USC WBB’s 2026 recruiting class ‘up there’ with Dawn Staley’s best, ESPN pundit says
Dawn Staley hit the recruiting trail hard this year and was rewarded with one of the best Class of 2026 recruiting classes in the nation.
The Gamecocks will welcome five freshmen for the 2026-27 season. The four high school prospects are five-stars Oliviyah Edwards, Jerzy Robinson and Kaeli Wynn, and four-star Kelsi Andrews. USC also added an international prospect in Justine Loubens (France). While international prospects aren’t ranked in ESPN’s Top 100, ESPN women’s basketball recruiting analyst Shane Laflin considers Loubens as a four-star prospect.
While the five freshmen have yet to touch the court for the Gamecocks, Laflin thinks Staley’s 2026 class stacks up well with some of her other historic classes at USC. Prime examples: The 2019 recruiting “Freshies” class and the 2021 class that won two national titles.
“Dawn doesn’t bring in untalented classes,” Laflin told The State. “But, I mean, this is two top five talents, right? And then two others that had been injured and very well could have been higher than that. It’s just kind of how the chips fell for them. This class stacks up there. ... Four kids in the top 30, two of them essentially top-five players in that range. It’s got to be up there.”
ESPN has Edwards as the No. 3 recruit in the class. The 6-foot-3 forward was previously signed to Tennessee but released from her scholarship in April and signed with USC soon after. Robinson is the No. 6 recruit in the class, and Wynn is ranked No. 19. Andrews, South Carolina’s first commitment in the class, is ranked No. 30 by ESPN and is one of the highest-rated four-stars in the country.
South Carolina’s group of incoming freshmen is ranked No. 2 in the nation by ESPN. The Gamecocks were ranked No. 4 in March but jumped in the final rankings after the late-April additions of Edwards and Loubens.
Adding Edwards — who Laflin described as a “massive outlier of a talent” — to the class was enough to make South Carolina’s group crack the top three. The State spoke with Laflin a few days before Loubens signed and his recruiting class rankings were finalized.
“It shoots them up into the discussion of the best class in terms of talent,” Laflin said. “Ultimately, our debate, as we finalize this, will come down to what Southern Cal has coming in, and then Texas as well. I think an argument could be made for any of them. Ultimately, I don’t think they would get the number one spot. ... But adding Oliviyah late certainly shoots them into that conversation that they were not in before adding Oliviyah.”
Southern Cal remained No. 1 in ESPN’s finalized 2026 recruiting class rankings. Texas, Duke and Notre Dame round out the top five below South Carolina, respectively.
USC’s incoming freshmen will be joining an experienced roster next season. Staley returns nine players from last season — all of whom now have championship-playing experience — and add in a talented transfer in Texas guard Jordan Lee.
The Gamecocks’ 2026 class will have to adjust to being able to play with several other good players. That isn’t exactly a rare phenomenon. Rather, it’s something most freshmen in top programs around the country, like South Carolina, have to learn to do.
“I think all of them come in with the mentality that they know they’ve got to get better,” Laflin said. “Some are used to playing with other good players, and from that mentality, and some are not. I think a lot of times with freshmen, understanding how to slide into that supportive role versus being that volume type of player is really an indicator of whether they’ll get on the floor. That’s going to be the thing they’ve got to learn within a group of returners and veterans that Dawn has.”
The 2026-27 season will be just the second time in Staley’s nearly 20-year tenure at South Carolina that the Gamecocks will have a full 15-player roster. Staley’s class of freshmen will have to fight with seasoned veterans for minutes, but Laflin thinks the group is talented enough to get on the floor.
“I think Dawn has proven in the past to let her talent kind of get out there sometimes and learn the ropes, and then she reigns them back in, teaches them the lesson,” Laflin told The State. “I expect to see some early-season minutes, and then the rest will be how they adapt, which you just don’t know ‘til the lights come on. ... These players can [certainly] fit in multiple combinations, so they’ll give themselves an opportunity to be there.
This story was originally published May 7, 2026 at 7:00 AM with the headline "USC WBB’s 2026 recruiting class ‘up there’ with Dawn Staley’s best, ESPN pundit says."
