Why Dawn Staley wasn't upset about South Carolina basketball's loss to Texas

LAS VEGAS — Coach Dawn Staley wasn't mad about South Carolina women's basketball losing to Texas in the Players Era Festival championship on Nov. 27.

The No. 2 Gamecocks went down to the wire with the No. 4 Longhorns, who looked every bit of a title contender with a returning core from their Final Four run. South Carolina (7-1) had a lead in the fourth quarter, but Texas (7-0) came back and won 66-64 on Rori Harmon's jumper with 0.7 seconds left.

It's also a quality loss that won't hurt them in the long run.

"I'm not upset at all at this game," Staley said. "This is going to help us because there are a lot of things to unpack in it. We play some players that needed to get experience in big-time games."

The next step for Joyce Edwards

Joyce Edwards was a force to be reckoned with at times in South Carolina's two games in Las Vegas. Against Texas, she scored 16 points on 7-for-16 shooting and had four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block.

Her all-around impact fueled runs to get the Gamecocks a lead, and she has the ability to change a game.

But the sophomore forward didn't score in the fourth quarter; she was 0-for-3 from the field, with one rebound and one assist. Staley believed Edwards' shots in the fourth were "kind of forced," but the team gives her the leeway on offense to do that.

"Next step is you've got to be able to make plays, plays for yourself and plays for your teammates. That's the next step," Staley said. "She just has to be aware, because I think she had Tessa (Johnson) in a corner. Just being aware. She's a young player that we have to put her in situations and show her situations in real time."

What Dawn Staley liked about South Carolina's performance

South Carolina was outrebounded 39-32, but Staley liked their rebounding until the fourth quarter.

She also liked that 6-foot-6 center Madina Okot got a double-double (12 points, 11 rebounds) against Texas' frontcourt, which held UCLA All-American center Lauren Betts to eight points the day before.

TESSA JOHNSON: How Tessa Johnson is thriving as Dawn Staley leans heavily on South Carolina starters

Staley can clearly see where they need to get better after a March Madness-type game in November against an SEC opponent they'll see again. Staley also was able to give some minutes against a quality opponent to players stepping into bigger roles, including sophomore forward Adhel Tac.

Staley said she's a little more comfortable with putting her in the game now. Tac played eight minutes and had two points, four rebounds and two blocks.

"I just like the fact that we got some experience with this team playing a team that pretty much brings back the core of their team," Staley said. "And if you can give them a run for their money in that way, I mean, you're on to something. You're on to being a better team. So, I like our resiliency. We've just got to clean up some things at the end of the game."

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Why Dawn Staley wasn't upset about South Carolina's loss to Texas