Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks are looking unstoppable. As Joyce Edwards delivered a freshman of the week-worthy performance and the bench shone for a combined 32 points, a 5th straight win against a top-25 team was for Staley’s team to savor. But the Tennessee Volunteers did not let them have it easy. In fighting back to the T, Lady Vols had the South Carolina coach addressing a potential “nemesis” lurking within.

Early in the 4th quarter, Chloe Kitts’ layup handed the Gamecocks a 22-point lead at 61-39. They were coming off 2 dominant quarters, having limited the Lady Vols to 8 of 34 (23.5%) from the field and 1 of 15 (6.7%) on 3-pointers. But the home team wasn’t to be underestimated just yet. They’d score 6 points to Gamecocks 1, early to keep the game alive, and eventually finish the with a 7-point deficit.

While that was a celebratory 15th consecutive win for Staley’s team, the stalling in the last minutes wasn’t lost on many. Addressing the same in the post-game conference, the head coach noted what went wrong for the team. “Bad shots,” she says. “Bad shots, bad decisions, can be our nemesis at times. It was today. Fatigue. That’s part of it as well. Thier pressure. It’s kind of a combination of things.”

The Gamecocks missed 7 shots from beyond the arc post Kitts’ layup to secure a single-digit victory for the first time since their first game of the season. Nonetheless, they are now 8-1 against ranked opponents and unbeaten in the conference. The head coach understands how difficult it gets to play such opponents, with different styles of play. So despite a few flaws, Staley is proud of her team for getting through the stretch.

“Proud of our team for managing it. For taking it one game at a time and winning,” she adds.

South Carolina maintains the top spot in the SEC and 2nd in national rankings with an overall 20-1 record. They might have lost their top post defender, Ashlyn Watkins to injury, but Staley’s team continues to prove its depth unlike another.

Dawn Staley’s secret weapon lies not in the starters

It’s no secret South Carolina houses one of the best benches in the nation with Joyce Edwards, MiLaysia Fulwiley, and Tessa Johnson. They lead the country with 42.7 bench points per game. So Dawn Staley had even made a declaration ahead of their 5-game stretch that she hoped the team would use it to their advantage. And well, the team showed up.

In the game against LSU, the bench accounted for nearly 50% of the points, going 31 to the Tigers’ 2. The situation was no different in their game against Lady Vols. Edwards put up game-high 18 points, Fulwiley 11, and Johnson 3 for a combined 32 of Gamecocks’ 70. Moreover, it was the freshman’s second night in a row finishing as the top scorer to eventually be named co-SEC Freshman of the Week– her third SEC honor. Staley couldn’t keep the praises to herself.

“Joyce is going to be the best player in college basketball one day,” she says.

Staley might continue to lay focus on her bench who are averaging 51.7% of the team’s total. For her they are no.1 in the nation and she ensures they know that. After a successful 5-game stretch, the Gamecocks now get a much-needed breather before hosting the Auburn Tigers on Saturday.