 career points, 32 points away from 1,000.
Here is how to watch the Tennessee-South Carolina basketball game, including time, TV schedule and streaming information.
What channel is Tennessee vs. South Carolina game on? Time, TV schedule
TV channel: ESPN2
Start time: 7 p.m. EST
Courtney Lyle (play-by-play) and Carolyn Peck (analyst) will be on the call.
[afflinkbutton text=”Watch Tennessee vs. South Carolina live on Fubo” link=”https://www.fubo.tv/welcome/leagues/191261?irad=399332&irmp=1205322&subId1=SMG&subId2=NCAAF&subId3=2024″]
Tennessee Lady Vols 2024-25 basketball results
Oct. 31 Carson-Newman (Exhibition — W, 135-49)
Nov. 5 Samford (W, 101-53)
Nov. 7 UT Martin (W, 90-50)
Nov. 12 Middle Tennessee State (W, 89-75)
Nov. 16 Liberty (W, 109-93)
Nov. 26 Western Carolina (W, 102-50)
Dec. 4 Florida State (W, 79-77)
Dec. 7 Iowa (W, 78-68 — Brooklyn, New York)
Dec. 14 North Carolina Central (W, 139-59)
Dec. 18 at Memphis (W, 90-75)
Dec. 20 Richmond (W, 92-67 — West Palm Bech, Florida)
Dec. 21 Tulsa (W, 102-61 — West Palm Beach, Florida)
Dec. 29 Winthrop (W, 114-50)
Jan. 2 at Texas A&M (W, 91-78)
Jan. 5 Oklahoma (L, 87-86)
Jan. 9 LSU (L, 89-87)
Jan. 12 at Arkansas (W, 93-63)
Jan. 16 Mississippi State (W, 86-73)
Jan. 19 at Vanderbilt (L, 71-70)
Jan. 23 at Texas (L, 80-76)
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LSU women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey had Flau’Jae Johnson’s back after the South Carolina DJ played a song from Johnson’s late father.
Following the LSU women’s basketball loss at [autotag]South Carolina[/autotag] last week, the South Carolina DJ played a song by Flau’Jae Johnson’s late father, Camouflage. Johnson took to social media to voice her disapproval of the stunt.
On Sunday, South Carolina released a statement on the incident.
“We are addressing Friday night’s inappropriate in-game song selection and subsequent Instagram post by the DJ who is hired to work our women’s basketball games,” South Carolina wrote.
“Her actions were understandably upsetting to [autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson[/autotag] and her family and disrespectful to the LSU program and fans.”
South Carolina said the DJ, who goes by DJ T.O., was suspended for the next home game.
LSU was back in action on Sunday, beating Texas A&M. After the win, LSU head coach [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] addressed the situation.
“All I care about is Flau’Jae. All I care about is her family. What South Carolina does is South Carolina’s doings. I love that kid. I could not imagine her thoughts when it went down,” Mulkey said.
“She’s so wonderful for LSU and our game,” Mulkey added.
South Carolina said they will meet with the DJ to provide “further education” on its “expectations for the future.”
Following the 10-point loss to the Gamecocks in Columbia, SC, Tigers head coach [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] elected to focus on the season as a whole and not the matchup’s history.
“At the end of the day, this is the beginning of my fourth year at my tenure at LSU,” Mulkey said. “If I ever put beating South Carolina as a priority over nattys, they’re too good to do that right now.”
Since Mulkey arrived in Baton Rouge, LSU hasn’t beat head coach Dawn Staley’s squad. The losses included two last season, including the SEC championship.
However, against a team with 10 McDonald’s All-Americans with height at every position, the Tigers remained competitive. Aneesah Morrow’s double-double highlighted a stellar effort from LSU on the boards as it outrebounded the Gamecocks 51-39.
Mulkey said she was proud of her team’s effort and honored to coach in the game between two top-five teams, which is great for women’s basketball.
“You don’t focus on those things, you focus on the bigger picture, and the bigger picture for LSU and South Carolina is we’re doing our part in women’s basketball to bring great recognition and great games,” Mulkey said.
