#6 Ohio State Buckeyes vs. #2 South Carolina Gamecocks
Friday, November 13, 2015, 7 p.m. EST
Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, SC
Watch Online: SEC Network+/WatchESPN.com
What can the South Carolina Gamecocks do for an encore after advancing to the national semifinal game last season? The road back begins this evening as they start off with a stiff challenge right out of the gate in the Ohio State Buckeyes. Here's our preview for tonight - you can also chat about the game in our live game thread below.
Three Point Preview
1. The Gamecocks come in with loads of expectations ahead of them and a Women's Final Four appearance behind them. They return much of their scoring from last year, including SEC Preseason Player of the Year Tiffany Mitchell, sophomore A'ja Wilson and junior Alaina Coates. The threesome was responsible for 38.6 combined points per game, just under half of the team's average of 75.9 an outing. If they're healthy and clicking on all cylinders, it will be hard for many teams to beat them.
2. The team will need to build on the home crowd tonight and throughout the season. They hit the 10,000 season ticket plateau for the first time in program history this offseason, and it's going to be very, very hard to find a seat in the Colonial Life Arena when these ladies are in town. Women's college basketball has arrived in Columbia, and it doesn't show any signs of leaving any time soon.
3. A player the Gamecocks will need to key in on: Kelsey Mitchell. The Cincinnati product was simply dynamic as a freshman - 24.9 points (tops in the nation in all of college basketball, not just women's) and 4.2 assists and outing - en route to preseason All-American honors. She also drained 69 three-pointers, an NCAA record. She's already paving her path to becoming a #1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft in a few years. It doesn't stop with Mitchell: the Bucks return all five of last year's starters, including Ameryst Alston (19.8 ppg), and a pair of top rebounders in Alexa Hart (who was just shy of averaging a double-double a game at 12.2/8.9 a night) and talented first-off-the-bench contributor Shayla Cooper (7.8 rpg).
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