SEC dates set for 2023-24. USC women’s basketball schedule nearly complete

Payton Titus
·4 min read

The 2023-24 SEC schedule for South Carolina women’s basketball is complete, headlined by an away game against the defending national champion LSU.

The Gamecocks will play 16 conference games, with SEC play beginning Jan. 4 at Florida. The dates for conference play were released Wednesday. Game times and TV networks will be announced at a later date.

USC’s most prolific conference games include battles with LSU, Ole Miss and Tennessee. South Carolina will play the Tigers in Baton Rouge on Jan. 25, and the Lady Vols in Knoxville Feb. 15. The Gamecocks will host Tennessee in Columbia March 3 and Ole Miss Feb. 4.

A full South Carolina women’s basketball schedule including every non-conference game is expected in the coming weeks, though the dates for every opponent outside of Stanford and Charleston Southern are already public.

Here are three takeaways from Wednesday’s conference schedule reveal:

Biggest game: South Carolina vs. LSU

The Tigers are fresh off their first national title in program history after beating the Iowa team that defeated South Carolina in the national semifinal. Up until that game, USC touted an undefeated record. That included a perfect 16-0 conference campaign, which saw the Gamecocks defeat LSU handily (88-64) in February at Colonial Life Arena.

But both schools will look much different this season.

LSU coach Kim Mulkey returned Final Four Most Outstanding Player Angel Reese, and added highly touted transfers Hailey Van Lith (Louisville) and Aneesah Morrow (DePaul) over the offseason. Coach Dawn Staley, meanwhile, is faced with the challenge of blending veterans like forward Kamilla Cardoso and guard Raven Johnson with new additions like Oregon transfer Te-Hina Paopao and former five-star MiLaysia Fulwiley.

Gamecocks versus Tigers will surely be the conference’s most anticipated game of the regular season.

Other high-profile conference matchups

Aside from No. 1 LSU and No. 8 USC, Ole Miss and Tennessee are the only two other SEC teams in ESPN’s way-too-early Top 25 rankings published in May.

USC will host Mississippi and have the Volunteers as one of three repeat opponents (also Kentucky and Missouri) — meaning they’ll each meet once in Columbia and once on the road.

No. 11 Ole Miss is led by coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin. Since advancing to the Sweet Sixteen last year, McPhee-McCuin has brought in several key transfers to bolster her squad. UNC’s second-leading scorer Kennedy Todd-Williams, Florida’s KK Deans and Auburn starter Kharyssa Richardson will don Mississippi’s powder blue in 2023. Without these additions, Ole Miss was one of twoteams last season to force overtime with South Carolina (Stanford).

No. 12 Tennessee returns star forward Rickea Jackson, who decided to stay in school an additional year rather than declare for the 2023 WNBA Draft. The Athletic had her projected as a top-five pick. She averaged 19.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 32 games (21 starts) last year and will be the Volunteers’ centerpiece for the 2023-24 season.

Additionally, former Gamecock Talaysia Cooper announced she was transferring to Tennessee via Instagram on Aug. 1. But the guard won’t join the program until 2024-25 because she transferred outside the portal window.

Home-court advantage

The SEC had seven teams in the 2023 NCAA Tournament, including South Carolina.

Of the six other teams, USC will play five (Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Tennessee) at home this season. The environment at Colonial Life Arena should be tough for opponents and good for the Gamecocks, who led the country in attendance last season.

South Carolina women’s basketball 2023-24 SEC schedule

  • Jan. 4 at Florida

  • Jan. 7 vs. Mississippi State

  • Jan. 11 at Missouri

  • Jan. 15 vs. Kentucky

  • Jan. 21 at Texas A&M

  • Jan. 25 at LSU

  • Jan. 28 vs. Vanderbilt

  • Feb. 1 at Auburn

  • Feb. 4 vs. Ole Miss

  • Feb. 8 vs. Missouri

  • Feb. 15 at Tennessee

  • Feb. 18 vs. Georgia

  • Feb. 22 vs. Alabama

  • Feb. 25 at Kentucky

  • Feb. 29 at Arkansas

  • Mar. 3 vs. Tennessee

South Carolina women’s basketball 2023-24 non-conference schedule:

  • Nov. 6 vs Notre Dame (Paris)

  • Nov. 12 vs Maryland

  • Nov. 16 vs Clemson

  • Nov. 30 at UNC

  • Dec. 3 at Duke

  • Dec. 10 vs Utah (Uncasville, Ct.)

  • Dec. 16 vs Presbyterian

  • Dec. 19 at Bowling Green

  • Dec. 30 at East Carolina

  • Feb. 11 vs UConn

  • TBD: Stanford

  • TBD: Charleston Southern