Dawn Staley hasn’t lost consecutive games since 2019, and there was no way she was going to allow one of her biggest SEC rivals to break that streak. So Staley did what needed to be done, replacing Madina Okot with Agot Makeer to completely outsmart the opposition. And it worked as the Gamecocks not just won but ended the Commodores’ historic 20-game winning streak. Basketball analysts Zena Keita and Sabreena Merchant got together to break down the game, where Merchant also felt that the locker room shift did wonders.

“There’s a reason they play that way because they have the personnel to support it. And so it was so interesting to me that Dawn Staley was like, you know what, Vanderbilt’s a team that gets a lot of motion in the half-court, they get a lot of threes. We want to be a little bit more flexible defensively, a little more switchable, and have more speed. Didn’t really start a center.”

“Joyce Edwards, I wouldn’t call her a center. They take out Madina Okot and put in Agot Makeer into the starting lineup, and they were just fast like blistering fast to start this game, and you can tell Vanderbilt was not prepared for it,” said Merchant on Dawn Staley’s smart team shift.

To match Vanderbilt’s fast movements, Staley strategically cut down a center and brought in a guard in Agot Makeer. That also meant that the size of the lineup shortened, which would improve perimeter defense and prevent Vanderbilt from showering threes like they normally do. Vanderbilt entered the game shooting 9.8 threes per game, which was the 5th most in the country.

But a smaller lineup also came with its share of problems for a team that does most damage in the paint (70.5%). While the smaller lineup seemed risky for a team that dominates the paint, the strategy paid off. South Carolina still scored 57 points in the paint by adjusting its approach.

Madina Okot, who had a quiet game against Oklahoma (6 points and 4 rebounds), did way more damage as she came off the bench (17 points and 7 rebounds), and Agot Makeer also played her part (8 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists) to perfection. The Gamecocks also scored 21 fast-break points compared to ten against Oklahoma. Despite going with a smaller starting lineup, they also won the rebounding battle 32-26. So it was a win-win for Staley.

Well, it might not have been a day that Shea Ralph would have envisioned, but for one of her stars, Mikayla Blakes, there should be reason to celebrate amidst the gloom.

Mikayla Blakes Named Naismith National Defensive Player of the Year

Despite the team’s loss, Vanderbilt star Mikayla Blakes received some major recognition. Blakes has been named to the 2025-26 Naismith National Defensive Player of the Year presented by MOLECULE Watch List, the organization announced last Tuesday.

Mikayla has found herself nominated among a group of 25 players, and she is one of the 12 players from the SEC, which is known for being a talent-laden conference. The Somerset, New Jersey, native has been a defensive stalwart for the Commodores this season, as Blakes leads the team in steals (66) and steals per game. So she isn’t just leading the team in terms of points per game (24.7) but also fortifying the Vanderbilt perimeter.

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The two-way standout is one of two NCAA Division I players to rank inside the top 15 nationally in points scored (2nd; 518) and total steals (12th; 66). The sophomore is third in the SEC in steals, and her 3.14 steals per game ranks fifth in the league. Mikayla has already made history with a record 20-straight wins, and it could have gone on for more games had the Gamecocks not put an end to their winning streak.

Either way, Blakes can surely hold her head high as she again delivered 23 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists to give her team a fighting chance. And at the end of the day, that is what matters: being resilient when the odds are against you.