Te-Hina Paopao - South Carolina needs to come out 'punching first' - ESPN

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — South Carolina guard Te-Hina Paopao delivered a message to her teammates before their Elite Eight game against Duke on Sunday: Play with more toughness.

In its past two NCAA tournament games against Indiana and Maryland, South Carolina struggled in the first half with poor shot selection, but Paopao believes the Gamecocks also had a hard time setting the tone.

She said that must change for them to advance to the Final Four.

«I feel like we've had some problems with that this season — playing with toughness,» Paopao said Saturday. «We've got to start the game with toughness. I feel like when the [other] team punches first and plays with toughness first, we tend to not be able to play with toughness until later in the second half or when it's too late.

»I feel like we've got to come out punching first, playing with toughness first, and asserting our dominance in the first few minutes of the game."

Asked why she felt her team could not match the tone of its opponents in the past two games, Paopao said, «Sometimes we can be a little loose and not locked in from the beginning.

»I feel like as a leader, I've got to let my team know that I feel like the aura right now is not feeling like we're locked, and we're just too loose. We need to lock in because it's win or go home, and I know that we definitely don't want to go home."

The key, of course, is being physical without fouling. As Paopao discussed what she and her teammates will expect to see out of Duke — «a dogfight» — in preparation for the physicality, she also added, «Hopefully the topic I'm not supposed to talk lets us play tomorrow.»

That would be the officials. South Carolina was called for 18 fouls against Maryland, its highest total in the past