Alicia Tournebize hasn’t suited up for the Gamecocks yet, but the excitement about her addition to the roster is still great. Tournebize is a 6’7” center from France, who has experience playing professional basketball despite being only 18 years old. She played for Tango Bourges Basket in the top French league and EuroLeague competition. She also made waves with an in-game dunk during her stint at the U18 EuroBasket tournament.
Tournebize joined South Carolina for the second half of the season, but Staley is allowing her the time she needs to get acclimated to a new country, a new school system, new teammates, and a new style of play. So, it might still be a bit until Tournebize actually gets some game action in a South Carolina jersey. When she does make her debut, she could quickly change the way the Gamecocks play this season. Staley hopes that she will be able to bring the team’s high-low game back to life.
“It’s needed,” Staley said about Tournebize’s unique skill set during a news conference on January 7. “Her ability to shoot from the outside, her ability to see over defenses. Our high-low game has been nonexistent, and we’ve been really good at the high-low game for a long time, and maybe we get one a game. Maybe. But I think bringing [Alicia Tournebize] into the fold, we’ll get a lot more opportunities. She’ll be a threat out there for high-low passes, for scoring on the outside.”
South Carolina lost frontcourt depth
Losing Chloe Kitts to a season-ending knee injury right before her senior year was a tough blow to South Carolina. It took away the team’s most experienced forward and forced sophomore Joyce Edwards and transfer Madina Okot into massive roles. On top of losing Kitts to an injury, the Gamecocks also lost Sania Faegin, who started all 39 games she played in last season, to the WNBA.
Maryam Dauda and Adhel Tac were the only other forwards besides Okot and Edwards before Tournebize joined the team. They average the fewest minutes per game and have produced little so far.
Adding Tournebize gives South Carolina the type of size the roster has lacked since losing Kamilla Cardoso to the Chicago Sky after the 2023-25 season. The Gamecocks also haven’t really had a forward who can space the floor. Dauda leads all forwards with 13 3-point attempts, but she only made two. Edwards also sank two threes. Okot went 1-4 over her first 15 games with the Gamecocks.
Tournebize didn’t shoot many threes with her former team, but that could change in a system that encourages her to establish a presence outside the paint.