The tears had not fully dried when Agot Makeer was already thinking about next year.
Moments after South Carolina’s 79-51 loss to UCLA in the national championship game — the program’s second consecutive runner-up finish — the freshman guard was direct about where her mind had already gone.
“I hope I can bring more to the table because obviously what I brought is not enough,” Makeer said. “Get better in the offseason, get healthy in the offseason and keep it going.”
It was a revealing statement — equal parts accountability and hunger. It also somewhat undersold what Makeer had just done over the previous six games.
What She Did in March
Without Makeer, South Carolina may not have reached the Final Four at all. The 6-foot-1 freshman averaged 14 points per game through the NCAA Tournament — second on the team — while shooting 55 percent from the floor and 46.2 percent from three. She added 2.3 assists and 2.2 steals per game across the six-game run.
The individual moments were just as significant as the aggregate numbers. She posted a career-high 18 points with four rebounds, three assists, and three steals in the Elite Eight win over TCU. She followed that with 14 points in the Final Four victory over UConn — going 2-of-2 from three, including a buzzer-beater to close the first quarter and a second make with six minutes remaining that stretched a four-point lead to seven. In the title game against UCLA, she connected on another timely three early to keep things within reach before finishing with 11 points.
A Season Interrupted — Then Transformed
Getting to that point was not a straight line. Makeer sustained a concussion in late November, missing five games before returning in late December. She had barely settled back into the rotation when a lower leg injury in late January cost her three more games. The injury-shortened season left her averaging 19.3 minutes across 32 appearances — still the most for a first-year Gamecock since Brea Beal in 2019-20.
Both Makeer and coach Dawn Staley pointed to something beyond physical health when explaining the postseason breakthrough.
“I feel like my mindset changed, starting in the SEC Tournament I just started approaching games differently,” Makeer said. “I feel like it wasn’t just one-dimensional thinking. I just wanted to go and do whatever I can to get the team to win.”
Staley credited the program’s culture of earned trust — and noted that Makeer responded to the challenge in a way that made decisions easy.
“For our program, you’ve got to show and prove to us and actually do the things that we need you to do in practice,” Staley said. “Because we know that if you do, it’s a no-brainer, it’s going to happen in the game. Agot, she was in and out with injuries, then she got pushed up to knowing that she was going to play. I do think she’s a different player when she knows she’s going to play.”
Staley was equally clear-eyed about where Makeer’s ceiling sits.
“We just really challenged her to go out there and be who she is. She’s had a tremendous postseason. And her future is bright.”
What Comes Next
The roster around Makeer shifts in meaningful ways heading into 2026-27. Ta’Niya Latson has departed for the WNBA, opening a starting guard spot. Texas transfer Jordan Lee arrives with one year on Makeer in terms of experience, giving Staley options at the position. Senior guard Raven Johnson offered the clearest endorsement of Makeer’s potential: her basketball IQ is “above and beyond,” Johnson said, adding that she had never seen a freshman who understood the game the way Makeer does.
Whether Makeer starts or comes off the bench, her value to this program does not diminish. A healthy Makeer — quick, capable of creating off the dribble and shooting off the catch, with the defensive instincts to disrupt in the passing lanes — is a problem for opponents regardless of when she checks in. If anything, deploying her as a second-unit weapon against a fatigued starting five could be precisely the kind of tactical advantage that defines deep tournament runs.
The question heading into next season is not whether Makeer can contribute. She answered that decisively in March. The question is how much of what emerged in the postseason she can sustain across an entire year — and if she can, South Carolina has a genuine star in the making.
