How being a ‘steady force’ elevated this Gamecock into Dawn Staley’s starting lineup
To say the South Carolina women’s basketball team beat College of Charleston on Wednesday wouldn’t do justice to the result.
Coach Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks absolutely romped, 119-38. It was the second biggest win in program history and tied for fourth biggest in all of Division I basketball in the past five years. USC scored more points, made more field goals and pulled down more rebounds than it ever has in Staley’s 12-plus seasons. Every player scored, and four recorded double-doubles.
And at the heart of it all was a player making just her second career start: junior forward Victaria Saxton.
With 19 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks, as well as 7-of-9 shooting from the field, Saxton set or tied a host of career highs. She was all over the floor, leading the team in offensive rebounds and putting up a plus/minus of +63 in just 19 minutes.
So all in all, it’s safe to say Staley felt reassured in her decision to start Saxton in the power forward role vacated by the graduated Mikiah Herbert Harrigan, who’s now in the WNBA. Herbert Harrigan was one of just two players the Gamecocks lost from last year’s top-ranked squad alongside point guard Tyasha Harris, and junior Destanni Henderson was widely seen as the obvious replacement for her.
Who would replace Herbert Harrigan, however, was perhaps the biggest question of the offseason. A dynamic stretch four with the ability to defend the interior and shoot from the mid-range, Herbert Harrigan was the team’s leading scorer and a crucial part of their success last season. Senior guard LeLe Grissett, sophomore forward Laeticia Amihere and Saxton were all considered contenders, but Staley offered no hints up until the moment lineups were submitted Wednesday.
Behind the scenes, there wasn’t a pivotal moment when Staley pulled Saxton aside to let her know she’d be starting.
“She kinda just talked to the whole team. It wasn’t really like a huge conversation,” Saxton said. “It was kind of just like, playing your role. Everybody has a role on the team and we all have to play our role.”
Similarly, there wasn’t one outstanding practice or moment that convinced Staley that Saxton was the one.
“V has been ... just a steady force. If you’re competing for a starting position, you got to out-produce whoever it is that you’re competing against, and Victaria never let up,” Staley said. “You know, you’d have to hit all your outside shots, you’d have to make sure that you’re out-hustling Victaria.
“And it is a healthy competition that you really have to look at, just as as a competitor, you got to see who that is, that competes at your position. You got to be productive and you also have to give yourself an edge in some other area and V just ... was relentless in rebounding and put-backs.”
Saxton’s performance Wednesday was such that she tied with sophomore forward Aliyah Boston for the team lead in rebounds, despite giving up three inches in height and size to Boston, a preseason All-American expected to contend for national player of the year honors.
“I feel very confident,” Saxton said of her mental state after the game. “To have my teammates around me to help me keep my confidence up, I think that’s the main thing that’s helped me so far this year, and I know I have to help be a leader on the team, and that’s what I’m kind of doing.”
Next game
Who: No. 1 South Carolina vs. South Dakota
What: Women’s Bad Boy Mowers Crossover Classic
When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Watch: Streaming online on FloHoops.com (subscription required)
This story was originally published November 25, 2020 at 7:52 PM with the headline "How being a ‘steady force’ elevated this Gamecock into Dawn Staley’s starting lineup."
