The South Carolina Gamecocks had been in a close battle with the Indiana Hoosiers throughout the game despite the former being a massive 22.5 point favorite with Dawn Staley looking furious.

Dawn Staley was seen angrily shouting with her head in her hands as her South Carolina team struggled against Indiana in the fourth quarter of the game – a far cry from the future predicted after their dominant first round win.

Despite going on to defeat the Hoosiers to advance to the March Madness Sweet 16, South Carolina showed their frailty in their performance, including struggles on offense. Perhaps a reason why they missed out on the No. 1 overall seed, much to Staley’s frustration.

None of their players scored more than 12 points while they made a number of plays look difficult and leading to turnovers to keep the Hoosiers in the game. Indiana’s defense caused Staley plenty of grief as the camera had panned to her in the fourth quarter looking furious with her team’s performance. She could very mouthed “f— me”.

Freshman Joyce Edwards, who leads the team in points per game (13.4) could only manage five points while guard MiLaysia Fulwiley had just three.

South Carolina’s suffocating defense was the reason they avoided major embarrassment, with Staley’s unit moving to the next round regardless. And while all that matters is the team’s advancement, Staley knows they could have revealed a chink in their armor in the game.

Staley will demand a better shooting night in the next round, after stating before their game on Sunday: “I’ve always said good basketball is contagious, bad basketball is contagious. I hope we bring our ability to shoot the ball as well as we shot the ball. We shot the ball pretty good, and hopefully we can take that into the next game.

South Carolina remains the favorites to win the National Championship, having done so last season when they defeated Caitlin Clark’s Iowa. Staley has also won championships with the Gamecocks back in 2022 and 2017, hoping to win her fourth this season.

Paige Bueckers’ UConn Huskies are among the team’s seen as the biggest rivals to South Carolina, with the superstar point guard hoping to bring the school it’s first championship in almost a decade, before she moves on to the WNBA Draft.

Staley’s team will look much differently in the 2025/26 season, with starters Sania Feagin, Bree Hall and Te-Hina Paopao all set depart for the WNBA Draft.

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