Top-ranked South Carolina was up by three points against No. 11 Utah with just under five minutes left in the game. Te-Hina Paopao dribbled up the court to the elbow and released a jump shot. 

Her shot dropped into the hoop. Three minutes later, Paopao had the ball in the key again. She dribbled closer and closer to the basket and was approaching traffic. She lifted her arms to shoot as she ran, and her shot fell into the hoop again as her arm hung in the air. 

Paopao’s last-minute points kept her team afloat in a difficult matchup. The game remained close until the final buzzer, but Dawn Staley’s squad secured the victory against Utah, 78-69, to remain undefeated this season. 

The Gamecocks faced their toughest challenge of the year against Alissa Pili and the Utes. Pili dropped 21 points in the first half, and she only played 13 of the 20 minutes after getting into foul trouble. 

Kamilla Cardoso got into foul trouble herself after being called for three charges on Jenna Johnson, who put on a foul-drawing clinic against the defensive powerhouse. 

When Pili returned to the court in the second half, she did so in her usual form. Pili rained buckets on South Carolina, finishing the game with 37 points, a career-high. No other Utes came close to her offensive contributions, and the only other Utah player to reach double-digits was Dasia Young with 10 points. 

The Gamecocks spread the love on the scoreboard with four players in double-digits and 26 bench points. 

South Carolina was plagued by turnovers in its closest game of the season. Utah forced 23 turnovers and collected 11 points in transition, but they weren’t enough for the Utes to earn their first win against a first-ranked squad.

No. 1 South Carolina eked out a 65-58 win over No. 24 North Carolina on Thursday, but freshman phenom MiLaysia Fulwiley played just three minutes.

It was an uncharacteristic game from Fulwiley, who had been playing significant minutes and hadn’t scored less than 10 points in her first five games. She entered Thursday’s contest as the Gamecocks’ second-leading scorer but rode the bench after the first quarter.

South Carolina trailed 19-10 after the first quarter. For head coach Dawn Staley, the decision to bench Fulwiley came because she wanted to go with the hotter defensive player.

“From a defensive standpoint, she lost her man a few times and gave up a couple of 3s,” Staley said.

Fulwiley entered the night averaging 15.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 23.5 minutes per game. She also has been sound defensively, with 10 steals and 7 blocks on the year.

But there’s still room for improvement, Staley said. And while the game showcased an area in which Fulwiley can improve, Staley also was looking out for her player.

“I know that’s probably one of the things she has to improve on, but it was such a nip-and-tuck game that I don’t want her to lose confidence,” Staley said. “She’ll know exactly why she didn’t get extended minutes. I’ve always told our players if you play well, you get extended minutes. If you don’t, they have to go to someone else. It could be you at times, it could not be you at times.”

After all, though South Carolina is ranked No. 1 in the country, the Gamecocks are still a young team and there will be growing pains. But they did rally in the second half to take the lead and the win from UNC. Their next game comes on the road at 1 p.m. ET Sunday against Duke.

“We just have such a young team that they got to know, and hopefully she doesn’t feel good about not playing as much as she probably wanted to,” Staley said. “Hopefully we can get her in at Duke and hopefully play some extended minutes, but she’s got to be ready to rock and roll.”

The NCAA basketball season has started off with a bang, with a number of freshmen already making names for themselves.

MiLaysia Fulwiley caught the attention of NBA great Magic Johnson in her very first game for South Carolina. And if Fulwiley and her fellows continue on their trajectories, then freshman of the year could be this season’s most competitive award — and a few freshmen could even play their way into the national player of the year conversation.

Just Women’s Sports takes a look at four freshman phenoms who have starred for their teams in the first month of the season.

JuJu Watkins, USC

Watkins has been vocal about having both freshman of the year and national player of the year aspirations – and so far, she’s off to a great start. On Monday, she snagged her third-straight Pac-12 Freshman of the Week selection, and she has helped No. 6 USC to its best AP poll ranking in 29 years.

