South Carolina's basketball lineup just got that much better for its women's hoops squad.
Dawn Staley is building a consistent winner, and one of the most important elements of doing so is winning in the recruiting game both with high school athletes and in the transfer portal. The heralded coach hit a slam dunk by landing Oliviyah Edwards, the No. 3 overall player in the 2026 recruiting class.
This is a huge win not only for the Gamecocks because of what Edwards brings to the table as a pure talent, but also from a different standpoint. Edwards was almost the one that got away.
The 6-foot-3 forward had included the Gamecocks in her initial final cut earlier in her recruitment process, but Edwards chose to go in a different direction. She committed to Tennessee on Sept. 13, pledging to the Vols not long after she canceled her initial visit to South Carolina.
But that's all in the past -- she's theirs now in Gamecock Country. And with the 5-star picking the Gamecocks, South Carolina's projected starting lineup is looking like it could be Edwards, Joyce Edwards, Jordan Lee, Maddy McDaniel and Chloe Kitts. Things could obviously change there, but that projected starting five for now should have fans dreaming of winning it all next season.
Breaking: Oliviyah Edwards, the No. 3 ranked player in the SC Next 100 for the Class of 2026, has committed to South Carolina, she tells ESPN’s @ShaneLaflin. pic.twitter.com/P2Cy7RXuMS
— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) April 23, 2026
Oliviyah Edwards commits to South Carolina in another huge win for Dawn Staley
Make no bones about it, this as big of a get as big gets. Edwards was previously the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2026 recruiting cycle when the Gamecocks came up just short of landing her. In addition to South Carolina, Florida, LSU, USC and Washington all lost the Edwards sweepstakes as well.
As she continues her college career with an SEC rival -- something that is sure to sting for the Lady Vols -- her dunking ability and other parts of her game will be a major asset for South Carolina. Edwards, earlier in her process, expressed her versatility and strengths in an interview with On3.
“I think that as a big, I do have good handles. I could also post up the little, tiny ones," she said. "I feel like it’s hard to guard when I can shoot, I can get to the basket and I could create my own shot. That’s really hard to guard, especially with my height. I also know how to pass the ball too.”
She also expressed that more than just a scheme fit or where she felt like she would do best on the court, that the environment was more important than anything else.
"How do the players get along? How do the coaches coach? What’s the style of play? I really want to fit in here, not just basketball wise," Edwards continued. "I want them to love me for who I am and everything I’ve got going on. I want to be able to call these girls my sisters... These are people I want to have long, deep connections with.”
Clearly South Carolina checked off all those boxes...
South Carolina's offseason continues to get better for Dawn Staley
The Gamecocks landing Edwards is the headliner, for sure. But when it comes to the transfer portal, it is also all about what a team manages to hang on to, especially in such a competitive and murky NIL era.
That is yet another area where Dawn Staley can hang her hat. Her squad is the only team in the SEC to not lose a single player from its roster during the latest transfer portal cycle. On top of that, the Gamecocks have brought in Lee from Texas.
It will be interesting to see how things progress moving forward for South Carolina, but it's evident the culture Staley has instilled both draws in and keeps players of the highest echelon in the NCAA's most competitive conference.
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