4 days Ago
Shaking the Magic 8-Ball to close out March: Magic 8-Ball, should South Carolina be concerned? Fortunately for USC, there’s not a scoreboard for style points. The Gamecocks gladly accepted their 71-67 win over Maryland on March 28 even if it was a little too close for comfort. A game with second-seeded Duke (29-7) awaits, a rematch of an early December meeting USC won 81-70.
USC (33-3) committed 18 turnovers, shot less than 39 percent from the floor and failed to exert its will down low as it so often has this season. The Gamecocks even trailed in the closing minutes before a MiLaysia Fulwiley layup put them up for good 61-60 with 2:22 remaining. All in all, the performance was a far cry those the Gamecocks turned in while steamrolling through the SEC Tournament and the first two rounds of the NCAAs.
“Is it ugly? Yes,” USC coach Dawn Staley said. “Are people going to say this doesn't look like a national championship team? Well, I mean, we didn't look like one last year to most in the beginning of the season.” That squad ended up going 38-0 en route to USC winning its third national title, though it had a few close calls.
That includes a 79-75 win over Indiana. That four-point margin of victory was USC’s narrowest in the postseason, and it also came in the Sweet 16. The biggest difference is that win 2024 win over Indiana came against a team seeded 14th — a big difference from a No.
4 seed squad such as Maryland (25-8). All in all, a four-point win in postseason conditions isn’t something to sweat too much over. And it certainly beats the alternative.
“I’ve said it all year — the target is very big on our back,” USC guard Bree Hall said, “and every team is going to bring their best game. Especially in moments like this in the tournament, they’re going to play as hard as they can, try as hard as they can to make every shot they throw up. “Going into the next game, we have to realize that we have to play the entire 40 minutes and make sure we are focused on our game plan and prepared before the game.
" The Magic 8-Ball reads: “My sources say no.” Magic 8-Ball, has South Carolina’s weaknesses been exposed? Well, that’s what some folks would have us believe. “I think we gave a pretty good blueprint,” Maryland coach Brenda Frese said , “on how to beat South Carolina, to be quite honest, for the teams moving forward.
” That means packing the paint, denying interior touches and assaulting the boards. Maryland, despite not winning some key categories outright, held its own in areas such as points in the paint and rebounding — stats USC normally dominates. Other teams, certainly, will try to emulate that plan.
But is it an innovative strategy? “The blueprint? People played us like that ever since we had Aliyah Boston,” Staley said. “It's nothing new. We lead the country in points in the paint, (so) clog the paint.
“They did a good job executing their game plan, and we did a poor job at shot selection. So we will be better. We just gotta take better shots.
” The Magic 8-Ball reads: “Don’t count on it.” Magic 8-Ball, are the television ratings for the women’s tournament a bad sign? According to ESPN , the opening round of the women’s tournament averaged 367,000 viewers across all games, down 469,000 from last year. That kind of 22-percent drop can give even the most optimistic soul some heartburn.
But that kind of dropoff was to be expected, what with the Caitlin Clark Experience now being a WNBA show. That was a generational surge that any sport — female or male, professional or amateur — would find nearly impossible to maintain. A dip was inevitable.
Instead, experts say the more encouraging angle to take is to compare this year’s numbers to 2023. Ratings are up 43 percent compared to two years ago. It was the second-most watched opening round ever in total viewers as well as for ABC.
It was the the second-most watched first round on ESPN in 17 years. So lots of milestones were still achieved, they just don’t seem as strong compared to the phenomenon of 2024. UConn’s 91-57 second-round win over South Dakota State has drawn the largest single audience.
More than 1.1 million people tuned into ABC for a game that saw Paige Bueckers score 34 points. That’s an impressive audience.
But, as with all the other TV data, it seems miniscule when juxtaposed to how many folks paused to watch Iowa beat Holy Cross 91-65 last year in the opening round. How many folks saw Clark turn in a double-double in that game? More than 3.2 million.
Again, it’s all a matter of perspective. The Magic 8-Ball reads: “Very doubtful.”.
