Everything Dawn Staley said ahead of South Carolina's matchup with Louisville

South Carolina head women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley spoke to the media on Wednesday ahead of the team’s matchup against Louisville, which is set to tip off at 7 p.m. on Thursday. Here’s everything she had to say.

How are preparations going for another road trip?

“We got two days in, which was good. Really good to get some practice in.”

What were the major takeaways from the Texas game?

“I mean, free throws, free-throw box out, inability to take away someone’s strength. I thought we did a good job. Their top three scorers were inefficient, so we did our job with that. They just had key buckets at crucial times in the game.

NEW! Message board for South Carolina Women’s Basketball!

“Then, the fouling really put us back on our heels. But it’s not anything for us to be like, ‘The sky’s falling,’ because it’s a one-possession game. And our team is still trying to find each other. Since this isn’t a team that we’ve had for years, our defense has got to get better. Just a defensive breakdown.

“So, all stuff that you could point to and just say, ‘Hey, you can’t really be upset because you’re going to point to the things.’ It wasn’t effort; it was more execution of what we need to be executed — which, for us, is a norm, but it’s not a norm for this team because we’re finding our identity.”

South Carolina’s bench is really young. Especially in these big top-25 matchups, what do you think they’re learning from taking on these other high-level teams?

“Probably that it’s hard, that it looks a lot easier than it really is. And then, for us, we got to grow, got to develop our bench. I mean, we can’t go a whole season playing six or seven (players); we got to be able to get to eight or nine comfortably. And the only way that you’re going to do that is put them out there. Whether they… something down their leg or not, they got to grow. And, obviously, I do think the Players Era tournament helped us grow in that area.”

Was Agot (Makeer) at practice today?

“No, not at practice today. You could get the follow up from Diana (Koval).

(Editor’s note: Makeer did not attend Wednesday’s practice because she is currently in concussion protocol.)

The Harlem Globetrotters are in town this week, and Jolette (Law) was a Globetrotter at one point in the 1990s. What did you know about her tenure with the Globetrotters?

“Not much. Obviously, I see pictures and posters, and I hear stories about it. But I didn’t get a chance to go see her play. I got a former player that’s on the Globetrotters: Fatima (Lister). It’s a great profession. You see the world; you make people smile, play the game that you love. So, for those obvious reasons, I see why Jolette was a Globetrotter.”

Louisville has had a couple of tough games. They always schedule pretty tough. What have you seen from the Cardinals so far this season?

“Just tough. I mean, they’re good at home, as well. Like to play a lot of different defenses. So, point guard play is going to be really important. They got a couple of bigs that can shoot from the outside. So, they’re going to challenge us to not fall asleep in transition and not fall asleep in our half-court defense. But it’s going to be a game in which, if we want to win, we have to display all the things that are necessary — the intangibles, the tangibles. And we got to execute from a defensive standpoint.”

NEW! Message board for South Carolina Women’s Basketball!