January 25, 2025
Locked On Women’s Basketball: Breaking down South Carolina’s defensive masterclass against LSU
Lincoln Shafer: Gamecocks' defense was total 'suffocation' in last three quarters
In the latest episode of Locked On Women’s Basketball, Hunter Cruse, Emily Adler and Lincoln Shafer break down Friday’s game between No. 2 South Carolina and No. 5 LSU. South Carolina came away with a 66-56 win in the teams’ only matchup of the regular season.
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Shafer talks about the Gamecocks’ defense, which allowed the Tigers to shoot just 22.8% from the field over the final three quarters:
“It’s suffocation. … Sania Feagin was incredible in this game. Her rim defense — she blocked three shots. [She set a] new career high in minutes at 35 minutes. She ran the break; she led a fast break after picking a pocket and threw a lob to Raven Johnson. Just an outstanding performance. Raven Johnson’s coming over and making weak-side blocks. Tessa Johnson had a block, too. … [And] Bree Hall and Tessa Johnson were absolutely defending their tails off.”
Related content ahead of the game:
- Locked On Women’s Basketball: SEC news and analysis
- SEC notebook: South Carolina-LSU showdown, Tennessee-Texas clash, things we learned in Week 3
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Adler explains what she saw from Joyce Edwards, who was the third-ranked freshman in the 2024 class and led South Carolina with 14 points on 5-for-11 shooting off the bench:
“She just gets to the right spots offensively. I’m still waiting for some of the finishing or the moves to click, because she does a lot of good stuff and then the ball just half the time doesn’t go in. … It’s not to bring down what she does to get open and make it look mundane. But yeah, all of this [is] on top of her … being possibly a semi-generational defensive prospect, given her versatility.”
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