The No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks opened their 2026-27 campaign with a victory overseas, holding off a furious second-half push from No. 20 Maryland for a 101-93 win in Paris on Monday. Head coach Dawn Staley’s team built a massive cushion early, then had to hang on as the Terrapins chipped away.
A Blazing Start Echoes 2023
The opening stretch recalled South Carolina’s previous Paris appearance in 2023, a 29-point rout of Notre Dame. The Gamecocks hit their first seven field goal attempts and ripped off a 26-5 run to begin the night. The advantage swelled to 31 points at its peak.
Maryland refused to fold, though. Sophomore guard Addi Mack erupted for 35 points and pulled the Terrapins within six in the closing minute, but the comeback fell short.
“It was a tale of two halves,” Staley said. “You certainly gotta play for 40 minutes every time we step on the floor.”
The Gamecocks were efficient from the floor overall, finishing 49.3% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc, and they stayed above the 50% mark from both spots for much of the night. South Carolina moves to 1-0 and now turns toward a showdown with No. 12 North Carolina on Sunday after returning stateside.
Agot Makeer Steals the Spotlight
Sophomore guard Agot Makeer turned in the performance of her young career. She posted career highs with 20 points, 8-of-10 shooting, and four made threes, and she added two blocks and two steals.
Her output came despite foul trouble. Two early fouls in the first quarter sent her to the bench sooner than Staley would have liked, and she still logged 25 minutes in a starting role. With more time on the floor, her numbers could have climbed higher.
“Gotti always has a way of meeting the moment and today we needed every single one of her points,” Staley said.
Starters Carry the Load
The bench contributed little to the scoring column, but the starting group made that a non-issue. Four of the five starters reached double figures: Joyce Edwards led all scorers with 23, followed by Makeer’s 20, Tessa Johnson’s 15 and Jordan Lee’s 13. Chloe Kitts fell just short with eight.
Staley leaned on a tight, roughly seven-player rotation. Ashlyn Watkins and Jerzy Robinson were the only reserves to play more than 10 minutes, and Robinson supplied 15 of the bench’s 22 points.
“I thought Jerzy did great,” Staley said. “I thought she was super composed… She made passes that were real natural to her. I think she does a great, great job at just seeing the floor. I thought she was really efficient from the floor, and when a player like that, no matter how young they are, if they have it going on like that, she was in it at the end of the basketball game.”
How the Lead Shrank
South Carolina carried a 61-33 halftime advantage and looked comfortably in control. Then Mack took over. She scored all but four of her points after the break, including 17 in a third quarter that Maryland won 26-17. Staley said Mack went right at the “heart” of South Carolina’s defense.
“To be quite honest, we had breakdowns, and she made us pay,” Staley said. “…The game plan was pretty good in the first and second quarters. The third quarters we got a little bit tight, probably got a little bit fatigued, and we lost our competitive spirit on that end of the floor. We got to find a way to finish the game for 40 minutes. But, Addi did a great job. You don’t want to be on the opposing side of it.”
The numbers back up the slide. South Carolina’s shooting dipped to 33% in the third quarter, and the team committed nearly 20 turnovers, most in the second half. The early dominance relied on transition offense and interior scoring: the Gamecocks piled up 32 fast-break points, mostly before halftime, and their paint scoring fell from 34 points in the first half to 18 in the second. Maryland outscored South Carolina 60-40 over the final two quarters.
“Maryland got into a rhythm,” Staley said. “They turned us over, sometimes we took quick shots, and then they drove the ball down our throats, and we were unable to stop the bleeding. And as Chloe said, we do have to get better. These games are for exposing us to things that we need to get better at, and also expose us to things that we are good at.”
Upcoming South Carolina Schedule
– Sunday, Nov. 8: vs. No. 12 North Carolina, 5:30 p.m., ESPN (Ally Tipoff, Charlotte, NC)
– Thursday, Nov. 12: at Clemson, 7:30 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2
– Sunday, Nov. 15: vs. No. 3 Southern Cal, 1 p.m., ABC (The Real SC, Greenville)
– Tuesday, Nov. 17: vs. Florida Gulf Coast, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
– Saturday, Nov. 21: at Providence, 1:30 p.m., Peacock
