Tag: South Carolina Gamecocks

Deebo Samuel reacts to South Carolina winning national championship over Iowa

After the South Carolina completed the perfect season with a win over Caitlin Clark and Iowa, a member of the 49ers took to Twitter to celebrate his alma mater’s national championship.

On Sunday, the South Carolina Gamecocks completed the perfect season with a win over Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the women’s college basketball national championship.

Following their historic win, South Carolina alum and San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel took to Twitter to celebrate the national championship.

Along with sharing gifs and praise for South Carolina coach Dawn Staley, Samuel also sent a message to his teammate and former Iowa tight end George Kittle.

Via @19problemz on Twitter:

Before the game, Samuel revealed he had a bet with Kittle. According to Samuel, the loser will have to a wear a jersey of the winning team to a game next season, meaning Kittle will have to wear a South Carolina jersey to game.

Behind double-figure scoring numbers from four different players, including Kamila Cardoso and freshman Tessa Johnson, the Gamecocks were able to hold off Caitlin Clark on the way to an 87-75 win in the national championship on Sunday afternoon.

With a win in the national championship, South Carolina completed the perfect season at 38-0.

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Iowa-South Carolina sets viewership record that peaked at 24M viewers

They just keep raising the bar.

Women’s college basketball just keeps re-writing history in terms of people watching the games this postseason. Last year’s title game drew over 12 million viewers. A lot of fans tuned in to watch Kim Mulkey win yet another championship and the first with the LSU Tigers.

LSU was able to fend off the Iowa Hawkeyes and Caitlin Clark, who became a cultural phenomenon at a time when the women’s game was treated the same as the men’s. You could argue that Clark helped elevate the women’s game beyond the men’s over the last two tournaments. On Sunday afternoon, they did it again with another record-breaking game.

According to Front Office Sports, the game averaged 18.7 million viewers and peaked at 24 million.

The game will miss players like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Cameron Brink, Kamilla Cardoso, Rickea Jackson, and Aaliyah Edwards who helped make the past few seasons so electric. However, the future is also bright with the superstars to come. Let’s also not forget that UConn star Paige Bueckers has already announced that she will return for at least one more season.

Final coaches poll released after South Carolina survived March Madness

Final women’s coaches poll revealed with South Carolina and Iowa in the top 2 spots.

The NCAA women’s basketball has come to an end with several matchups setting the record as the most-watched game only to be outdone by the next one. Those games featured Iowa Hawkeyes’ star Caitlin Clark.

One of the most polarizing players was a vital reason why. After the national championship game ended, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley made sure to pay her respects to Clark.

“I want to personally thank Caitlin Clark for lifting up our sport,” the coach said. “She carried a heavy load for our sport and it just is not gonna stop here on the collegiate tour. But when she is the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft, she’s gonna lift that league up as well. So Caitlin Clark if you’re out there, you are one of the GOATs of our game. We appreciate you.”

After a historic season, we have the final coaches poll for women’s basketball.

Final USA TODAY Sports women’s coaches poll

Rank Team Record Points Change
1 South Carolina 38-0 750 (30) –
2 Iowa 34-5 720 –
3 UConn 33-6 678 +4
4 North Carolina State 31-7 645 +7
5 Texas 33-5 593 -1
6 USC 29-6 590 -3
7 LSU 31-6 572 -1
8 Stanford 30-6 518 -3
9 UCLA 27-7 513 -1
10 Oregon State 27-8 470 +5
11 Notre Dame 28-7 452 -1
12 Indiana 26-6 385 +2
13 Gonzaga 32-4 352 –
14 Ohio State 26-6 343 -5
15 Baylor 26-8 310 +3
16 Colorado 24-10 295 +1
17 Virginia Tech 25-8 262 -5
18 Kansas State 26-8 210 -2
19 Creighton 26-6 170 +1
20 Oklahoma 23-10 166 +1
21 Duke 22-12 149 –
22 Utah 23-11 121 –
23 Syracuse 24-8 115 –
24 UNLV 30-3 100 -5
25 West Virginia 25-8 75 +1

Schools Dropped Out

No. 24 Princeton; No. 25 Louisville

Others Receiving Votes

Iowa State 52; Louisville 29; Tennessee 27; Middle Tennessee 25; Nebraska 17; Princeton 15; Ole Miss 15; Fairfield 5; Richmond 3; Alabama 3; North Carolina 2; South Dakota State 1; Kansas 1; Jackson State 1

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Angel Reese congratulates South Carolina on national title win

The Gamecocks won their second national title in three years on Sunday.

The [autotag]South Carolina Gamecocks[/autotag] Women’s basketball team took on [autotag]Caitlin Clark[/autotag] and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the National Championship and the Gamecocks came out on top 87-75.

The magical run of Clark and the Hawkeyes ended after beating the Tigers to advance to the Final Four. Meanwhile, South Carolina finished the season 38-0. The Indiana Hoosiers were the only team to keep the game close against the Gamecocks during the tournament. Indiana lost 79-75 in the Sweet 16 and gave Carolina a scare. Other than that, the Gamecocks won every game by double digits.

