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COLUMBIA — Dawn Staley was patient and it paid off.
Last fall, concern grew among South Carolina women's basketball fans when recruits began passing on the Gamecocks.
The No. 1 overall recruit Saniyah Hall took an official visit but went with Southern Cal. No. 2 Olivia Vukosa picked UConn but had South Carolina in her final five. The No. 7 McKenna Woliczko was heavily recruited by Staley but went with Iowa. No. 3 Oliviyah Edwards was scheduled for a visit in September but committed to Tennessee six days before.
In early October, Staley slowly started building her 2026 class starting with four-star forward Kelsi Andrews. But at SEC Media Days, Staley made a playful comment about only having one commit so far when asked a general question about recruiting.
South Carolina gained some momentum when five-star forward Kaeli Wynn committed in November.
Right before Christmas, Staley secured five-star Jerzy Robinson.
Months later, when the roster looked set aside from transfer portal moves, Edwards decommitted from the Lady Vols April 7. She then visited South Carolina April 14 and nine days later, committed to the Gamecocks.
Since Edwards was the 14th player on a team that usually carries between 12-13, it came as a bit of a surprise when the program announced the addition of Justine Loubens on April 29. She's a 6-foot-1 shooting guard from France who will have four years of eligibility. ESPN has her as a four-star.
Andrews was the No. 18 overall player by ESPN but she dropped to No. 30 in the updated rankings from April 10. Wynn went from No. 17 to No. 19 and Robinson went from No. 5 to No. 6. Edwards was No. 2 when she signed with Tennessee but is now No. 3.
ESPN's final rankings have South Carolina at No. 2 overall for this year's class, a jump from March 17 when the Gamecocks were fourth.
Southern Cal still has the top overall recruiting class for 2026, followed by South Carolina, Texas, Duke and Notre Dame.
The last time Staley had the No. 2 overall recruiting class was in 2023 and the first was 2014. This marks her third year with the second-best recruiting class and fifth time overall with a top-two class.
Her most recent No. 1 overall recruiting class was 2021, when she had four five-star recruits. The top prospect was No. 2 Raven Johnson, followed by No. 3 Saniya Rivers, No. 4 Sania Feagin and No. 14 Bree Hall.
Rivers transferred to NC State after her freshman year. The trio of Johnson, Feagin and Hall won two national championships, four SEC-regular season titles, went to four Final Fours and won three SEC Tournament titles before getting drafted into the WNBA.
This year marks the first time since 2021 that Staley had three or more five-stars in a signing class. In 2023, two of her four were five-stars and in 2024 and 2025 she signed only two players in each class.
Her 2019 class, better known as "The Freshies," was her first No. 1 overall class. That included four five-stars as well, starting with the No. 3 prospect Aliyah Boston, No. 4 Zia Cooke, No. 10 Laeticia Amihere and No. 11 Brea Beal.
When they were juniors, they carried the program to a national championship in 2022. The group lost three games in four seasons and won three SEC-regular season titles and three SEC Tournament titles to go with three Final Fours. All four were drafted into the WNBA, including Boston, who went No. 1 overall.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at [email protected]. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Dawn Staley, South Carolina 2026 recruiting class overcame slow start
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Last fall, concern grew among South Carolina women's basketball fans when recruits began passing on the Gamecocks.
The No. 1 overall recruit Saniyah Hall took an official visit but went with Southern Cal. No. 2 Olivia Vukosa picked UConn but had South Carolina in her final five. The No. 7 McKenna Woliczko was heavily recruited by Staley but went with Iowa. No. 3 Oliviyah Edwards was scheduled for a visit in September but committed to Tennessee six days before.
In early October, Staley slowly started building her 2026 class starting with four-star forward Kelsi Andrews. But at SEC Media Days, Staley made a playful comment about only having one commit so far when asked a general question about recruiting.
South Carolina gained some momentum when five-star forward Kaeli Wynn committed in November.
Right before Christmas, Staley secured five-star Jerzy Robinson.
Months later, when the roster looked set aside from transfer portal moves, Edwards decommitted from the Lady Vols April 7. She then visited South Carolina April 14 and nine days later, committed to the Gamecocks.
Since Edwards was the 14th player on a team that usually carries between 12-13, it came as a bit of a surprise when the program announced the addition of Justine Loubens on April 29. She's a 6-foot-1 shooting guard from France who will have four years of eligibility. ESPN has her as a four-star.
Andrews was the No. 18 overall player by ESPN but she dropped to No. 30 in the updated rankings from April 10. Wynn went from No. 17 to No. 19 and Robinson went from No. 5 to No. 6. Edwards was No. 2 when she signed with Tennessee but is now No. 3.
ESPN's final rankings have South Carolina at No. 2 overall for this year's class, a jump from March 17 when the Gamecocks were fourth.
Southern Cal still has the top overall recruiting class for 2026, followed by South Carolina, Texas, Duke and Notre Dame.
Dawn Staley's recruiting history at South Carolina
The last time Staley had the No. 2 overall recruiting class was in 2023 and the first was 2014. This marks her third year with the second-best recruiting class and fifth time overall with a top-two class.
Her most recent No. 1 overall recruiting class was 2021, when she had four five-star recruits. The top prospect was No. 2 Raven Johnson, followed by No. 3 Saniya Rivers, No. 4 Sania Feagin and No. 14 Bree Hall.
Rivers transferred to NC State after her freshman year. The trio of Johnson, Feagin and Hall won two national championships, four SEC-regular season titles, went to four Final Fours and won three SEC Tournament titles before getting drafted into the WNBA.
This year marks the first time since 2021 that Staley had three or more five-stars in a signing class. In 2023, two of her four were five-stars and in 2024 and 2025 she signed only two players in each class.
Her 2019 class, better known as "The Freshies," was her first No. 1 overall class. That included four five-stars as well, starting with the No. 3 prospect Aliyah Boston, No. 4 Zia Cooke, No. 10 Laeticia Amihere and No. 11 Brea Beal.
When they were juniors, they carried the program to a national championship in 2022. The group lost three games in four seasons and won three SEC-regular season titles and three SEC Tournament titles to go with three Final Fours. All four were drafted into the WNBA, including Boston, who went No. 1 overall.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at [email protected]. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Dawn Staley, South Carolina 2026 recruiting class overcame slow start
Continue reading...
