SEC game dates set for USC women's basketball. Full 2024-25 schedule almost complete

The South Carolina women’s basketball team’s conference schedule for the 2024-25 season has been set, culminating in a home-and-away game against SEC newcomer Texas.

The Gamecocks will play 16 conference games. SEC play begins Thursday, Jan. 2, at Missouri. Conference game dates were announced Wednesday. Game times and TV channels will be announced at a later date.

USC’s conference schedule highlights games against Texas (two of them), LSU, Oklahoma, Kentucky and Tennessee. South Carolina hosts the Longhorns on Jan. 12 and then plays them in Austin on Feb. 9. The Sooners come to Colonial Life Arena on Jan. 19, followed by Kim Mulkey’s Tigers on Jan. 23 and the Wildcats on March 2 to close the regular season. The Gamecocks face the Lady Vols in Knoxville on Jan. 27. The SEC Tournament is March 5-9 in Greenville.

A full schedule for the South Carolina women’s basketball team, including all non-league games, is expected in the coming weeks.

USC has already announced 12 non-conference opponents, not including Clemson, though a Tigers spokesperson confirmed to The State that the game is on. Coach Dawn Staley said in an X-post last week that USC has agreed to a home-and-away game with an HBCU, leaving one more surprise game.

Here are three takeaways from Wednesday’s conference schedule announcement:

Biggest game: South Carolina vs. Texas

Texas was the No. 6 team in ESPN’s way-too-early Top 25 rankings released in May, but the two games between the Gamecocks and Longhorns could be top-five matchups.

UT returns one of the best backcourts in the country, led by Rori Harmon (who missed most of the 2023-24 season with a torn ACL) and Madison Booker. After 12 games, Harmon led the nation with a 6.64 assist-turnover ratio (93 assists on 14 turnovers). Booker took Harmon’s place after her injury and became the first freshman student-athlete in Big 12 history to win the league’s Player of the Year award.

The Longhorns also bolstered their frontcourt in the offseason after four forwards entered the transfer portal. In addition to 6-foot-4 Taylor Jones and 6-foot-1 Aaliyah Moore, Texas acquired 6-foot-6 forward Kyla Oldacre from Miami. Oldacre was the No. 25 recruit in the 2022 class and a McDonald’s All-American.

This season marks Vic Schaefer’s return to the SEC. He spent eight years (2011-20) coaching at Mississippi State, where there was something of a rivalry between his Bulldogs and Staley’s Gamecocks. Schaefer coached the MSU team that defeated USC en route to its first national championship in 2017.

Other top-class conference duels

In addition to South Carolina at No. 1 and Texas at No. 6, five other SEC teams made ESPN’s way-too-early Top 25: No. 7 LSU, No. 13 Oklahoma, No. 21 Alabama, No. 23 Ole Miss and No. 25 Kentucky.

Some of the most exciting matchups on South Carolina’s conference schedule this season include matches against LSU, Oklahoma and Kentucky, all of which will be played at Colonial Life Arena.

LSU is still in good shape even after losing Angel Reese to the WNBA and Hailey Van Lith to TCU via the transfer portal. Flau’jae Johnson, Aneesah Morrow and SEC Freshman of the Year Mikaylah Williams are all back, so much of the team that made life difficult for USC in the regular season and the 2024 SEC Championship Game remains intact.

Mulkey also signed Shayeann Day-Wilson (Miami’s leading scorer in 2023-24 and 2022 ACC Freshman of the Year at Duke), Kailyn Gilbert (Arizona’s leading scorer before she left the team after 23 games) and Mjracle Sheppard (who led Mississippi State to an upset win over LSU last season) out of the portal. Jersey Wolfenbarger, a 6-foot-5 McDonald’s All-American who did not play last season after two years at Arkansas, has also transferred to the Tigers.

Ahead of its first SEC season, Oklahoma added 6-foot-4 Reagan Beers, who had 16 points and eight rebounds for the Oregon State Beavers in their Elite 8 loss to the Gamecocks in March, through the portal. OU also brings a ton of experience, including co-Big 12 Player of the Year Skylar Vann, second-leading scorer Payton Verhulst, senior Liz Scott and freshmen Sahara Williams, Nevaeh Tot, Aubrey Joebs and Lexy Keys. The Sooners face a challenge in CLA, but they are a formidable opponent for the Gamecocks.

Kentucky had a very eventful offseason with the signing of former Virginia Tech coach Kenny Brooks. Star point guard Georgia Amoore followed Brooks from Blacksburg to Lexington, as did Clara Strack, top-50 recruit Lexi Blue and 6-3 JUCO transfer Amelia Hassett. Brooks also brought in 6-4 Teonni Key from North Carolina. It will be interesting to see what progress the Wildcats can make in the first year of the Kenny Brooks era. Perhaps his tenure will lead to a resurgence of the UK-USC rivalry not seen since Rhyne Howard left for the WNBA.

Tennessee in a new look with a familiar face. And a reunion of the Kitts sisters

Tennessee also had a busy offseason, as head coach Kellie Harper was fired after five seasons and former Marshall coach Kim Caldwell was hired.

The Lady Vols will be without star forward Rickea Jackson, who now plays for the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, but fifth-year seniors Jewel Spear, Rapuluchi Ayodele and Tess Darby return, as do fourth-year seniors Sara Puckett, Kaiya Wynn, Samara Spencer and Jillian Hollingshead. Former Gamecock Talaysia Cooper will be eligible to play for Tennessee after sitting out the 2023-24 season after being transferred outside of the transfer window.

Additionally, Gamecock Chloe Kitts’ sister Kylee will begin her freshman year at Florida. Like Chloe, she was reclassified to the class of 2024. UF and USC will face off in Columbia on February 13.

South Carolina women’s basketball schedule for the 2023–24 season (SEC)

January 2: in Missouri
January 5: at Mississippi State
January 9: against Texas A&M
January 12: against Texas
January 16: in Alabama
January 19: against Oklahoma
January 23: against LSU
January 27: in Tennessee
February 2: against Auburn
February 6: in Georgia
February 9: in Texas
February 13: against Florida
February 20: against Arkansas
February 23: at Vanderbilt
February 27: at Ole Miss
March 2: against Kentucky
March 5 – 9: SEC Tournament in Greenville, SC

South Carolina women’s basketball team’s 2023-24 non-league schedule:

Below are the known games from August 20th:

Exhibition: October 15 in Memphis
November 4: against Michigan in Las Vegas
November 10: against NC State in Charlotte
November 17: against East Carolina
November 24: at UCLA
November 28-30: Fort Myers game starts (against Iowa State, Purdue)
December 5: vs. Duke (ACC/SEC Challenge)
December 8: against TCU in Fort Worth, Texas
December 15: vs. USF
December 19: against Charleston Southern
December 29: against Wofford
To be announced: in Clemson
February 16: against UConn