South Carolina Gamecocks legendary coach Dawn Staley only needed three words to convey when Chloe Kitts will return to action after an academic policy issue.

Nov 10, 2024; Charlotte, NC, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley reads to a call during the first half against the NC State Wolfpack at the Ally Tip Off at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The No.1 ranked South Carolina Gamecocks women’s basketball team has picked up right where they left off a season ago, when they went a perfect 38-0 and won the 2023-24 NCAA National Championship.

The defending champions have started their 2024-25 campaign with two consecutive wins, the latter of which came against the No. 9 ranked NC State Wolfpack on Sunday by a score of 71-57.

Even more impressive than the final score was that South Carolina had to play without junior forward Chloe Kitts (who started 31 games for them and averaged 9.1 points per game one season ago) due to an academic policy issue.

Before Sunday’s game, South Carolina released a statement from head coach Dawn Staley about Kitts missing the contest on X, which wrote, “We’re disappointed that Chloe has to sit out the game today due to an academic policy issue.

“Chloe has shown tremendous growth both academically and athletically over the offseason, demonstrating her commitment to excellence in every aspect.

“While she’s unable to play today, we’re incredibly proud of her progress,” the statement concluded.

It wasn’t made clear in the statement how much time would be missing as a result of this issue. But Staley addressed this directly during her postgame press conference.

“Just one game,” Staley said when asked how long Kitts’ absence could last.

This is good news for a South Carolina squad that also recently got star player Ashlyn Watkins back on their roster.

Then again, given how deep and talented the Gamecocks are, it doesn’t seem like they’d miss a beat even if Kitts was to remain sidelined for longer than a game.