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COLUMBIA, SC – South Carolina center Madina Okot has had a long journey to the Women’s NCAA Tournament. The Gamecocks are glad she’s made it.
Okot dominated through the first two rounds, averaging 15 points and 11.5 rebounds. It’s nothing new: She finished the regular season averaging a double-double.
Her 6-foot-6 frame and powerful defensive and rebounding presence will be even more crucial as South Carolina faces elite inside players such as Oklahoma’s Raegan Beers, whom they’ll meet in the Sweet 16.
Gamecocks guard Raven Johnson, the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, calls Okot “my backbone on the court.”
The last time the Gamecocks took the court against Oklahoma, on Jan. 22 in Norman, Oklahoma, Okot was in a midseason slump. The matchup did not help, and she was removed from the starting lineup after scoring six points and grabbing four rebounds. The Gamecocks lost the game in overtime, 94-82.
Head coach Dawn Staley believed the young star needed to get out of the spotlight to find her rhythm.
“Madina has worked harder than she's probably ever had to work,” Staley said. “They may think they're alone. They may think it's really tough, but we're right there beside their side going through it with them.
“But they do have to get through.”
Okot transferred from Mississippi State after last season. In the summer, overwhelmed by the heightened expectations and workload as well as homesickness, she questioned whether she wanted to play at all. She wanted to return home to Mumias, Kenya.
“I remember her crying, breaking down, telling me how hard it was,” Johnson, her roommate, said. “I would just tell her: ‘Madina you signed up for something really big. This is not Mississippi State – this is South Carolina.’”
Okot’s parents and seven siblings were more than 7,000 miles away. While Okot is thankful for modern technology and the ability to stay in contact with her family, the pressures and culture change at times seemed insurmountable.
Okot found her way back into the starting lineup when the Gamecocks played her former team, Mississippi State, on Feb. 5. She finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in the 88-45 win.
She’s since started every game and finished the regular season with seven consecutive double-doubles, including back-to-back games against Missouri and Kentucky in which she led the team in scoring.
The key to the return? Her new family in South Carolina.
“It’s hard but when you have people like my teammates and my coaching staff… they make it feel like your home away from home,” Okot said.
Okot knows she’s found a strong person to support her in Staley, someone she’s learned to trust and depend on.
“She gives both a coach and parent vibes,” Okot said. “That makes it so easy for me to be away from home and to be on the team.”
Okot has also found herself a part of a supportive community with her teammates, namely Johnson.
“She’s like a sister to me,” said Okot. “I honestly didn’t expect that, having come from Africa all the way here… she’s always there looking after me.”
Johnson is helping Okot navigate a sport that is still new to her. Her first love was volleyball. She wasn’t introduced to basketball until 2020 in high school.
“Where I was born and raised, I had never seen a basketball court,” Okot said.
She had to move to a region more than 400 miles from her home to learn to play basketball, which would eventually bring her to the United States.
Staley and Johnson are determined to see Okot live up to her potential, emphasizing she is in the middle of a big opportunity. The Gamecocks are trying to win their third title in five years and will need Okot’s strength and dominance.
“We can hold their hands, but they're going to have to step through the moment,” Staley said.
Peter Bartlett and Grant Turnage are students in the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Madina Okot’s strength and support fuel South Carolina's march to Sweet 16
Continue reading...
Okot dominated through the first two rounds, averaging 15 points and 11.5 rebounds. It’s nothing new: She finished the regular season averaging a double-double.
Her 6-foot-6 frame and powerful defensive and rebounding presence will be even more crucial as South Carolina faces elite inside players such as Oklahoma’s Raegan Beers, whom they’ll meet in the Sweet 16.
Gamecocks guard Raven Johnson, the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, calls Okot “my backbone on the court.”
The last time the Gamecocks took the court against Oklahoma, on Jan. 22 in Norman, Oklahoma, Okot was in a midseason slump. The matchup did not help, and she was removed from the starting lineup after scoring six points and grabbing four rebounds. The Gamecocks lost the game in overtime, 94-82.
Head coach Dawn Staley believed the young star needed to get out of the spotlight to find her rhythm.
“Madina has worked harder than she's probably ever had to work,” Staley said. “They may think they're alone. They may think it's really tough, but we're right there beside their side going through it with them.
“But they do have to get through.”
Okot transferred from Mississippi State after last season. In the summer, overwhelmed by the heightened expectations and workload as well as homesickness, she questioned whether she wanted to play at all. She wanted to return home to Mumias, Kenya.
“I remember her crying, breaking down, telling me how hard it was,” Johnson, her roommate, said. “I would just tell her: ‘Madina you signed up for something really big. This is not Mississippi State – this is South Carolina.’”
Okot’s parents and seven siblings were more than 7,000 miles away. While Okot is thankful for modern technology and the ability to stay in contact with her family, the pressures and culture change at times seemed insurmountable.
Okot found her way back into the starting lineup when the Gamecocks played her former team, Mississippi State, on Feb. 5. She finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in the 88-45 win.
She’s since started every game and finished the regular season with seven consecutive double-doubles, including back-to-back games against Missouri and Kentucky in which she led the team in scoring.
The key to the return? Her new family in South Carolina.
“It’s hard but when you have people like my teammates and my coaching staff… they make it feel like your home away from home,” Okot said.
Okot knows she’s found a strong person to support her in Staley, someone she’s learned to trust and depend on.
“She gives both a coach and parent vibes,” Okot said. “That makes it so easy for me to be away from home and to be on the team.”
Okot has also found herself a part of a supportive community with her teammates, namely Johnson.
“She’s like a sister to me,” said Okot. “I honestly didn’t expect that, having come from Africa all the way here… she’s always there looking after me.”
Johnson is helping Okot navigate a sport that is still new to her. Her first love was volleyball. She wasn’t introduced to basketball until 2020 in high school.
“Where I was born and raised, I had never seen a basketball court,” Okot said.
She had to move to a region more than 400 miles from her home to learn to play basketball, which would eventually bring her to the United States.
Staley and Johnson are determined to see Okot live up to her potential, emphasizing she is in the middle of a big opportunity. The Gamecocks are trying to win their third title in five years and will need Okot’s strength and dominance.
“We can hold their hands, but they're going to have to step through the moment,” Staley said.
Peter Bartlett and Grant Turnage are students in the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Madina Okot’s strength and support fuel South Carolina's march to Sweet 16
Continue reading...
