South Carolina adds Benedict exhibition to 2026-27 women’s basketball schedule

South Carolina women’s basketball will have another tune-up opportunity before the 2026-27 regular season begins.

The Gamecocks have added an exhibition against Benedict College on October 23, giving Dawn Staley’s team a second preseason game after the previously announced matchup with College of Charleston.

The tipoff time for the Benedict game has not yet been announced.

Ticket information also remains unavailable, although past South Carolina exhibitions against Division II opponents have been free to attend.

A second exhibition changes the preseason picture

South Carolina originally announced only one exhibition when its 2026-27 schedule was released in August.

That game remains the unusual LinkU Invitational matchup against College of Charleston on September 27.

Rather than playing inside a traditional basketball arena, the Gamecocks will meet the Cougars outdoors at Credit One Stadium in Charleston.

The game is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will close a triple-header that also features Virginia against Vanderbilt at noon and College of Charleston against The Citadel at 2 p.m.

The weekend will begin Friday with a Chalk Talk involving all six teams, while Saturday includes a shootaround and a performance from comedian Nate Bargatze.

Adding Benedict gives South Carolina another opportunity to work through its roster before the games start counting.

That matters even more in a season where teams can now have a larger preseason workload.

What the Benedict game gives South Carolina

The value of an additional exhibition is not simply another game on the calendar.

It gives Staley another controlled environment in which to evaluate combinations, rotations and individual roles before the regular season arrives.

An exhibition against a Division II opponent can also provide opportunities that may be harder to find once the schedule becomes more demanding.

Young players can receive meaningful minutes.

Returning players can test changes to their roles.

Coaches can experiment with different lineups without the same consequences attached to a regular-season result.

The biggest benefit could come from what South Carolina learns rather than what appears on the final scoreboard.

For a program that routinely has significant expectations surrounding it, those early evaluations can help clarify which combinations deserve more time once SEC play becomes the focus.

Why South Carolina can play more exhibitions now

The additional game is possible because of changes to NCAA rules governing preseason competition.

Programs are now permitted to schedule as many as three exhibitions along with 32 regular-season games.

That represents a significant change from the previous structure.

For years, teams generally had one public scrimmage against a Division II opponent and one private scrimmage against a Division I opponent.

The private matchup became commonly known as a “secret scrimmage.”

The NCAA later began granting waivers that allowed Division I programs to play public exhibitions against other Division I teams.

South Carolina used one of those opportunities in 2023 when it faced Rutgers.

By last season, those waivers were no longer necessary.

The latest change expands the options again, allowing teams to use up to three exhibitions and giving programs more freedom over how those games are arranged.

The matchups can be public or private and can involve Division I or Division II opponents.

That flexibility gives coaching staffs more control over what they want to accomplish during preseason preparation.

South Carolina now has two very different tests

The two announced exhibitions should give the Gamecocks very different environments.

The September 27 matchup with College of Charleston comes with an unusual setting and a broader event surrounding it.

Playing outdoors at Credit One Stadium adds another variable before South Carolina even gets into the basketball itself.

The Benedict matchup should instead provide a more traditional preseason setting, although the specific venue and tipoff details have not been announced in the supplied information.

That contrast could be useful.

South Carolina can use the earlier game to get players accustomed to the broader demands of the season while using the later exhibition to sharpen rotations and roles closer to opening night.

There is also a practical advantage to having another competitive game on the schedule.

Instead of relying almost entirely on practices and closed scrimmage situations, Staley’s staff now has another public game in which to evaluate the group.

The current exhibition schedule

The Gamecocks can schedule up to three exhibitions under the new rules, so these two games do not necessarily represent the maximum available to South Carolina.

There is no information in the supplied report confirming that a third exhibition has been scheduled.

The bigger question is how Staley uses the extra game

For South Carolina, the interesting part of the October 23 announcement is what the extra game makes possible.

A second exhibition gives the coaching staff another checkpoint before the regular season.

By late October, there should be a clearer picture of which players are fitting together, which lineups are working and where adjustments are still needed.

That could make the Benedict game particularly useful for rotation decisions.

If Staley wants to test a deeper group, she has another opportunity to do so.

If she wants to tighten the rotation ahead of the regular season, the same game can serve that purpose.

The NCAA rule change also gives programs more flexibility to create these evaluation opportunities throughout the preseason.

South Carolina’s schedule now reflects that expanded flexibility.

For Gamecocks fans, the immediate takeaway is simple: the 2026-27 team will have at least two chances to take the floor before the games begin counting, with the Benedict exhibition adding another important preparation date to the calendar.

The South Carolina women’s basketball schedule now includes the September 27 College of Charleston exhibition and the October 23 Benedict exhibition, giving the Gamecocks two confirmed preseason opportunities ahead of the 2026-27 season.

FAQs

When will South Carolina play Benedict in women’s basketball?

South Carolina is scheduled to face Benedict in an exhibition on October 23, 2026.

What time is the South Carolina vs. Benedict exhibition?

The tipoff time has not yet been announced.

How many exhibitions can South Carolina schedule?

Under the current NCAA rules described in the supplied report, teams can schedule up to three exhibitions.

Who does South Carolina play in its first exhibition?

The Gamecocks are scheduled to play College of Charleston on September 27 in the LinkU Invitational at Credit One Stadium in Charleston.

Is the Benedict game part of the regular season?

No.

The Benedict matchup is an exhibition and will take place before South Carolina’s regular-season games.

South Carolina’s 2026-27 schedule now has two confirmed exhibitions, including the newly added Benedict matchup, making the South Carolina women’s basketball schedule a little more complete heading into the new season.