South Carolina Battles Past Indiana to Secure Sweet 16 Spot
COLUMBIA — The dazzling dunks, the paint dominance, and the effortless style that has defined South Carolina basketball for years are all well and good—but sometimes, winning requires grit over glamour.
The Gamecocks fought through a bruising battle to claim a 64-53 victory over No. 9 seed Indiana on March 23, securing their 11th consecutive Sweet 16 appearance and 12th in 13 years. With a 32-3 record, USC now awaits the winner of No. 4 seed Maryland and No. 5 seed Alabama—a matchup set for March 28 in Birmingham, Alabama. Two more wins would punch their ticket to a fifth straight Final Four.
First, though, they’ll need to analyze what went wrong in a frustrating first half that saw them trail by as many as eight points.
“Proud of our team, the way they gutted up and didn’t flinch,” said head coach Dawn Staley. “It wasn’t pretty, but at this time, it doesn’t have to be. You just got to score more points than the other team and work the kinks out as we advance into the tournament.”
The Gamecocks found their spark in the third quarter, outscoring Indiana 26-14 after struggling offensively for much of the game. At the heart of the turnaround? A halftime speech from senior Te-Hina Paopao, playing her final game at Colonial Life Arena. Despite the usual chaos of “Dawn’s Daycare”—where voices overlap and energy runs high—Paopao’s words stood out.
“I just told the team, ‘Let’s keep it simple.’ I think we were second-guessing ourselves. When we play team basketball, we play great basketball,” Paopao said. “Coach says good basketball is going to reward you, and that’s what happened coming out of the third quarter.”
She wasn’t alone in leading the charge. Fellow senior Sania Feagin played a key role, with freshman Joyce Edwards acknowledging their impact. “It’s always Pao and Sania,” Edwards said. “We always depend on our seniors that way.”
That leadership helped South Carolina flip what could have been a tough afternoon into yet another step toward championship glory.
