CLEVELAND – Over the last decade, South Carolina women’s basketball has produced multiple first-round draft picks out of its frontcourt. They’re the anchors of the program, pivotal parts of a team that has built an identity on playing through its bigs.
To be the top option in South Carolina’s frontcourt is to join a group of elite playmakers that has powered the Gamecocks to the consistent success they’ve experienced under coach Dawn Staley. It was center Alaina Coates, then forwards A’ja Wilson and Aliyah Boston. This season, it’s center Kamilla Cardoso.
Next year, that baton could very likely be passed to sophomore forward Ashlyn Watkins and junior forward Sania Feagin.
With the approaching exit of Cardoso, who recently announced she’ll forgo her last season of eligibility to declare for the WNBA draft, Feagin and Watkins – and sophomore forward Chloe Kitts – are next up.
Watkins and Feagin are South Carolina’s frontcourt enforcers, two of the most lethal shot blockers in the country, who have contributed greatly this season to the Gamecocks, who will play NC State in the Final Four on Friday. The chemistry they share as an increasingly impenetrable defensive duo comes from a bond that they’ve built off the court.
“I look at her as my little sister,” Feagin said. “We chill with each other and spend a lot of time off the court.
“I feel like we understand each other and the type of way we play. It’s just amazing that she understands me and I understand her.”
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During a game, when Watkins and Feagin see an opponent’s frontcourt making an impact on the offensive end, they adopt a similar mindset. “We say we’re going to cut it down,” Feagin said.
Both are capable of producing highlight-level blocks during any contest. As they check into a game, they issue a challenge to each other they take literally.
“Don’t get scored on,” Feagin said. “We tell each other don’t get scored on.”
According to ESPN Stats & Information, the Gamecocks block 18% of 2-point attempts by their opponents, which ranks first in the country. When Feagin and Watkins are both on the floor, that percentage rises to an eye-popping 22.7%. With neither one on the floor, it drops to 15%. Overall, opponents shoot only 33.6% from the field when both Watkins and Feagin are on the court.
“That’s what we do,” Watkins said. “That’s what we like to do. We know that we’re on the help side. When one of our teammates gets beat, we know we’ve got to step up and help them. I think we both have that instinct in our heads to help our teammates.”
“The tenacity that they play with is incredible,” added Wilson, who was in Cleveland on Thursday participating in USA Basketball training camp.
Feagin, averaging 6.7 points and 3.8 rebounds for the Gamecocks, has seen her minutes almost double in her junior season. A key to Feagin’s offensive game has been her shooting efficiency. She is shooting 55.3% on the season and 66% when those shots come at the rim. If she maintains her current career shooting percentage of 57.4%, it would be the third-best percentage of any South Carolina player during the Staley era.
“Just being vocal, more of a communicator and stepping into the role when coach calls my number,” Feagin said of her growth this season. “Taking on any challenge that is given to me and being ready to go out there and do what I do.”
Feagin’s biggest improvement has been her increased ability to take care of the basketball. A year ago, she led the team with 4.7 turnovers per 40 minutes. This season, she’s cut her turnovers to 3.0 per 40 minutes while exhibiting impressive growth as a passer.. Feagin, who said she’s always felt comfortable as a distributor, has 37 assists this season, up from just 13 in her first two seasons.
“Just being able to see her growth has been something that makes me happy,” said Boston, who praised Feagin’s consistency this season.Boston said she texts the junior, encouraging her to keep progressing. “She’s such an impact player, and you can see it as her game continues to grow and how the team continues to push forward.”
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Watkins, appropriately nicknamed “Swatkins,” is averaging 4.8 blocks per 40 minutes this season, ranking third in Division I. The SEC all-conference second team honoree is also averaging 2.5 steals per 40 minutes. Watkins is the only player in Division I averaging 2.0 steals and 4.0 blocks per 40 minutes, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The only other South Carolina player to do it under Staley was Boston in 2019-2020.
“I think this year Ashlyn has been able to show everything that Ashlyn can do,” Boston said of Watkins, who is averaging 9.4 points and 7.1 rebounds this season. “I think you’re able to see her athleticism. I’m proud of what she’s been able to do and how composed she is and how self-aware she is. … Being able to see that growth from the beginning of the season till now is truly special.”
Watkins can single-handedly affect a game through her defense for South Carolina. Against Oregon State in the Elite Eight, the Beavers shot 0-for-8 (0-3 on 3-point field goals) when they were contested by Watkins, according to ESPN Stats and Information.
“I got more confident,” said Watkins, who ranks second on the team in field goal percentage (55.6%) and is shooting 64% at the rim. “I think that’s helped me grow out of my shell and express what I can do.”
The journeys for both Watkins and Feagin have required patience. As many players who come through South Carolina have experienced, the pair had to wait behind other star bigs before its turn to make an on-court impact.
When Feagin came to South Carolina, she was the No. 1 ranked player at her position and the fourth-ranked player in the class of 2021. Feagin didn’t make her first start for the Gamecocks until this season and averaged just over six minutes per game her first two years.
“I wouldn’t say it challenges me mentally, but I will say just a little bit,” she said. “You don’t have your mind prepared to sit your first two years of college.”
Feagin said she found the positive in her situation. She used the ability to go up against frontcourt players such as Boston and Cardoso in practice to push herself to improve.
“Me sitting, it kind of hurt a little bit, but it also made me better because it made me mentally stronger,” Feagin said. “My mom always told me, when my number is called, just go out there and do what you gotta do and make coach [Staley] play you.”
“It is challenging, but at the end of the day this is one of the best women’s basketball programs in the country,” Watkins said. She was the No. 12 player in the class of 2022 and has made 10 starts as a sophomore.
“You’ve got to take it one day at a time.”
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Before giving any thought to next season, both Watkins and Feagin are focused on positively impacting a South Carolina team making its third-consecutive appearance in the Final Four. The Gamecocks were upset by Iowa in the national semifinal a year ago.
Feagin said her team is ready for redemption.
“I remember that feeling [losing], and I don’t want to feel that feeling anymore,” Feagin said. “It’s motivated me and I feel like it’s motivating my team, also.”
When the time comes for Watkins and Feagin to become South Carolina’s go-to frontcourt, Wilson has some advice.
Don’t change your game.
“Being themselves, finding their niche, finding their way of being their next big in the program, I think that’s the best way,” Wilson said. “Don’t try to be like, ‘I’ve gotta rebound like Kamilla’ – no – that’s not your game. Find the way your game can be implemented in that system and then flourish in that.”
Added Boston: “I think they see and feel that immediate impact that they give as soon as they step on the floor. Once they are able to start the game like that, they [will] know that this is their spot.”
