The majority of players want to join Geno Auriemma’s UConn, the most successful program over the past decade in women’s college basketball. However, who wouldn’t want to bask in the glory of playing for Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks?
That’s not exactly what Agot Makeer had in mind when she chose the Gamecocks last year. For her, it’s the challenge it represents playing in Columbia, South Carolina. That’s what drove her to pick Staley’s team. Makeer recently spoke to the press about her decision.
“I came here [South Carolina] to be challenged. I had other options, but I wanted to be coached by the best.”
And Makeer seems to have lived up to the expectations in her freshman season. She has averaged 6.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game while appearing in 28 encounters and starting in six for the Gamecocks this season.
Lindsay Gottlieb on What Agot Makeer Did For South Carolina in Its Second-round March Madness Game
Agot Makeer had a signature performance during their second-round game in the NCAA Tournament against the USC Trojans. The game was a huge victory for the Gamecocks, 101-61, which makes it all the more significant that the Trojans’ coach, Lindsay Gottlieb, took a moment to praise Makeer as one of the true difference-makers in the encounter.
“She obviously plays that role so well,” Gottlieb said. ” Clearly that’s something Raven (Johnson) has tried to pass on to her, being a lockdown defender.”
Dawn Staley praised the player, calling her the team’s X-factor this postseason.
“Whether she plays one minute, 15 minutes, 30 minutes. I think she has the ability to impact the game on both sides of the basketball,” Staley said. ” … We need her playing the way she’s playing in order for us to advance.”
Makeer is also incredibly proud to be the anointed successor to Raven Johnson and former South Carolina player Bree Hall. When asked about Johnson naming her so, Makeer expressed her excitement.
“I’m super excited to get that,” she said of carrying on the mantle. “I know it’s Breezy, I know it’s her, so only elite defenders can get that title.”
The game against USC was also one of her highest scoring ones this season, as she finished with 15 points in 26 minutes, while also recording two rebounds and three assists.
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