South Carolina womenโs basketball clearly emerges as the biggest transfer portal winner ahead of the 2025โ26 season, and here’s why this offseason shift could reshape the SEC and national title race:
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๐ฅ South Carolinaโs Transfer Haul
1. Ta’Niya Latson (G, Jr.) โ from Florida State to South Carolina
Latson was the nationโs leading scorer in 2024โ25, averaging 25.2 PPG .
Her scoring firepower fills a major gap in the Gamecocksโ backcourt, adding elite offensive consistency to Dawn Staley’s squad.
As ESPN notes: โLatson tops the transfer rankings โฆ her move โฆ gives South Carolina a whole new look and alters the races in the ACC, SEC and for the national championshipโ .
2. Madina Okot (C, Sr.) โ from Mississippi State to South Carolina
The 6โฒ6โณ Kenyan center averaged an impressive 11.2 PPG and 9.6 RPG last season .
Okot brings strong rim protection, rebounding, and international versatilityโhelping fill out the frontcourt.
3. MiLaysia Fulwiley (G, So.) โ although she transfers out to LSU, it created portal momentum .
Together, the additions of Latson and Okot significantly bolster South Carolinaโs depth, scoring, and physicality. Combined with returning stars, this makes them arguably the top portal team nationally.
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๐ Context from the Transfer Landscape
SEC Rivals React
LSU gains Fulwiley, but loses Latson and Okotโthis head-to-head shift favors South Carolina in a pivotal conference rivalry .
UConn Reloads
The Huskies added Serah Williams (6โฒ2โณ forward from Wisconsin) and Kayleigh Heckel (USC guard) . Both are top-10 portal additions, but UConn remains a challengerโnot a dominator of the portal.
Maryland and Other Contenders
Maryland secured three key transfers (Oluchi Okananwa, Yarden Garzon, Gracie Merkle), earning top portal plauditsโyet none provide the immediate scoring boost of Latson .
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๐ Why South Carolina Edges Ahead
Factor South Carolina Nearest Rival
Top-end talent โ Latson โ Natโl leading scorer UConn adds role players
Frontcourt stability โ Okot โ near double-double machine Maryland bullish, but less explosive
Conference impact SEC dominance with star-level upgrades SEC rivals split gains (LSU