South Carolina Trailed 25-16 on Offensive Rebounds, Yet the Rebound Rate Favored the Gamecocks

South Carolina beat College of Charleston 91-60 in an exhibition on Sept. 27 at Credit One Stadium. Charleston held a 25-16 advantage on the offensive boards, while South Carolina won the total rebound count 41-35. Coach Dawn Staley listed too many offensive rebounds allowed among the problems she saw. The raw count supports her concern. The rate at which each team recovered its own misses points to a different result. Yahoo Sports postandcourier

What the totals imply

An offensive rebound can only follow a missed shot, so the count depends on how many shots a team misses. Subtracting each team’s offensive rebounds from its total gives the defensive rebounds. South Carolina had 25 defensive rebounds (41 minus 16), and Charleston had 10 (35 minus 25).

Offensive rebound rate divides a team’s offensive rebounds by all rebounds available on its own misses. Charleston took 25 of a possible 50, a rate of 50 percent. South Carolina took 16 of a possible 26, a rate of about 62 percent. This calculation assumes that the published totals exclude team rebounds. The official box score will confirm or adjust the figures.

Why Charleston had more chances

The Cougars missed roughly twice as many shots as the Gamecocks, which produced roughly twice as many rebounding opportunities. South Carolina shot efficiently once the game settled. The Gamecocks made 10 of 12 shots in the second quarter and outscored Charleston 25-8 in that period, after trailing 20-19 at the end of the first. Joyce Edwards made 9 of 14 field goal attempts, according to On3, and Tessa Johnson made 9 of 16. gamecocksonline

Charleston also chose to pursue its misses. On3 reported that the Cougars sent five players to the offensive boards, which South Carolina did not seem prepared for. Amanda Butler was coaching her first game as head coach at Charleston, and the plan produced the 25 offensive rebounds that appear in every recap. On3

Who collected the rebounds

South Carolina’s offensive rebounding came from a narrow group. Edwards finished with 16 rebounds, eight on each end. Freshman Oliviyah Edwards added five rebounds, four of them offensive. Together the two players produced 12 of the team’s 16 offensive rebounds. Only nine Gamecocks played, which means the other seven players combined for four. Depleted Gamecocks still have enough to crush Cougars in exhibition on Daniel Island +2

The roster explains part of this. Chloe Kitts, Ashlyn Watkins, Jerzy Robinson, Kelsi Andrews, Alicia Tournebize and Kaeli Wynn did not play. Kitts led South Carolina with 7.7 rebounds per game in 2024-25. Adhel Tac, a forward who started in the game, played alongside a lineup that had lost several of its usual rebounders. On3 described the interior defense and rebounding as disappointing and noted that South Carolina was only six rebounds ahead of a smaller opponent. Depleted Gamecocks still have enough to crush Cougars in exhibition on Daniel Island +2

The measure to watch

Raw offensive rebound totals reward teams that miss often and punish teams that shoot well. The game against Charleston shows the gap between the two views: the count favored the Cougars, and the rate favored the Gamecocks. Rate figures for the remaining games will give a clearer reading of the rebounding problem than the count.

South Carolina hosts Benedict on Oct. 23 in its final exhibition and opens the regular season against Maryland in Paris on Nov. 2. The returning players, especially Kitts, will change the rebounding picture in both games. Staley has said she wants to see the team at full strength, and neither game will show much if the same six players are absent again. gamecocksonline

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