See Kim Mulkey’s strong response to critics of LSU’s “soft” schedule
After a loss to South Carolina, LSU women’s basketball doesn’t have a great shot at landing a No. 1 seed in the [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag]. The Tigers don’t have a ton of chances to prove they can beat top-tier teams before selection Sunday.
Part of that is thanks to LSU’s lighter nonconference schedule. [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] and LSU tend to avoid massive games in November and December.
Still, LSU managed to play NC State and Stanford in the nonconference slate this year. Despite those games, LSU still faces some criticism. LSU avoids games like the one [autotag]South Carolina[/autotag] played and lost vs. No. 1 UCLA.
Mulkey was asked about those criticisms after the loss and had a strong response.
“I’ve been doing this 40 years. It’s not the first time I’ve heard people complain about a soft schedule. I know my team better than anybody. What I’ve been doing has worked,” Mulkey said.
“I don’t get caught into what the TV people want you to do, or what the NCAA selection committee thinks you should do. If we didn’t send a message today, who do we need to play to send a message to? We were on their home court,” Mulkey said.
“We won a national championship and everybody talked about the soft nonconference schedule. That ship has sailed. Nobody needs to talk about that anymore,” Mulkey said, “Let coaches do what they need to do to get their teams ready for the playoffs and that’s my goal every time I step on that court.”
For Mulkey, what LSU does works. As she mentioned, the Tigers won a national title in 2023 and followed it up with a run to the Elite Eight in 2024.
LSU dropped another one to South Carolina. Here are five takeaways from the loss.
LSU women’s basketball will have to wait longer to snap its [autotag]South Carolina[/autotag] losing streak. The Gamecocks won their 17th straight of the series on Friday afternoon, winning a top-five battle in Columbia by a final score of 66-56.
After a competitive first half, South Carolina went on a run to open the third quarter. [autotag]Dawn Staley[/autotag] and the Gamecocks held the lead from there.
[autotag]Aneesah Morrow[/autotag] had another double-double and now has 93 in her career. She led the way for LSU with 15 points but fouled out late in the fourth quarter.
[autotag]Mikaylah Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson [/autotag] also scored in double-digits.
[autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] and LSU have won a lot since she arrived in Baton Rouge, but a win over South Carolina proves to be an evasive task. Last year, LSU got a second crack vs. the Gamecocks in the SEC Championship game. The two may be on a collision course to meet there again this year.
Here are five takeaways from LSU’s loss.
Turnovers remain an issue for LSU
LSU’s offensive identity is built on playing in transition and scoring in the paint. When defenses slow the game down and force LSU to play half-court basketball, the Tigers are prone to struggles.
We saw that on Friday, with turnovers being an issue for Mulkey’s squad. LSU protected the ball early, but South Carolina started to create havoc in the second quarter. That trend continued into the second half.
LSU finished with 17 turnovers and South Carolina had 20 points off turnovers.
LSU slows down after explosive first-quarter
LSU looked good in the first quarter. The Tigers hit two early three-pointers and were cashing in on second-chance point. Mulkey’s crew scored 22 points in the first 10 minutes, but South Carolina had success of its own, scoring 21.
That’s as good as it got for LSU and after that, the Gamecocks defense locked in. LSU scored just eight points in the second and 12 in the third. At that point, LSU started to lose poise as Carolina played with a lead and energy from their home crowd.
LSU finished just 23 of 75 from the field.
South Carolina takes advantage of free-throws
LSU was called for 17 fouls on Friday evening and South Carolina took advantage.
The Gamecocks took advantage, sinking 17 free-throws. South Carolina had a 10-point advantage in this department, with LSU going 7/9 from the line. Without that +10 margin, this game looks a lot different.
LSU faces uphill battle for No. 1 seed
Despite entering the game 20-0, LSU was not a No. 1 seed according to ESPN “bracketologist” Charlie Creme. After the loss, the Tiger’s chances at a top seed are slim.
