South Carolina starts strong, fends off Alabama for SEC road win
In its first road SEC game of the season against Alabama on Sunday, South Carolina women’s basketball did what it’s done all season long — dominate the first quarter.
And while the next three weren’t always as impressive, the No. 4 Gamecocks did enough to hold off the Crimson Tide for the 93-78 win.
“We’ve always had trouble with them, you know, they just never go away,” coach Dawn Staley said in a postgame interview on the SEC Network.
Entering the day outscoring opponents 327-169 in the first 10 minutes, USC (14-1, 2-0 SEC) forced Alabama to call a timeout just two minutes and two seconds into the game, shooting out to an 8-0 lead. Freshman forward Aliyah Boston got off to a particularly quick start, with four points and three rebounds in that stretch.
After the stoppage, senior forward Mikiah Herbert-Harrigan sank a fast-break layup as Alabama missed its first five field goal attempts. A quick 7-0 run for the Crimson Tide closed the gap, only for USC freshman guard Zia Cooke to counter with a 5-0 run of her own, part of a 20-point outburst on the night to lead the team.
“I thought she had it going on. ... I thought she was actually the Energizer Bunny that we needed in this particular game,” Staley told the SEC Network.
The Gamecocks led 19-9 after one quarter, with the Crimson Tide shooting just 14.3% from the field. But Alabama found its shooting touch early in the second period, making four baskets in a row at one point to narrow the gap down to six points.
Once again, USC responded, as sophomore Destanni Henderson drained a 3-pointer, followed by two ‘Bama turnovers leading to two fast-break layups, for a 7-0 run in less than a minute.
Despite trailing 42-27 at halftime, Alabama came out firing after the break, hitting 58% from the field and three 3-pointers. Meanwhile, USC cooled, making just 2 of 9 field goal attempts to close out the quarter as the physicality and number of fouls called spiked.
“We just got rattled a little bit. We couldn’t apply the type of pressure that we’re used to applying, just because the amount of fouls that were being called, so we had to make adjustments,” Staley told the SEC Network. “And that was due to what Alabama was doing to us, so we’ve got to figure out ways in which we can stay aggressive and play our type of defense.”
Trailing 64-53 entering the final quarter, the Crimson Tide refused to go away, hitting three more 3-pointers to close within single digits at one point. But the Gamecocks were solid from the free throw line, and a technical foul on Alabama coach Kristy Curry late helped USC push its lead back to a comfortable level.
And one
After exploding for 20 points and 13 rebounds against then-No. 2 Baylor over Thanksgiving weekend, freshman forward Aliyah Boston wasn’t quite as dominant over the next five games. She returned to form Sunday with 17 points and 12 rebounds.
Personal foul
The Gamecocks had 10 fouls called on them in the third quarter, leading to 15 free throw attempts for Alabama.
Tip-in
Freshman guard Olivia Thompson got the most first-half minutes of her young career, coming in midway through the second quarter. Thompson played for four minutes and drained a 3-pointer.
When do the Gamecocks play next?
Who: No. 4 South Carolina (14-1, 2-0 SEC) vs. No. 20 Arkansas (13-2, 1-1)
When: 7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Colonial Life Arena
Watch: Streaming online on SEC Network Plus via WatchESPN
Listen: 107.5 FM in Columbia area
This story was originally published January 5, 2020 at 7:54 PM.
