South Carolina will be challenged almost every night in conference play. Leticia Ameyher will be the difference maker for them against the big teams.
South Carolina tips for conference play this week. The Gamecocks entered the SEC as a team to beat, a designation they held for 27 straight weeks and showed no signs of letting up anytime soon.
However, the SEC can be tough on the reigning national champions. Ten teams enter conference play with double-digit wins, and no team gets under . 500. Many of these teams have chips on their shoulders and things to prove. A win over South Carolina will likely be at the top of their list of goals for the season.
Only a few teams in the country can match the Gamecocks on paper. The only one who might come close in the SEC is LSU, led by Angel Reese, Flau’jae Johnson, and head coach Kim Mulkey. Other teams will have to play almost perfectly to have a chance against Dawn Staley’s team.
Even with the difference in talent, each game will be a test for the Gamecocks. Teams will throw everything they have at them. They will try to double team Aliyah Boston. They will do everything they can to prevent Diya Kok from igniting. They’re going to make Priya Belle prove herself like a bombshell.
And sometimes, those plans will work. Sometimes, South Carolina will need a lot of support from its players.
Fortunately for them, they have a player on the bench who can give them anything they need on any given night. A player who will be such a big factor for SC this year that no team will have a perfect match for him.
Leticia Ameiher has discovered herself, and is making it difficult for other teams to do the same
Leticia Amehiri is one of the most unique talents in college basketball right now. The 6-foot-4 girl played every position during her time at South Carolina, and thrived at every position. She made a name for herself with the Nationals cheerleaders last year Play point guard When Destany Henderson was injured.
It took Amihere some time to settle into the college game. But now, in her senior season, she’s playing her best ball yet. In 11 games played this season, Amihere has career-highs in points (7.4 per game) and assists (1.8 per game). She’s also having her most efficient season, hitting career bests of 54.1 percent from the field and 66.7 percent from the free throw line. Add 1.5 pieces and steals per game and it’s easy to see how great Amihere is.
Numbers don’t necessarily pop off the page in a stacked team, but this season has seen Amihere at her most consistent and comfortable. Part of its success stems from the impetus brought on by tragedy – Amiher lost her brother and grandmother this year — and embrace her steady physique. Playing for the Canadian national team helped Amehear immensely as well.
In past years, there have been instances where Amiher did not seem to know her place in court. Now, it fits anywhere and everywhere, seamlessly. Her embrace of her versatility allowed Dawn Staley to use her in a wide variety of situations without worry or suspicion. She has been one of Staley’s most consistent players this season.
Leticia Ameyher: The film is more impressive than the numbers
When discussing a player like Amher, numbers rarely do them justice in terms of showing off their talent. Players who influence the game in such a variety of ways usually don’t post big numbers, but they always stay in the movie.
Amihere and Staley is a perfect marriage of player and coach too. Amher’s strongest areas of play match Staley’s areas of focus for her team.
Per Synergy, South Carolina has 258 transitional possessions this year, and they’ve scored 1,016 points per possession. Amihere has 27 of these properties with 1.185 best points each. 19 of her possessions have become a ballplayer, which is an impressive number for a player of her height. She’s looking to pick up speed every chance she gets, with many of those opportunities coming after defensive boards, blocks, or steals like this one.
She also thrives as a playmaker in transition, using her impressive on-court vision to find her teammates to run with. Amihere reads the defense brilliantly to find the open shooter while Stanford focuses on drawing on this play.
At halffield, Amihere has shown the ability to coexist in South Carolina’s bully ball lineup, in large part due to her ability to throw passes to their seniors, who are almost always the first choice. Sometimes, it feels a bit normal:
Sometimes, it happens in a way that only Amihere can:
Driving, drawing and diving over the top is not an easy sequence to complete. There are not many players who can do it as cleanly as amher. There are fewer people who can do this at her size. Amihere stalks her on the offensive glass, using her height and athleticism to overwhelm, well, pretty much every player she faces.
South Carolina is the best rebounding offensive team in the nation, according to Synergy. They earn 13.8 percent of their holdings, of which they score 1.126 points. While Amherr has only accounted for seven of those possessions, she’s scored 1,143 points per possession when she gets there. More often than not, her attack boards trigger a reset, but when she’s able, she’s back to top through, around, or over anyone in her path.
Sometimes entire teams can’t stop her from attacking the glass.
Defensively, Amehiri can do it all. They provide the ultimate variety, constantly switching matches. Staley rarely uses an area, which means that every player on the court must be prepared to stop his opponent with minimal help. Most 6-foot-4 players will struggle with smaller guards or faster forwards, but Amherr doesn’t.
Her defensive abilities are important for a team with a dominant defensive identity. It adds an extra layer of interchangeability and length to a team that already has incredible amounts of both.
Wherever South Carolina ends up this year, Laetitia Amiher will be hugely involved in getting them there. The SEC looks like a gauntlet, and the NCAA Tournament is going to be even tougher. Regardless, no team can match what you bring, and South Carolina will need it every night. Aliyah Boston and Zia Cooke will (rightfully) get the most in the spotlight, but Amihere will still shine for all viewers.
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