South Carolina shows TCU how much farther its women’s program needs to climb in blowout loss | Opinion
TCU women’s basketball showdown with defending champion South Carolina was always going to be a litmus test of just how far the Horned Frogs’ program has climbed under second-year head coach Mark Campbell.
There’s no doubt the No. 9 Horned Frogs have elevated themselves with some of the best teams in the country with ranked wins over Notre Dame and North Carolina State. But Sunday’s 85-52 defeat to coach Dawn Staley and No. 3 South Carolina was a somber reminder that there are still levels to go.
“That was a tough game, but this game served its purpose,” Campbell said. “You schedule South Carolina in order to test yourself and learn where you’re at at this point of the season against the best program in college basketball.”
The top-10 showdown was competitive early with the two teams tied at 9 in the first quarter. The Horned Frogs had a balanced approach offensively with four different players scoring, but the game turned quickly from that point.
The defending champions responded with a 7-0 burst that helped South Carolina take a 20-14 lead after the first quarter. That would be the closest TCU got to the Gamecocks the rest of the way as South Carolina opened the second quarter with a 10-0 surge that broke the game open.
TCU is a talented basketball team led by Hailey Van Lith, who scored 21 points, and Sedona Prince, the experienced center who is among the best in the country. Even with their additions to the program, the gap in talent was still clear as day.
The Gamecocks were longer, stronger and more athletic. The length and physicality of Staley’s defense forced 12 TCU turnovers in the first half which led to 17 points for South Carolina.
“This game we learned a lot,” Campbell said. “The physicality, the toughness, they impose their will on you. To feel that and go against it, it lets us know between now and March we’ve got to get a lot better. Credit to South Carolina for doing a heck of a job today and playing a great game. They made us uncomfortable and imposed their will.”
The Gamecocks made everything a challenge from simple entry passes to the post to just trying to dribble penetrate into the lane. Gamecocks, like Raven Johnson, played relentless defense and forced countless turnovers.
One of them led to a dunk by Ashlyn Watkins that brought the big Dickies Arena crowd to its feet. The game was over at halftime when South Carolina used a 11-0 run to enter the break ahead 44-23.
It was a tough performance for the Horned Frogs, especially with such a great crowd, but the game was less of an indictment about TCU and more about just how good South Carolina is.
“We played N.C State and Notre Dame, who are two really good teams. They weren’t this,” Campbell said. “You gotta go compete and lace them up and feel it. You can’t duplicate this in practice, especially their depth. They’ve got 10 bodies that are all big and strong and talented. The only way to learn from it is to play these type of games.”
The Gamecocks don’t have a star player like a JuJu Watkins or even a HVL, but its 10-women rotation is full of former five-stars and high school All-Americans. The Gamecocks aren’t just talented, they play together as a unit on both ends of the court.
The Horned Frogs also aren’t the only ranked team to endure a blowout loss. South Carolina beat No. 20 Iowa State 76-36, the Gamecocks led No. 8 Duke by 20 points until a late fourth quarter run made the score more respectable.
South Carolina makes great teams look average and good teams look bad, that’s just the juggernaut Staley has built in Columbia. But the blowout defeat doesn’t have to be a stain on the season that has started a program-best 9-1.
In fact, the loss could be a way for TCU to continue to grow as the program tries to mold itself into a viable March Madness contender. The Horned Frogs are a confident group, that confidence bolstered by the earlier ranked wins, and it’s imperative the team doesn’t lose that spark in the upcoming days.
“Whether you win this game or lose this game, it’s one game,” Campbell said. “You gotta show up and keep working. We got punched in the mouth today, you’ve got to take it with a grain of salt and learn from it, but it’s one game. You don’t over analyze it, but to get to where I think this group can get, this is a great experience to learn from.
“You can’t duplicate this in practice. This is healthy, this is good for our growth and our journey this season.”
Agreed.
This story was originally published December 8, 2024 at 7:55 PM.