Her first collegiate game set the tone. Her 32 points stands as the most ever by a USC freshman in their debut, beating out Lisa Leslie’s 30 points. And those 32 points came against a ranked opponent in Notre Dame. Just five games later, she broke Leslie’s record for the most 30-point games scored by a USC freshman. And what’s more? Her 26.8 points per game rank second in Division I behind only Iowa senior Caitlin Clark.

When USC trailed by six points to Penn State on Nov. 22, Watkins scored seven in a row to lead the still-undefeated Trojans to victory.

“JuJu is so phenomenal, to see her adapt to the college game and adapt as quickly is so impressive,” USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said of Watkins. And after her debut, Gottlieb said: “She’s ridiculous. Get used to it.”

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(Jeff Blake/USA TODAY Sports)

MiLaysia Fulwiley, South Carolina

Fulwiley turned heads with her season-opening performance against Notre Dame in Paris. And since then, she’s been a walking highlight reel for South Carolina, helping the team reach the No. 1 spot in the rankings.

The freshman guard is averaging the second-most points (15.0) for the Gamecocks behind only senior center Kamilla Cardoso (16.8). She’s also averaging 4.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.0 steals per game. The Gamecocks (5-0) had a lot of question marks after the departure of big names such as Aliyah Boston and Zia Cooke, but in Fulwiley, they’ve found an answer.

And what is perhaps scariest for South Carolina’s opponents is that Fulwiley still has a lot to learn when it comes to choosing her spots for her dazzling plays.

“She’s looking for a really great moment for her, a crowd-pleasing play. She has an appetite for it, that she loses sight of the in-between the great plays. And that’s where the game is being played,” head coach Dawn Staley said. “We gotta continue to give her more experiences in game-like situations. … But she’s learning.

“Not taking anything away from her. I want her to be great, I want her to be generational, I want her to be able to play a lot of different ways.”

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(Matt Cashore/USA TODAY Sports)

Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame

A three-time ACC Rookie of the Week, Hidalgo is off to a hot start for the Irish, averaging 25.0 points (good for third in Division I), 5.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and a 56.6% shooting through her first six games. She leads the ACC in both points and steals (6.3) per game.

Hidalgo set a Notre Dame record with 31 points in her first game. And earlier this month, she was named ACC Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week – just the second Notre Dame player to ever sweep such awards.

On top of that, she has 38 steals through six games. Her season high sits at 12 – which tied the Notre Dame record for a single game. She had 18 steals in a two-game span, which is the second-most by an ACC player in the last 25 seasons. She leads all Division I players in steals per game.

She also hasn’t posted below 20 points yet this season, and her six straight games with at least 20 points matches Beth Morgan and Arike Ogunbowale as the only players in Irish history to do so.

“I knew recruiting her what she was capable of providing for us,” head coach Niele Ivey said of Hidalgo. “I needed leadership. I needed scoring. And somebody that could just handle the ball … just the experience that she brings.

“And then we obviously fell in love with her. She has an incredible personality. So when you have that match with somebody with high character, somebody that plays with the unselfishness that she plays with, it fits into our system perfectly.”

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(Stephen R. Sylvanie/USA TODAY Sports)

Mikaylah Williams, LSU

Williams is another freshman who is making history. Against Kent State in mid-November, she scored 42 points, going 15-of-20 from the field while adding seven rebounds and three steals. Those 42 points set an LSU freshman record for points, and also stand as the most points in a single game for any LSU women’s basketball player in the last 25 seasons.

“She’s a special talent,” head coach Kim Mulkey said. “It was one of those moments where the rim feels as big as the ocean. I want to be that coach that pushes her beyond the limits. I think you’re just seeing her scratch the surface.”

She’s averaging 17.5 points per game, and her scoring touch has helped LSU rise to the sky-high expectations they faced ahead of the season – even amid some off-court turmoil.

For Williams to stand out among a top-ranked recruiting class at LSU is no small feat – especially considering the star transfers that the Tigers also brought in during the offseason, with both Hailey Van Lith and Aneesah Morrow making their mark.

No. 1 South Carolina only allowed 19 points in its rout of Mississippi Valley State on Friday, setting a program record for the fewest points allowed in a game. 

The Devils actually opened the game with a lead. They sank the first basket, and then the Gamecocks came to life. They went on to win, 101-19 — an 82-point margin. 

