Aliyah Boston’s second-half heroics propel No. 1 South Carolina over No. 2 Stanford
Dawn Staley told Carolyn Peck after South Carolina’s season opener that Aliyah Boston — the reigning National Player of the Year — would see a slightly different role for the Gamecocks.
With the increased depth on the Gamecocks roster, Staley believed that Boston would have more help on a night-to-night basis.
“She won’t have to pull the ‘S’ off her chest very often,” Staley told Peck, the ESPN personality. “Big games, we’re gonna have to lean on her.”
There won’t be many games bigger than No. 1 South Carolina’s clash against No. 2 Stanford on Sunday at Maples Pavilion, and the Gamecocks (4-0) certainly relied on Boston in the second half of a 76-71 overtime road win.
She was limited early in the game after picking up two fouls. She played only six minutes in the first half, and USC trailed by four at halftime.
Last year’s Final Four Most Outstanding Player scored two first-half points, but she was ready to perform when her number was called.
“Coming into the second half, she said that we need to take what they give us,” Boston told reporters after the game. “I think in the beginning, I was trying to push my way through the paint.”
Boston took over in the second half and finished the game with 14 points and 13 rebounds — the 63rd double-double of her career.
She excelled on both ends in the fourth quarter. The team was down by 10 entering the period, but Staley told the team they needed to “fight” their way back into the game.
On one play, Boston was caught in a 3-on-1 fast break on defense with the team down by four, but stood her ground to get a blocked shot on Stanford guard Haley Jones.
“We had to give it all we got,” Boston said.
Boston knocked down a couple of midrange and post shots during the second half, but perhaps none bigger than her bucket at the end of regulation.
She initially had a shot blocked by Ashten Prechtel, but the Gamecocks kept possession with six seconds left.
Boston took the inbounds pass from Zia Cooke, dribbled away from the defender and leaned into a jumpshot that dropped with 2.1 seconds remaining.
She was in a late-game situation against Stanford almost two years ago, missing a go-ahead shot in the 2021 Final Four. Sunday’s shot was somewhat reminiscent of that moment, but she kept her focus on the task at hand.
“I just needed to remain calm and make sure I stayed poised,” Boston told ESPN’s Holly Rowe after the game. “The minute I get too hyped up is the minute that I overthink.”
Boston made two go-ahead shots in overtime. The first one gave the Gamecocks their first lead since Boston scored the game’s first two points.
The second one gave South Carolina the lead for the final time.
Then, with under 45 seconds to play in OT, Boston had the ball again with a chance to extend the lead. As the Cardinal trapped her, she picked up her dribble and whipped a pass to the corner, where she found an open Bree Hall for a 3-pointer that gave South Carolina a four-point advantage.
Boston’s teammates came up big for USC in the comeback win, but it was her second-half dominance that gave the Gamecocks the edge.
“Possession by possession, we had to dig ourselves out of the hole,” Boston said. “It shows that we’re resilient. We’re not gonna go down without a fight.
This story was originally published November 21, 2022 at 8:00 AM.
