No. 1 South Carolina routs Kentucky to complete regular-season sweep of Wildcats
No. 1 South Carolina dominated Kentucky Sunday afternoon, completing a regular-season sweep of the Wildcats, 103-55. The victory made USC the SEC’s outright regular-season champion. It also marked the Gamecocks’ sixth 100-point game of the season and first since December.
“This team really surprises me every day, every time that we play a game,” coach Dawn Staley said, reflecting on her team’s undefeated record as the postseason looms. “They have something about them, a competitiveness in them that they don’t want to lose. And they find ways to win no matter no matter how teams are approaching us.
“...We’re a really good basketball team when we’re playing like we played today. ...We want to give our players their flowers, but we also know that there’s work to do.”
South Carolina started guards Te-Hina Paopao, Bree Hall and Raven Johnson, and forwards Chloe Kitts and Ashlyn Watkins. Starting center Kamilla Cardoso did not play for the second game in a row after sitting out Thursday against Alabama to rest.
“However she’s feeling, if she’s not close to 80-90%, we’ll sit her down for another game,” Staley said after the Alabama game. “But I know she wants to play.”
Six Gamecocks finished with double-digit points Sunday: MiLaysia Fulwiley (17), Watkins (13), Paopao (11), Hall (18), Sania Feagin (career-high 16), and Kitts (10 along with 12 rebounds for her fourth double-double this season). Feagin also recorded a career-high five blocks.
The Gamecocks (27-0, 14-0 SEC) will travel to Fayetteville, Arkansas on Thursday (9 p.m., SEC Network) to take on the Razorbacks for USC’s second-to-last regular-season game.
Gamecocks start hot, share the basketball
South Carolina started Sunday’s game by making its first five shots before finishing 8 of 13 in the quarter for a field-goal percentage of 61.5%. That came after USC shot 27.8% from the field in the opening period of Thursday’s home game against Alabama.
“We’ve been working on just getting off to quicker starts in the in the first quarter in the third quarter,” Staley said. “And I thought we did a really good job with that.”
Paopao facilitated a 9-0 run all by herself, sinking three 3-pointers in a row during the third quarter after a scoreless first two periods.
The Gamecocks did a good job of spreading the wealth, recording 22 assists in the first three quarters.
USC ended the game shooting 64.4% from the field and 90.5% from the free-throw line (a season high) along with an SEC-high 30 assists (previous high was 24 assists at Texas A&M last month).
“We felt like something was missing from the fluidity of our offense,” Staley said of the assist numbers. “Just being unselfish and finding the right and the best shot on the floor. ...That percentage, 30 assists on 38 field goals, is pretty impressive.”
USC’s defense suffocates UK
The Gamecocks limited the Wildcats to just eight points in the opening quarter of Sunday’s game. USC hustled all over the stat sheet to prevent UK from capitalizing on opportunities to score.
South Carolina snagged 18 defensive rebounds in the first half, limiting Kentucky to two second-chance points. Feagin achieved a career-high four blocks in the first two quarters. The team as a whole blocked seven shots during that time. While USC’s offense turned the ball over nine times, it only allowed UK to convert those turnovers into four points.
By game’s end, the Gamecocks had 31 defensive rebounds, 10 blocks and 11 steals. Kentucky ended with 10 points off 15 South Carolina turnovers.
South Carolina speeds past Kentucky
USC used its speed to its advantage Sunday, outpacing UK and playing with impressive efficiency to secure the win.
The Gamecocks had 13 fast-break points after three quarters to the Wildcats’ four. South Carolina managed 33 scores on 57 possessions (57.9%), which translates to 1.3 points per possession.
USC ended the game with 17 fast-break points (UK had four), a scoring percentage of 61.3% (UK had 33.3%) and an average of 1.37 points per possession.
Next South Carolina women’s basketball games
- Thursday: at Arkansas, 9 p.m. (SEC Network)
- March 3: vs. Tennessee, noon (ESPN)
- March 6-10: SEC Tournament
This story was originally published February 25, 2024 at 4:55 PM.
