South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley’s got jokes for Ta’Niya Latson after Sweet 16 explosion

Top-seeded South Carolina women’s basketball advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament with a 94-68 win over Oklahoma on Saturday, fueled by a standout game from Ta’Niya Latson.

Latson scored 28 points in her first Sweet 16 appearance, helping the Gamecocks (34-3) continue their dominant postseason run. Raven Johnson added 18 points as South Carolina built a double-digit lead in the first quarter and never lost control.

After the game, coach Dawn Staley had a lighthearted reaction to Latson’s scoring while also speaking on her impact and growth within the program. Latson scored 30 in the second round last season.

“I mean, it’s impressive, but … she’s shortchanging us. She only had … what 28? she couldn’t get two more points,” Staley said in a video posted on X, formerly Twitter, by Matt Dowell of WACH Fox. “But I’m happy for tonight … she knows what she wanted, from her experience here in South Carolina, she made a commitment to it.”

Ta'Niya Latson's told us how excited she is to be in the Sweet 16 for the 1st time. Asked Staley how impressive it is that she met the moment.

Dawn jokes she had 30 pts in the 2nd RD last year: "She couldn't get 2 more points?"

Then shouts out @LuluKesin's article about Latson pic.twitter.com/xnhE0Dfu8A

— Matt Dowell (@MattDowellTV) March 29, 2026

Latson helped spark South Carolina’s early momentum, scoring eight of the team’s first 10 points as the Gamecocks opened on a 10-0 run. She finished the first half with 18 points, helping build a 47-28 lead at the break.

Joyce Edwards added eight points and nine rebounds in the second half, and the Gamecocks limited any comeback attempt by Oklahoma (26-8).

Staley also emphasized the program’s long-term support for Latson and its goals for her future.

“I hope … she understands that we only want the best for her. We want her to experience incredible things, including the Final Four, including, you know, getting drafted in the WNBA at a at a high clip, and hoping she could reap the benefits off of that new collective bargaining agreement,” Staley said.

South Carolina will face TCU on Monday with a trip to the Final Four on the line.

Reporting by Doug Feinberg of the Associated Press contributed to this article. 

The post South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley’s got jokes for Ta’Niya Latson after Sweet 16 explosion appeared first on ClutchPoints.