The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
NO. 1 SOUTH CAROLINA AT NO. 5 UCONN
When: Sunday, noon
Where: XL Center
Records: UConn (21-2, 13-0 Big East), South Carolina (22-0, 10-0 SEC)
FOX
UConn Sports Network, WGCH 1490 AM (Greenwich), WAVZ 1300 AM (New Haven), WATR 1320 AM (Waterbury), 97.9 FM-ESPN
TV: Radio: WHAT UCONN NEEDS TO DO TO WIN
A win over the Gamecocks would be UConn’s first since Feb. 8, 2021 (almost two years ago exactly). South Carolina went 2-0 last year over UConn winning both the Battle 4 Atlantis championship in November 2021 and serving UConn its first loss in the national title game five months later.
But to take down the undefeated Gamecocks, the Huskies will need to dig deep to find an extra level of stamina.
While UConn has again been plagued by injuries — currently playing with a rotation of just eight players — the Gamecocks are playing with 14 active players. All 14 of South Carolina’s players have played in at least 10 games or more this season.
UConn’s five starters are averaging 32-plus minutes per game, including just completing a stretch of five games in 12 days on Wednesday.
KEYS TO THE GAME
• 1. Can UConn balance its limited rotation to combat South Carolina’s ability to continually sub in fresh legs? How does Geno Auriemma manage his bench so his starters are able to rest?
• 2. Part one: Can UConn’s bigs can take away Aliyah Boston as an option in the post? Part two: If they can, how does UConn then limit South Carolina’s other threats in Zia Cooke and Kamilla Cardoso?
• 3. UConn’s biggest advantage in this game is its outside presence (the Huskies are No. 2 in the country with a 40.27 3-point field goal percentage) Can the Huskies do enough on the perimeter to keep themselves afloat or does South Carolina’s physical defense limit their 3-point shooting? .... On the flip side: Can the Huskies’ defense force the Gamecocks to work only on the outside? (South Carolina averages 32% on 3-pointers).
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT SOUTH CAROLINA
After winning the program’s second title last season, the Gamecocks have been ranked No. 1 throughout the 2022-23 season.
South Carolina is again led by reigning National Player of the Year Aaliyah Boston. The senior from Worcester, Mass., projected to be the No. 1 pick in this year’s WNBA Draft, is averaging 12.9 points and 10.0 rebounds while leading the team with 46 blocks.
The Gamecocks returned four of their five starters from last year’s national championship team in Boston, Zia Cooke, Victaria Saxton and Breal Beal. Georgia Tech graduate transfer Kierra Fletcher joined South Carolina in the offseason and has started all but two of the team’s games so far this season.
South Carolina has struggled only a few times this season, but on average has scored 36 points more than all its opponents. The Gamecocks’ closest game of the year was a five-point overtime victory at then-No. 2 Stanford on Nov. 20.
The Gamecocks enter Sunday’s matchup as one of two remaining unbeaten teams in the AP Top 25 Poll (LSU is the other at 20-0), including beating Kentucky 87-69 Thursday night in Columbia.
UConn is 9-3 all-time against South Carolina. The Huskies won the teams’ first eight meetings before the Gamecocks first beat UConn on Feb. 10, 2020, 70-52.