Seven South Carolina players registered double-digit numbers on the scoresheet, including Kamilla Cardoso, who put up a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Cardoso has four double-doubles in the Gamecocks’ five games. MiLaysia Fulwiley led her squad in the score column with 17 points. 

Cardoso’s stifling defense no doubt played a part in South Carolina’s victory. The six-foot-seven senior batted down five blocks, a third of her team’s total. The Gamecocks forced 19 turnovers and collected 20 points off the takeaways.

Te-Hina PaoPao returned to South Carolina’s lineup against Mississippi Valley and she contributed significantly to her team’s success. She is one of the seven players that reached double-digit scoring numbers with 10 points on the night and she grabbed 8 rebounds. 

“It makes a big difference to have someone like Pao who’s always cool, calm and collected,” South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said to Greenville News. “You have to guard her, and she doesn’t take bad shots. It was great to have her back on the floor.”

Sh’Diamond McKnight led the Devils in scoring with eight points. Her squad shot just 12% from the field and they scored just seven points in the second half.

South Carolina’s MiLaysia Fulwiley and Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo were playing in their first college basketball game Monday.

Not only that, but they were playing their first college basketball game all the way across the Atlantic Ocean in Paris. And they were doing so in front of a national audience on ESPN.

None of that slowed down the freshmen phenoms, who received praise from NBA legend Magic Johnson, Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant and Indiana Fever star Aliyah Boston.

Fulwiley and the No. 6 Gamecocks won the day, claiming a 100-71 win over the No. 10 Irish at Halles Georges Arena to open the season. A guard out of Columbia, South Carolina, Fulwiley contributed 17 points, six assists and six steals off the bench in her debut. She also made what Johnson described as “the best move in all of basketball.”

“I’m watching the women’s basketball game between South Carolina and Notre Dame right now and I just saw the best move in all of basketball, including the pros like LeBron, Steph, KD, Victor, and Jokic,” Johnson wrote on social media. “Everyone must see the coast-to-coast, behind-the-back move by freshman guard MiLaysia Fulwiley from South Carolina. WOW!!”

Fulwiley discussed the move with ESPN’s Holly Rowe after the game, saying: “That was my favorite move when I was in high school. So I just did it.”

Hidalgo, who hails from Haddonfield, New Jersey, scored a game-high 31 points. She became just the third guard since 2009 to score 30 or more points against the Gamecocks, joining Chennedy Carter and Paige Bueckers, per Her Hoops Stats.

“Hidalgo and Fulwiley moving DIFFERENT out here,” Durant wrote on social media.

Dawn Staley continues to clean up on the recruiting trail for South Carolina women’s basketball.

Five-star guard Milaysia Fulwiley announced her commitment to the Gamecocks on Thursday, making her the team’s fourth commitment in the 2023 class. All four are ranked inside the top 50, per ESPN.

A native of Columbia, South Carolina, Fulwiley is ranked No. 15 in Just Women’s Sports’ rankings, a few spots below fellow Gamecocks recruit Chloe Kitts.

ESPN’s HoopGurlz has her ranked No. 13, above the other South Carolina recruits (No. 17 Kitts, No. 25 Tessa Johnson and No. 40 Sahnya Jah).

Fulwiley plays for Keenan High School, which sits just minutes from South Carolina’s campus. She chose the Gamecocks over Ole Miss, Louisville and Florida.

“It took me a long time to pick and make my decision,” Fulwiley said during her commitment ceremony. “All the other colleges did a great job recruiting me and made it so hard for me to pick. But me being from South Carolina and staying here, I felt was the right choice. They got a great program, great academics and I think I will do great there.”

She said she made her decision on Tuesday and told Staley on Wednesday. While she’s excited to join the Gamecock family, she’s also excited to stay home and be a role model for other girls in the state of South Carolina.

“I think it is very important for me to stay in South Carolina,” Fulwiley later told reporters. “I have done so many great things here already. And for me to stay here and keep doing those things but now on the next level, I think is great. But not only for me but young girls who have looked up to me and other people who have looked up to me.”