Relief before revenge: South Carolina clears Final Four hurdle, gets rematch with Iowa
No. 1 South Carolina defeated No. 3 N.C. State 78-59 Friday night to advance to the NCAA championship game for the third time in program history. The Gamecocks tip off Sunday at 3 p.m. against Iowa — a rematch for the ages — at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.
But MiLaysia Fulwiley would suit up and play Saturday if she could: “I feel like it can’t come any faster,” the freshman said in USC’s locker room after Friday’s game.
So would junior Bree Hall. Actually, scratch that. Hall could play right now.
“Just get it done,” she told The State, shaking her head. “Get it over with.”
One would think this Final Four victory, a milestone that eluded the undefeated 2023 Gamecocks, would provide the 2024 Gamecocks with a sense of relief.
We’ve made it this far. Further than last time. One step closer.
And one would be partially correct. But only partially.
“We have to take it one game at a time,” freshman Tessa Johnson said. “And each game we play, it’s a game closer. So of course it’s a relief, but we can’t stop now.”
USC has been haunted by its national semifinal loss to Iowa last season, a defeat that came after the first undefeated campaign in program history. South Carolina guard Raven Johnson, who played 29 minutes in that game, dubbed this year the Gamecocks’ “revenge tour.” Championship or bust. Preseason No. 6 ranking be damned.
Thirty-seven games and 37 wins later, the approach is mostly the same. This win is cool, they say, but they’ve got one more game to play.
Job’s not done yet.
No one thought they could do it. An Elite Eight or Final Four berth was supposed to be this team’s ceiling. With all due respect to their talent (which was undeniable), these Gamecocks had a lot of learning and gelling to do. What, with zero returning starters and several new faces.
Maybe next year.
They heard these things. How could they not? Between social media, local and national news outlets and even coach Dawn Staley, they knew everyone else had a hard time believing. They did too, during the summer, when everyone was out of shape and getting their bearings. Not Fulwiley, though. She always knew. And she wants you to know she knew, too.
But the Gamecocks defeated then-No. 10 Notre Dame in Paris 100-71 to open the season. Then everything clicked.
Everything we want to, we can be. We are capable. More than capable.
That’s not to say there haven’t been struggles along the way. North Carolina — USC’s lone single-digit victory in the month of November — was the first. Duke was a bit tough, too. As were Utah and Alissa Pili. And, of course, LSU led by Angel Reese (twice). Add Tennessee (all three times) to the mix, too.
In the NCAA Tournament, Indiana and Oregon State gave South Carolina serious scares. The Gamecocks gave massive leads away. Twenty-two, 23. Gone in what seemed like an instant with only an instant to spare. These Gamecocks are fast. The fastest Staley has ever had. They only ever need an instant to recover.
At 37-0, they are invincible. They are inevitable.
“I don’t want to lose,” Staley said Friday night, echoing a sentiment her players have expressed all year long. “I don’t want our season to end in any way except the way I envisioned, and that’s winning the national championship. And when you can put your play behind your vision, it makes a beautiful memory.”
That loathing, that detestation, that abhorrence they have for losing has fueled them. As has their sisterly bond. They want to hoist the championship trophy Sunday night, yes, but they also don’t want this season to end.
They don’t want to see Kamilla Cardoso — who had a 22-point, 11-rebound double-double in Friday’s win after declaring Monday for the WNBA Draft — go. They don’t want this moment to slip through their fingers. They don’t want to stop playing with each other. For each other.
“I’m not taking anything for granted,” Tessa Johnson said. “Each moment is so special to me, especially just with who I’m surrounded by. My teammates are great people on the court, great players off the court. Being surrounded by them, I can’t ask for anything else.”
This story was originally published April 5, 2024 at 8:38 PM with the headline "Relief before revenge: South Carolina clears Final Four hurdle, gets rematch with Iowa."