LSU’s nonconference schedule was relatively easy and the Tigers didn’t get many resume-building chances. And even with the strength of the SEC, it will be hard for LSU’s resume to stack up with the nation’s best teams when Selection Sunday rolls around.
South Carolina still haunts LSU
In the grand scheme of things, a regular season loss doesn’t matter. South Carolina blew LSU out in 2023 and the Tigers went on to win the national title.
But this is a budding rivalry — and LSU wants to exercise this demon at some point.
LSU is competitive with South Carolina, but the Gamecocks have continually made the plays when it mattered at key points in these games. If LSU doesn’t see South Carolina in the postseason. the Tigers will get the Gamecocks in Baton Rouge next year. Maybe some home cooking can get it done for LSU.
LSU and South Carolina will meet again on Friday. What did Dawn Staley have to say about the Tigers?
The biggest game of the women’s college basketball season features a bitter rivalry between two SEC foes.
No. 5 LSU heads to No. 2 South Carolina on Friday for a 5 PM tipoff. Two heated matchups last season, including in the SEC championship, fostered competitiveness from the teams led by two of the best head coaches in the game.
Gamecocks head coach [autotag]Dawn Staley[/autotag] gave her LSU counterpart [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] and her team praise during an appearance Thursday on SEC Now but acknowledged the game is bigger than both of them.
“We both have strong personalities, both want to win and are super competitive but we also know it is not about us,” Staley said. “It’s more about the players and their ability to execute out there.”
The players know what is at stake on Friday — as evidenced by the intensity on the court every time the two meet. Staley talked about the same attitude being employed by fans of both programs.
“It’s not only a rivalry between the programs on the floor but it’s a rivalry with the fan bases because you can’t say one bad thing about LSU without LSU fans hopping on our fans,” Staley said. “You can’t say nothing about our fans that isn’t positive or else they’re jawing back and forth.”
The teams are responsible for the sport’s last two national titles (LSU in 2023 and South Carolina in 2024), bringing lots of investment into each program. Staley talked about the increase in attention to women’s basketball and how it translates to Friday’s game.
“I think it’s so very good for our game that people are very interested in this rivalry,” Staley said. “They’re going to get their money’s worth.”
LSU will face South Carolina in a top-five battle on Thursday night. Here’s a complete preview and breakdown.
Note: LSU vs. South Carolina has been postponed to Friday at 4 PM CT due to the impacts of winter storm Enzo.
It’s here. LSU vs. South Carolina.
When the women’s basketball schedule is released, this one is circled. For the last three years, this game has been the sport’s marquee matchup. It’s no different in 2025.
The contest features the last two national champions, with LSU winning it all in 2023, followed by South Carolina in 2024. It features two of the winningest and most high-profile coaches in the sport — LSU’s [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] and South Carolina’s [autotag]Dawn Staley.[/autotag]
You get the point. It’s a big deal.
Winning and losing this game can be the difference between getting a No. 1 seed or falling to the three-line.
Recently, the series has been dominated by South Carolina. Mulkey’s crew is still searching for that first breakthrough. In some ways, it’s the one thing Mulkey hasn’t done since arriving in Baton Rouge — beat South Carolina.
LSU will give it another shot on Thursday night, hoping to go on the road and get a massive win.
Here’s a preview of the top-five matchup.
When LSU has the ball
Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
With 90.6 points per game, LSU’s scoring offense ranks third in the sport. The Tigers have three scorers that can take charge on any given night. Guard [autotag]Flau’Jae Johnson[/autotag] leads the way, averaging 20 per contest.
Player
Minutes
Points
FG%
Flau’Jae Johnson
31.4
20.0
49.2%
Aneesah Morrow
32.6
18.7
54.6%
Mikaylah Williams
29.6
16.5
48.0%
As far as top scoring options go, this is Mulkey’s most balanced LSU team. Defenses can’t key in on one player. But South Carolina has the best defense LSU has seen all year. Staley’s defense ranks No. 5 nationally in eFG% allowed. The Gamecocks don’t foul much either, preventing teams from getting free points.
