No. 2 South Carolina women’s basketball gets statement win over No. 5 LSU at home
No. 2 South Carolina handed No. 5 LSU its first loss of the year on Friday night.
The Gamecocks (19-1, 7-0 SEC) beat the Tigers (20-1, 5-1 SEC), 66-56, in front of a raucous crowd at Colonial Life Arena.
The victory is the latest in a stretch of impressive wins for South Carolina, which now has defeated teams ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 in four consecutive games.
Back and forth game early
A game between two top-five teams went about as you would expect.
South Carolina and LSU were locked in step with one another for the first half of the game, with neither team grabbing a lead of more than seven points.
There were 11 lead changes and three ties in the game, all of which came in the first half.
Neither team had a clear advantage in the first half, though LSU was able to lead the rebounding battle, 28-19.
Both South Carolina and LSU were lights out on offense in the first quarter but cooled off in the second. LSU led 22-21 after shooting 50% as a team in the first quarter, but then shot 15% from the field in the second. South Carolina shot 17.6% from the field in the second quarter, but outscored LSU 12-8 in the period to take a 33-30 lead into halftime.
“I thought we were forced to play a certain way tonight,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said. “It was just the gravity of the game. It was necessary for us to win this game. The implications of the SEC standings, the NCAA Tournament — all of those things matter.
“And we can say it’s not a big game, but it’s a big game. It’s a big game come March, when we’re playing in the SEC tournament, when we’re playing in the NCAA (and the) committee gets together and see us winning this game.”
8-0 run switches momentum
A quick run midway through the third quarter helped South Carolina establish momentum while also adding to its lead.
The Gamecocks scored eight straight points to make the score 45-36, giving South Carolina its largest lead of the game at the time.
Chloe Kitts started the scoring with two free throws. After a few empty possessions, Te-Hina Paopao added two more points with a layup.
Soon after, Sania Feagin (12 points) forced a steal on defense and got the ball to Raven Johnson for an easy layup. Johnson then immediately intercepted LSU’s ensuing in-bounds pass and dropped in another bucket.
Johnson’s defensive effort, and the 8-0 run in general, sent the South Carolina fans into a frenzy and forced LSU to call a timeout.
“I remember (Feagin) was dribbling down the court, and I was like, ‘Alley! Alley! Just throw it in the air!’ ” Johnson said. “And I got it, and then I tried to fake. And then I stole the ball and I laid it up again. I just heard the crowd just screaming. So, it’s things like that we like to see in (Colonial Life Arena).”
Gamecocks pass defensive test
LSU entered the game with the No. 3 scoring offense in the country, averaging 90.6 points per game, but scored just 56 points Friday night.
That’s the fewest amount of points the Tigers have scored this season.
LSU averages a 49% shooting clip from the field as a team, but struggled all night against South Carolina. The Tigers shot just 30% from the field. The low-lights of LSU’s shooting came with a five-minute stretch without a field goal in the second quarter and a nearly nine-minute stretch without a field goal from the third to fourth quarter.
South Carolina also forced LSU to turn the ball over 17 times in the game and totaled 13 steals and 11 blocks.
“I think we’re pretty locked in (on defense),” Staley said. “I think they really are connected. They understand that we’re pretty good. They do. They understand that, and they understand why we’re good. And that is our gap defense is pretty good, our scramble out when teams get ahead of the possession, and then we’ve just got to fight to just go get the basketball. Tonight, the blocked shots were impressive.
“Just our grit. Our grit was great. You need to have all those things to be the team like LSU.”
South Carolina schedule: Next four games
▪ Monday: at Tennessee, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
▪ Feb. 2: vs. Auburn, 12 p.m. (SEC Network)
▪ Feb. 6: at Georgia, 6 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
▪ Feb. 9: at Texas, 2 p.m. (ESPN)
This story was originally published January 24, 2025 at 7:01 PM.
