COLUMBIA — Ashlyn Watkins announced in July that she will not play for South Carolina women’s basketball during the 2025-26 season, and coach Dawn Staley confirmed that she’s not enrolled in school.
Watkins, a 6-3 forward, tore her ACL in January. Staley said Sept. 22 that Watkins will continue to rehab her knee with the program’s staff but is taking a year off from school and basketball. She has one season of eligibility remaining.
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“Obviously it’s hard because you know basketball is a big part of what an athlete does,” Staley said. “The mental part of it too, it’s draining. If your mentals aren’t right, it’s going to have a compound effect. I think it’s pretty brave of her to do something like this, I think she’ll come back … as much as we can see her, we see her.”
Staley says the two talk and text often, and things are going to plan so far. The Gamecocks held their first practice Sept. 22.
Ashlyn Watkins won’t play for South Carolina in 2025-26
Watkins only played 14 games as a junior. Last August, Watkins was arrested on charges of first-degree assault and battery and kidnapping. Following her arrest, she was suspended from all team activities. She was reinstated after completing a pre-trial intervention program. The charges were dropped and she returned to practices on Nov. 8 after missing the season opener.
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Watkins said in her social media post that she plans to return for the next season.
“With everything that’s happened this year, I’m going to take some time off to focus on myself, my community, my faith, and my family, so that I can grow as an individual and attempt to master this journey of life,” Watkins wrote on Instagram July 25. “For now, I’ll be cheering on my team and working hard to come back even stronger in the 2026-27 season.”
Ashlyn Watkins stats
Watkins averaged 10 minutes as a freshman, 20.6 as a sophomore and 19 in the limted games she played as a junior. Her breakout season in 2023-24 helped guide the Gamecocks to a 38-0 season and the program’s third national championship.
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She averaged 9.2 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 2.5 blocks. She shot 55% from the field.
In the 2024 Final Four against NC State, she had a career-high 20 rebounds to go with eight points and two blocks.
Her season-high last year was 13 points against Purdue on Nov. 30 and right before she got injured, she had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds against Missouri on Jan. 2.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at lkesin@gannett.com. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Dawn Staley explains Ashlyn Watkins role for South Carolina in 2025-26