LSU will have to speed this game up and win in transition. LSU is good, but the Tigers aren’t consistent enough in the half-court offense to keep up with South Carolina.
The good news: LSU likes playing fast. The Tigers already have the needed identity to pull the upset.
But there will be times when South Carolina slows it down. LSU must figure a response. LSU’s assisted shot rate ranks 335th in the country — that mark needs to be improved on Thursday if LSU wants to win.
Another potential issue for LSU is scoring in the paint. That’s where Mulkey wants to do most of her work, but South Carolina ranks No. 7 in the sport with six blocks per game. The Gamecocks have a size advantage down low.
If LSU is forced to hoist more jumpers than usual, it needs consistency from Johnson and Williams.
When South Carolina has the ball
Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports
South Carolina’s offense doesn’t play as fast as LSU, but the Gamecocks rank No. 8 nationally in pts/100 possessions. Staley relies on a committee of scorers to find points.
South Carolina’s leading scorer is Joyce Edwards with 12.1 points per game, but five Gamecocks average over nine per contest. MiLaysia Fulwiley and Te-Hine Paopao both average double-digits.
South Carolina plays fundamental basketball and rarely turns it over — ranking No. 10 nationally in assists/turnovers and turnover rate.
We talked about LSU’s need to play fast and play in transition. That starts with finding a way to create turnovers on the defensive end.
It’s not a huge part of Carolina’s offense, but the Gamecocks can get it done from three with PaoPao, Tessa Johnson, and Bree Hall threatening from behind the arch. That’s bad news for an LSU defense that sometimes struggles to defend deep.
Ironically, South Carolina’s lone loss to UCLA was its best three-point performance of the year.
LSU’s recipe on this side of the ball is make South Carolina uncomfortable. Staley’s offense will find a way to score, but LSU must make them work for it.
How important is this game for LSU?
(Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
This is a big game, but at the end of the day, it’s just a regular season game. Yes, LSU wants to get over the hump and beat South Carolina, but its a long season. LSU lost to South Carolina in 2023 and still went on to win the national title.
But it’s still not just another game. This is a rivalry and it means something.
Prediction
Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
I think LSU has the tools to pull off an upset, but I’m going with the Gamecocks at home. Both teams are well-coached but South Carolina can win any type of game while LSU is at its best when its playing its style. South Carolina takes control early and makes LSU uncomfortable.
Notre Dame easily could have folded after its shocking loss to Northern Illinois in its home opener. Instead, [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] got the Irish back on track, and they haven’t lost since. That put the Irish in the College Football Playoff, and Freeman’s reward was a contract extension that locked him up for the next six years.
Now, Freeman has another reward coming his way. He has been named one of five finalists for the Dodd Award, which is given to the coach whose team best excels on the field, in the community and in the classroom. This is his first time making the final cut alongside all the other finalists, consisting of Army’s Jeff Monken, Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham, Oregon’s Dan Lanning and South Carolina’s Shane Beamer.
Brian Kelly is the lone Irish coach to win this award, doing so in 2018. Given the current environment, it’s very likely Irish fans would be much happier seeing Freeman win it.
Here’s Freeman news conference this past week in case you missed it:
Obviously, the real goal is a national championship, but this is a nice one to have at the moment.
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The Notre Dame women’s basketball team is looking stronger than ever, and people are starting to notice. After a huge victory in a much-anticipated game at USC over the weekend, the Irish received three No. 1 votes in the latest AP Top 25 Poll. They also moved up the rankings from six to third.
The top of the latest poll had some serious movement. After UCLA knocked off top-ranked South Carolina over the weekend, it became the new No. 1 team in the country. The Gamecocks slipped to fourth, one spot below the Irish, and the Trojans fell to sixth, one spot behind Texas. UConn remained at No. 2 from the previous week.
After the Irish play two games at the Cayman Islands Classic this weekend, they’ll return home to play the Longhorns in the ACC/SEC Challenge, open ACC play against Syracuse and then host the Huskies. After that slate, we’ll know a lot more about what we can expect from the Irish this season.
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