South Carolina in USA Basketball 3X Nationals for first time. These Dawn Staley players were selected
COLUMBIA — Joyce Edwards, Chloe Kitts, Tessa Johnson and Maddy McDaniel will represent South Carolina women's basketball at the 2025 USA Basketball 3X Nationals from May 2-4 in Mesa, Arizona, the program announced.
The event is USA Basketball's national championships for men's and women's 3x3 basketball teams, which features teams from across the country competing for the national title. There will be up to 12 men's teams and up to 16 women's teams at the event, and each team's roster is composed of four players.
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Though the event first started in 2012, it will be the first time the Gamecocks have players participating. South Carolina will compete against other SEC teams like Vanderbilt and Florida, plus non-conference schools such as TCU.
Coach Dawn Staley's crew of four will be competing not just for the event championship but it also serves as an evaluation for the 2025 USA Basketball 3x3 National Teams, which include the 2025 FIBA 3x3 World Cup from June 23-29 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, the USA Basketball 3x3 World Tour, 3x3 Women's Series, and more.
Kitts, Staley's starting forward for the last two seasons, has earned two gold medals with USA Basketball. The first was in 2022 at the FIBA Women's U18 Americas Championship, the second at the FIBA U19 Women's World Cup in 2023. She averaged 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds as a junior during the 2024-25 season and was named SEC Tournament MVP in March.
For Edwards, who averaged a team-high 12.7 points off the bench as a freshman, this isn't her first run with USA Basketball either. She won a gold medal with the 2023 FIBA U19 Women's World Cup team, and was part of the 2024 Women's U18 National Team in addition to participating in the U17 and U16 National Team Trials in Colorado Springs in 2021 and 2022.
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In 2024, Edwards was on the USA Women's Nike Hoop Summit team and scored 25 points, had nine rebounds, five steals and two assists in the 83-80 win over the World Select team.
McDaniel, who was the second part of Staley's duo of freshmen for the 2024-25 season, averaged 3.1 points and 1.7 assists in 11 minutes per game. She was part of the 2024 USA Women's U18 National Team trials and was named to the 2024 USA Women's Nike Hoop Summit Team with Edwards but didn't play due to injury.
For Johnson, May 2-4 will be her first experience with USA Basketball.
The event starts on May 2 with preliminary rounds and ends on May 4 with the medal round game. According to USA Basketball, "Teams will be seeded based on preliminary records before entering bracket play."
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Each game is played on a half court with a 10-minute clock and a 12-second shot clock. The first team to 21 points or the team in the lead at the end of play wins.
How to watch 2025 USA Basketball 3X Nationals
According to the event's website, the games will be available to stream on YouTube and on X.
South Carolina is scheduled to face Phoenix on May 2 at 6:20 p.m. ET.
LINEUPS FOR 2025: Predicting Dawn Staley's starting lineup for South Carolina women's basketball in 2025-26
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @Lulukesin
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Dawn Staley, South Carolina send team to USA Basketball 3X Nationals
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