Ashlyn Watkins one of two Gamecocks not with championship team for White House visit

South Carolina women’s basketball player Ashlyn Watkins did not accompany the team to the White House on Tuesday to celebrate the program’s 2024 national championship.

Watkins, a key contributor to the Gamecocks’ undefeated season, was arrested Aug. 31 and charged with first-degree assault and kidnapping after an incident at 650 Lincoln St. (a USC housing and retail center), according to arrest warrants.

Per athletic department policy, Watkins’ arrest triggered an automatic team suspension. USC acknowledged through a spokesperson for the women’s basketball team on Aug. 31 that they were aware of the situation and gathering information. South Carolina athletics confirmed Thursday that Watkins’ suspension from team activities was still in place .

Senior Sania Feagin also missed the trip to Washington, D.C., as she was with the 3x3 U23 national team for the World Cup (Sept. 11-15) in Mongolia . The women begin play Sept. 12 vs. Japan and Italy.

About Watkins

Warrants said Watkins assaulted the victim by “forcefully grabbing her face, pulling her by her arms, and pushing her.” She also allegedly picked the victim up against her will and carried her away, grabbed her head and forced her to walk down the hall and prevented her from leaving.

The warrant also said the victim eventually got away from Watkins and pulled the fire alarm. Police and fire personnel responded and treated the victim for her injuries, which were not life-threatening.

According to a police incident report released Sept. 3, the victim initially told police several times that Watkins hit her — but later said Watkins did not hit her.

On Sept. 1, Watkins’ lawyer Todd Rutherford told WLTX ““We believe once everybody has a full grasp of what happened, this will end up being a misunderstanding. What we know for certain is that Ashlyn did not assault anyone and she did not kidnap anyone.”

Online court records say an initial court appearance for Watkins has been set for Oct. 25, 10 days before USC’s 2024-25 season opener against Michigan in Las Vegas on Nov. 4.

Watkins, a junior, is a 6-foot-3 forward and the Gamecocks’ most highly rated defensive player. She attended Cardinal Newman for high school, where she won the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year Award in 2022. Watkins also won the McDonald’s All-American dunk contest that year.