If it were not for Iowa beating Carolina last season, the Gamecocks would likely have gone 38-0 two years in a row. After the win this year, LSU star player [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag] sent out a tweet congratulating [autotag]Dawn Staley[/autotag] and the Gamecocks on their terrific achievement.

What can be said about Staley that has not already been said? She has gone on a Geno Auriemma-esk run in the past two seasons and she is showing no signs of slowing down.

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LSU’s Angel Reese takes a shot at officiating during women’s national championship

Angel Reese didn’t seem too happy with some calls in the first half of Sunday’s game between South Carolina and Iowa.

South Carolina capped off its perfect 38-0 season on Sunday afternoon with an 87-75 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes.

While the Gamecocks ultimately pulled away to a decisive win, it was tight for much of the game, and they even found themselves in an early hole. The officiating in the early minutes of the game seemed to favor Iowa, and for LSU star [autotag]Angel Reese[/autotag], it was a familiar sight.

Reese seemed to take a shot at the refs during the first half in a post on social media.

“I see how this game is about to go smh,” she said in the post.

She later said she had typed up several posts but ultimately deleted them.

Whether the officiating favored the Hawkeyes in the first half, South Carolina ultimately prevailed as coach Dawn Staley won her third national championship and the second in the last three years.

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March Madness: Championship Game strategy for the $2.5K USA TODAY’s Women’s NCAA Tournament Survivor Pool

Win $2.5K in the Women’s NCAA Tournament Survivor Pool: National Championship Game pick and prediction.

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The 2024 Women’s NCAA Tournament wraps up Sunday at Cleveland’s Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Only 53 entries in USA TODAY’s Women’s NCAA Tournament Survivor Pool contest remain out of the 3,754 who signed up.

The tournament favorite South Carolina Gamecocks (37-0) meet the Iowa Hawkeyes (34-4) for all the marbles in the Women’s NCAA Tournament Championship Game Sunday at 3 p.m. ET (ABC/ESPN).

On Friday, No. 1 overall seed South Carolina took care of NC State 78-59 with C Kamilla Cardoso going for 22 points with 11 rebounds and 2 blocked shots. The superstar center was a very efficient 10-for-12 from the field, and she was one of three South Carolina players to go for double-digit points.

Gamecocks G Raven Johnson added 13 points, with most of her damage coming on 3 triples, while G Te-Hina Paopao was good for 10 points, 6 assists and a steal, while knocking down a pair of 3-pointers.

South Carolina shot 50.0% (30-for-60) from the field, including 42.1% (8-for-19) from behind the 3-point line. It managed to get to the free-throw line just 4 times, but it converted 4 shots.

Iowa advanced to the title game for the 2nd consecutive season, easing by UConn 71-69. With 10 seconds to go, the Huskies trailed 70-69 and had the ball, but a controversial offensive foul on F Aaliyah Edwards against G Gabbie Marshall gave the Hawkeyes the ball back with 3.9 seconds to go. G Caitlin Clark was fouled with 3.5 seconds left, hit the 1st free throw and missed the 2nd, but G Sydney Affolter came down with the offensive board and Iowa hung on for the 2-point win.

The Hawkeyes were just 45.8% (27-for-59) from the floor, while going 28.0% (7-for-25) from behind the 3-point line and 71.4% (10-for-14) from the charity stripe. Clark didn’t have her best game but finished with 21 points on 7-of-18 shooting, while going 3-for-11 from downtown. F Hannah Stuelke actually led the Hawkeyes with a game-high 23 points on an efficient 9-of-12 shooting performance.

South Carolina is No. 1 and Iowa is No. 2 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.

As for the USA TODAY’s Women’s NCAA Tournament Survivor Pool contest, I had 3 correct picks in the opening round for 12 points but stumbled in the 2nd round and was eliminated when 4th-seeded Kansas State lost to 5th-seeded Colorado. Another 4-seed, Indiana, won for me that round, but the KSU pick did me in.

Despite the loss, I still offered picks in an attempt to help you in your chase for the $2.5K 1st-place prize. Only having to make 1 pick the remaining rounds, rebounded with LSU (3 points) in the Sweet 16 upsetting UCLA in a 78-69 thriller. In the Elite 8, I won with UConn (3 points) against USC. And I won with Iowa (1 point) in the Friday’s semifinal.

As an employee, I wasn’t eligible to win this contest, but there was no rule against me helping you.

A rules reminder: Remaining entries are required to pick the National Championship Game winner — if you still have an eligible team to select.

Points are earned equal to your winning teams’ seeds.

Here is my strategy of which team to pick for Sunday’s championship.

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National Championship Game pick

PICK: SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS

I intentionally held off from selecting South Carolina in the earlier rounds in the event it managed to avoid the upset and get to the title game. The strategy worked — excluding my darn K-State pick in the 2nd round.

After selecting Iowa in the Final Four, I didn’t have any other choice for the this round anyway.

Clark and the Hawkeyes are back in the National Championship Game for the 2nd consecutive season.

