Thursday night at the Yuengling Center, 3,767 fans watched the South Carolina forward put on a show against South Florida. Leading the Gamecocks to a 103-44 rout, Joyce Edwards left fans and coaches in awe.

In the postgame interview, Dawn Staley praised her as a true competitor. “Joyce wants to score a lot of points, and she’s very capable of doing that,” Staley said. “But she isn’t just a scorer, she’s a really great playmaker. She can make the play that’s supposed to be made, and we’re challenging her to open up that part of her game.”

Joyce Edwards had already scored a career-high 29 points against Penn State Lady Lions just four days ago. However, Edwards delivered again.

She scored a career-high 34 points on 13-of-14 shooting, adding five rebounds, two blocks, and a steal. Edwards became the first player since A’ja Wilson (2017-18) to score 25 or more points in three consecutive games.

With 4:42 left in the fourth quarter, Edwards converted a layup off an assist from Raven Johnson, pushing South Carolina past 94 points. She entered the game averaging a team-high 20.3 points per game, up from 12.7 last season, and this marked her seventh game of the season scoring over 20 points for No. 3 South Carolina (11-1).

Staley further added, “She’s developing quite nicely. The most important thing is she’s a competitor, she wants to win.”

Edwards is also averaging 30.2 minutes and 3.1 assists per game, up from 1.2 last season.

But this win against South Florida wasn't just hers.

Joyce Edwards’ Team was Dominant on the Court

It was South Carolina’s fifth 100-plus point game of the season and their seventh win by 40 points or more. South Carolina dominated from the start, going on a 10-0 run midway through the first to take a 28-15 lead.

Madina Okot recorded 10 rebounds, whereas Raven Johnson had 6 assists against Floridas' L'or Mputu's 7 rebounds and Carla Brito's 4 assists.

By halftime, the Gamecocks were up 52-25, and they outscored South Florida 27-6 in the fourth.

Next up, the Gamecocks face Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday.

Written by

Ishika Ghosh

Edited by

Joyita Das