The sad feelings around South Carolina losing to UConn in the National Championship clearly are not lasting long in Columbia. South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley is just two days removed from losing to UConn in the big game, but she is already making big moves.
With South Carolina losing such a large part of their team with the senior class leaving, Staley knew she had to turn to the transfer portal for her biggest needs next season.
Boy, did Staley deliver as she went into the portal and pulled out a star that should make an immediate impact for the Gamecocks next season. Staley landed Ta'Niya Latson, a former Florida State guard who led all of women's college basketball in scoring this past season, averaging 25.2 per game.
Even bigger news came out just minutes after that though.
South Carolina senior Raven Johnson announces she will return for her fifth and final season
South Carolina star Raven Johnson, whom most thought would be heading to the WNBA Draft after this season, has announced that she will be staying with the Gamecocks for one more season. Johnson made the announcement via social media just after the announcement about Latson's commitment came out.
LET’S RUN IT BACK TWIN!!!! @NiyaLatson ❤️❤️ pic.twitter.com/epZ8BGsURJ
— R A V E N (@HollywoodRaven) April 8, 2025
The most likely reason for news of both of these players breaking so close to each other is because Johnson and Latson used to be teammates back in high school. Johnson and Latson both played at Westlake High School adn both played on the same AAU team as well.
The duo split when attending college as Johnson chose South Carolina and Latson chose Florida State. Now the two former teammates are reunited with Staley at South Carolina and this duo could be one no team wants to face next season.
Johnson coming back for one more season is something every South Carolina wants to see as she is a part of the winningest class in women's basketball. Johnson this past season saw a small dip in her minutes, but with the number of players Staley used this season, Johnson had more time to breathe. The Georgia native averaged just 4.9 points this season, 2.8 assists, and 1.4 steals.
Staley knew she needed to make a splash in the transfer portal, and she just had the biggest cannonball anyone had ever seen. Latson is a huge addition to the team for next season and will be integral in helping the Gamecocks get back to the title game.