Unfortunately for them, coach Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks are on a mission, will finish 38-0 and grab the title as Iowa will once again be the bridesmaid — the Hawkeyes lost to LSU in last year’s title game.

Stream select live college basketball games and full replays: Get ESPN+

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TV ratings experts predict Iowa vs. South Carolina title game could outdraw men’s

There is no denying the Iowa Hawkeyes are one of sports’ biggest draws. Experts believe their title game could outdraw the men’s ratings.

There may not be a hotter ticket in sports this weekend than the Iowa Hawkeyes. They punched their ticket to their second National Championship in a row and are looking to upset the undefeated No. 1 seed South Carolina Gamecocks.

Iowa’s exciting victory over the UConn Huskies in the Final Four has the Hawkeyes getting a second chance at etching their name into women’s college basketball history forever. When tipoff comes Sunday, not only will the stadium be filled, but it may set untouchable records for the ratings and potentially outdraw the men’s title game as some TV experts believe.

Front Office Sports spoke to TV ratings expert Douglas Pucci and he believes that Iowa and South Carolina both advancing has set up a dream scenario views as it has the biggest star in Caitlin Clark trying to get the elusive title going up against the undefeated machine of South Carolina.

If Clark advances, a dream title game matchup between Iowa and unbeaten South Carolina would pull more than 16 million viewers, Pucci predicts, perhaps even outdrawing the men’s championship. – Michael McCarthy, Front Office Sports

If this prediction holds true, it would shatter every record for women’s basketball and likely set this number at an untouchable place. It would also be higher ratings than what the men’s game last year saw, which was 14.69 million viewers.

The women’s title game also the advantage of airing at a much more fan-friendly time on Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. CT while the men’s is on a Monday night at 8:20 p.m. CT.

Whichever way you cut it, Iowa and South Carolina are poised to be playing in front of millions come Sunday. This game should set records for viewership and continuing catapulting the women’s game into a new stratosphere of fandom, viewership, and hype.

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Raven Johnson explained how Dawn Staley keeps South Carolina calm with the smoothest motto

“We have THE Dawn Staley…how can you sweat?”

South Carolina has won an impressive 35 games in a row, but their record hasn’t come without some close calls, including Friday’s thriller with Indiana. Sophomore guard Raven Johnson says the team doesn’t panic in those high-pressure situations because of two words: Dawn Staley.

We’ve been saying it all season long, but Dawn Staley is putting on a masterclass in coaching. After losing all five starters from last year’s team to the WNBA, many analysts didn’t think South Carolina would look as dominant as they have. But, despite the doubt, the Gamecocks have churned out an undefeated record — the only team to do so in college basketball. They have won 35 games and recently survived a nail-biter against Indiana that required a clutch 3-point bucket from Raven Johnson to propel South Carolina to the Elite 8.

Bree Hall, Johnson’s teammate and fellow 3-point specialist, was asked why the team continues to succeed in such high-stakes situations. Hall answered the question very transparently, and Johnson quickly followed up, adding a Dawn Staley-themed one-liner for the ages. Per Amanda Poole of WACH FOX 57, here’s what Johnson said that had the whole room, including Staley, giggling:

“We have THE Dawn Staley. I mean, when you have a coach like that, how can you sweat? If she don’t sweat, we don’t sweat.”

South Carolina broke out the Macarena (in the 3rd quarter!) before its jaw-clenching win over Indiana

And, now a quick flashback to the 90s. Take it away, Gamecocks!

Indiana and South Carolina’s Sweet 16 matchup was so stressful that hoops fans everywhere probably need a moment to breathe. It went down to the wire. Nevertheless, before the chaos of the second half started, the Gamecocks broke out the Macarena.

You might have pulled out some hair watching Indiana and South Carolina. South Carolina went on a 15-4 run to end the first half, but poor shooting let Indiana right back in. The Hoosiers chipped away at a 21-point lead, getting it down to two points before Kamilla Cardoso added to her 22-point night with a timely bucket. Moments later, Raven Johnson hit a filthy 3-pointer that boosted the lead just out of reach, and Ashlyn Watkins finished it off with a gutsy block.

If reading all of that seems like a lot, IT WAS. But fans noticed a moment, lost in the game, right before the third quarter started. South Carolina broke out the Macarena. Seriously.

Dawn Staley rocked a fresh Louis Vuitton zip-up while coaching in the Sweet 16

Dawn Staley never misses.

Dawn Staley is always going to rock the freshest of fits, including a Louis Vuitton jacket that fans discovered costs a cool three thousand dollars.

One thing Dawn Staleys will do is dress for the occasion. She always looks really comfy, and her outfits appear to be handpicked by the fashion gods. Friday’s Sweet 16 matchup with Indiana was no different. Staley appeared courtside rocking several different shades of blue and an awesome patterned jacket.

Hoops fans quickly learned about the outfit thanks to a terrific tweet by The Washington Post’s Kareem Copeland. Moments later, one fan had already combed the internet to find the jacket—a Louis Vuitton hybrid leather and cotton “Damier Blouson” worth $3,150. WHEW.