South Carolina WBB beats Duke in Elite Eight, advances to another Final Four
It’s time for South Carolina’s Elite Eight game.
The No. 1 seeded Gamecocks are playing No. 2 Duke on Sunday in Birmingham. The State’s Michael Sauls and Chapel Fowler are on site providing live updates.
If USC wins, it will advance to a fifth consecutive Final Four and keep its dreams of becoming the sport’s first repeat champion since 2013-16 UConn alive.
Final score: South Carolina 54, Duke 50
The Gamecocks are Final Four bound.
Up two points, USC got two big free throws from Chloe Kitts to go up 54-50 with 5.7 seconds remaining. Duke turned the ball over on its ensuing possession.
The clock ran out and South Carolina players celebrated as their team reached a fifth consecutive Final Four. USC will play either Texas or TCU next Friday in Tampa.
Duke misses
Duke had a chance to tie or take the lead, but Blue Devils guard Ashlyn Jackson airballed a 3-point attempt and USC got the rebound.
Gamecocks lead 52-50 with 7.2 seconds remaining. Duke will foul.
Down to the wire
South Carolina 52, Duke 50 with 29.8 seconds to go.
Gamecocks have possession and 19 seconds on the shot clock.
Another close game
South Carolina and Duke are tied at 46-46 at the Q4 media timeout (4:52 to go).
These teams average 80.5 and 73.1 points per game, respectively, but this has been a low-scoring games with excellent defense (and some poor shot selection).
The Gamecocks have now trailed in the fourth quarter of consecutive NCAA Tournament games after doing the same vs. Maryland in the Sweet 16 on Friday.
End Q3: Duke 42, South Carolina 38
The Blue Devils were on fire that period and outscored USC 20-12 while shooting 7-12 overall and 3-4 on 3-pointers (excluding a final heave). Now, they’ll take a four-point lead into the fourth quarter of the Elite Eight.
The Gamecocks have some work to do. They have 13 turnovers and haven’t gotten much from leading scorer MiLaysia Fulwiley (5 points, 2-6 shooting, three turnovers, -7 plus-minus). USC is just 7-12 on free throws.
Halftime: South Carolina 26, Duke 22
The Gamecocks led by 11 points (25-14) with 6:16 to go until halftime. They’re struggling to get separation, though, and 10 turnovers have limited their possessions despite a solid field goal percentage.
The Blue Devils used an 8-0 run to get within three points of South Carolina (25-22) in the final minute of the second quarter.
Duke’s Toby Fournier has been a star with a game-high 12 points. Sania Feagin is putting together a strong all-around effort for South Carolina (6 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks). She and MiLaysia Fulwiley have three turnovers apiece.
End Q1: South Carolina 16, Duke 10
Close first quarter. South Carolina had an early 9-0 run and led by as many as nine points before Duke star freshman Toby Fournier got going. She wound up with 7 of Duke’s 10 points in that quarter and provided a huge boost.
Blue Devils shooting 4-16 (25%) overall and 2-6 (33%) overall. That’s helped offset some slip-ups from USC on offense (four turnovers) as well as defense.
Starters for both teams
No. 1 South Carolina:
G Te-Hina Paopao, G Bree Hall, G Raven Johnson, F Sania Feagin, F Chloe Kitts
No. 2 Duke:
G Ashlon Jackson, G Jadyn Donovan, G Taina Mair, G Reigan Richardson, F Delaney Thomas
Final betting line
South Carolina is favored by 8.5 points against Duke, per ESPN BET. ESPN’s analytics also give USC a 79% chance of beating Duke on Sunday.
This the Gamecocks’ closest point spread of the tournament. They were favored by 17.5 points against Maryland in the Sweet 16 and won by just four points.
Possible opponents down the line
The immediate focus, naturally, is winning Sunday’s Elite Eight game against Duke. But South Carolina got some clarity on its possible Final Four opponents Saturday.
In the Birmingham 3 region, No. 1 Texas beat No. 5 Tennessee and No. 2 TCU beat No. 3 Notre Dame in the Sweet 16. The Longhorns and the Horned Frogs will play their Elite Eight game on Monday night at Legacy Arena.
The winner of that game advances to play the USC/Duke winner in Tampa. If South Carolina and Texas both win, it would set up a fourth meeting between the SEC schools since Jan. 12. The Gamecocks are 2-1 against the Longhorns this season.
On the other side of the bracket, No. 1 UCLA and No. 3 LSU will play in the Elite Eight on Sunday and No. 1 Southern Cal and No. 2 UConn will play on Monday.
South Carolina game today
- Who: No. 1 South Carolina (33-3) vs. No. 2 Duke (29-7)
- Where: Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama
- When: 1 p.m. ET Sunday
- TV: ABC
- Radio: 107.5 FM locally (see full list of affiliates here)
- Stream: Via watchespn.com or the ESPN app
This story was originally published March 30, 2025 at 12:16 PM.
