Dawn Staley has rarely operated with a full scholarship roster during her 18 seasons leading South Carolina women’s basketball, and that approach isn’t changing anytime soon.
Throughout her tenure, Staley has typically carried around 12 players per season — an average of 12.7 to be exact — rather than filling all 15 scholarships allowed by NCAA rules. That trend continued into this year, as South Carolina entered the summer expecting to have a 12-player roster once again.
Those plans shifted when Ashlyn Watkins announced she would take the season off, reducing the total to 11. Then, just before the start of the 2025–26 campaign, the Gamecocks revealed they would be without Chloe Kitts for the season due to an ACL injury. While Kitts remains on the roster, her injury dropped the number of available players to 10.
As a result, South Carolina has already dealt with depth challenges this season, stemming from a combination of suspension, injuries, and illness. Nearly half of the Gamecocks’ games have been played with a shortened bench.
Given everything the team has faced, it’s fair to wonder whether Staley might rethink her roster-building philosophy going forward — perhaps even expanding to the maximum of 15 players.
Her answer was immediate.
“No,” Staley said Friday. “No. 15 [players], 12, 13 at the most.”
That stance is backed by results. Staley’s formula has delivered 484 wins, nine SEC Tournament titles, and three national championships during her time in Columbia.
It’s also not unusual in women’s college basketball for elite programs to carry fewer than 15 players. Since the 2007–08 season, UConn and Tennessee have averaged 12 players per roster (12.6 for the Vols), while LSU typically carries closer to 13 players, with an average of 13.5, based on historical roster data.
The evolving landscape of player compensation has also added complexity to roster management. In an era of revenue sharing and NIL deals, a full 15-player roster would mean 15 athletes potentially seeking financial compensation — even though not all would see meaningful playing time.
In October, Staley told The State that South Carolina is “competing with the top programs in the country” in terms of revenue-sharing dollars allocated to women’s basketball. For her, a 12-player roster remains the ideal balance under the current financial structure. Expanding to 13, however, could require additional creativity — and funding.
“If it’s 13 [players], somebody’s gonna have to go ask our AD for a little bit more money to fill that roster,” Staley said. “But for right now, I really think for this particular year, it’s probably what we had as far as rev share and NIL. Gotta go panhandle a little bit for some more to increase our roster.”
While Staley could technically add depth through walk-ons or early enrollment from future signees, neither option appears likely. She said back in November that the program would not hold walk-on tryouts, and she confirmed last week that South Carolina’s two signees do not plan to enroll early.
“We’re good with what we have,” Staley said on Nov. 6.
