South Carolina women's basketball: Ta'Niya Latson and Tessa Johnson lead South Carolina over North Carolina

Ta’Niya Latson and Tessa Johnson found their groove on Thursday, each scoring 19 points to lead South Carolina to a 91-82 exhibition win over North Carolina.

One of the things Dawn Staley said she wanted to see Thursday night was for Tessa Johnson to be more aggressive. She got her wish. 

Against Anderson, Tessa had just five points on 2-7 shooting, including 1-5 from three. It took her less than eight minutes on Thursday to equal that output. South Carolina ran plays to get her involved, and she rewarded the confidence by scoring on layups, midrange jumpers, and threes. 

“I don’t really care about points,” Johnson said.

“I do,” Staley interjected.

Johnson finished with 17 points, six rebounds, and two assists, and she hit 3-5 from three. She also had six rebounds against Anderson, and her ability to grab some boards is going to be crucial as she steps into Bree Hall’s role.

“The ball was finding me because of what my teammates were doing,” Johnson continued.

The connection between Tessa and Latson grew as the game went on. Latson missed Tessa a couple of times early on, but in the fourth quarter, Latson was finding Johnson for open threes. 

“I feed off her energy,” Latson said. “Tessa’s been there, she knows the system, she’s a junior, she’s an upperclassman so I trust her instincts.”

In addition to her 19 points, Latson had three assists and made all four of her free throws.

“I felt really comfortable,” Latson said. “I’ve played against UNC a lot. They’re very competitive.”

“She’s a great player,” Indya Nivar said. “Playing her for the past two, three years, very dynamic scorer. She loves to get downhill.”

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Joyce Edwards added 12 points and nine rebounds, and Madina Okot had 11 points and six rebounds. Maryam Dauda rounded out the double-figure scorers with 10 points, and Maddy McDaniel chipped in nine points.

South Carolina had 20 assists against 13 turnovers, and Staley thought ball movement was much better than it was against Anderson, but it remains a work in progress.

“This is a totally different basketball team and we’ve only been together as a team since August, so we don’t have that continuity, that flow, the chemistry that we need,” Staley said. “But I was proud. It was a lot of things that week can take that’s good from the film.”

It was a homecoming game for Latson and Raven Johnson, who played together at Westlake High in southwest Atlanta and won a national championship. Johnson had a large group of friends and family cheering her on.

They got a scare late in the first half, when Johnson was fouled on a layup and fell on her tailbone. Johnson had to be helped off the court and went back to the locker room, but she returned for the second half.

North Carolina did not play two of its key players, Reniya Kelly and Blanca Thomas, who are banged up. The Tar Heels gave the Gamecocks a challenge in the first half before fading.

“The team that was out there tonight – a lot of new,” Courtney Banghart said. “We learned what we’ve seen in practice, that these young guys are ready to compete.

Notes:

South Carolina wore its “Cocky” alternates. … Freshman Ayla McDowell did not play. She has been sick, and Staley decided to give her another day of rest. … The game was played on the Atlanta Hawks’ court at State Farm Arena, which may have impacted shooting. South Carolina was just 4-18 from three, but players kept setting behind the NBA arc instead of the NCAA arc, which was added for the game. There is over a foot and a half difference between the lines. … Dawn Staley’s outfit: Staley wore a garnet Gucci track suit. … South Carolina opens the season on November 3 against Grand Canyon.

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