Gamecocks Stunned at Home: What UConn Loss Means for South Carolina’s Title Hopes
For the first time in years, South Carolina women’s basketball no longer feels like a Final Four certainty. The Gamecocks’ 87-58 loss to No. 7 UConn wasn’t just a defeat—it was a statement. It snapped a 71-game home winning streak that had stretched 1,536 days, marking their worst home loss since Baylor dominated them by 25 points over six years ago.
“Major implosion for us,” head coach Dawn Staley admitted after the game.
How the Loss Impacts South Carolina’s NCAA Tournament Seeding
Before tipoff, South Carolina (23-3) had just been named the No. 2 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s Top 16 rankings. Now? Their status as a No. 1 seed is on shaky ground. A blowout loss to a fellow top-10 team doesn’t spell disaster, but it does raise questions:
- Can USC hold onto a No. 1 seed?
- Could this loss cost them the tournament’s top overall seed—which in past years has ensured a favorable path to the Final Four?
History suggests it matters. In all six of Staley’s Final Four appearances, the Gamecocks have been a No. 1 seed. Last year, that top ranking kept them away from Texas, UConn, Southern Cal, LSU, and other powerhouses until deep in the tournament. The easier path helped them capitalize.
However, not being a No. 1 seed doesn’t mean the Final Four is off the table. In both 2023 and 2024, only half the Final Four teams were No. 1 seeds. And even in 2021, when South Carolina had three losses and an early home defeat, they still earned a No. 1 seed and reached the Final Four.
Gamecocks Are Still Among the Nation’s Best—But the Gap Has Closed
Parity in women’s basketball has been a talking point for years, and even UConn coach Geno Auriemma acknowledged that more “really, really, really good teams” have emerged. But the number of truly great teams? That hasn’t changed much.
South Carolina is still elite. The Gamecocks’ only losses have come against No. 1 UCLA, No. 3 Texas (who they also beat in Columbia), and now No. 7 UConn. That’s a brutal schedule—but also proof that South Carolina is beatable, something that hasn’t felt true for three years.
So, what does this mean for the rest of the season?
Maybe nothing. South Carolina has just one ranked opponent left in the regular season—No. 8 Kentucky—before heading into the SEC Tournament, where they could still claim the top seed (potentially decided by a coin flip with Texas).
Win the SEC Tournament in Greenville, and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament is all but secured.
Maybe this season won’t be as smooth as last year’s undefeated run. Maybe the loss of Ashlyn Watkins has made the Gamecocks vulnerable. Maybe March Madness will be a tougher battle than expected.
Or maybe, just maybe, this year’s path to the Final Four will be even sweeter.
