GREEDY GUTS: Gamecocks out-tough Georgia to claim sole possession of SEC title

South Carolina didn’t have the bench to simply out-score Georgia. Down to seven players when Asia Dozier, Jatarie White, Bianca Cuevas and India Farmer didn’t play, the No. 3 Gamecocks needed help.

They got it.

The Gamecocks’ unheralded defense collared the Bulldogs in a 61-51 win on Thursday, earning USC the outright SEC championship. USC (25-1, 13-0 SEC) knew it had already won the title but didn’t want to share it like last season, so it leaned on the part of its team that hasn’t received much credit this year.

As Dawn Staley has constructed her dynasty, defense has been its spine. This year, with three players vying for top league and national honors, it’s been overshadowed, despite tying for fourth in the SEC with 57.4 points allowed per game.

That number should decrease after the Gamecocks bent Georgia’s SEC-leading defense nearly double. Three-point shooting, normally a Bulldog strength, finished a mere 6-of-21. Georgia’s only lead, scored on Merritt Hempe’s layup with 9:15 to go in the second, begat a Khadijah Sessions 3-pointer to immediately erase it and then a 36-19 run.

The Bulldogs never quit trying, taking advantage of a tired USC squad and cutting the lead to five points with less than two minutes to go. But Tiffany Mitchell hit a layup and A’ja Wilson, playing with four fouls, helped block a shot to retrieve the ball. Tina Roy’s missed 3-pointer was rebounded by Georgia, but Sessions swiped the ball, fed Wilson and the Gamecocks were comfortable.

“Those were huge moments because they were on a run,” said Mitchell, who scored a team-high 19. “D’s steal kind of took the air out of them.”

There was a ceremony to honor the three-peat champs (with last year’s trophy), but USC kept reiterating what it’s said all season – the Gamecocks aren’t done. They want the 16-0 SEC mark that eluded them by a game last season, and with their final three games against the bottom three teams in the SEC, they’re holding several cards.

But the bench needs to be replenished, something that should happen Monday at Alabama. White was sick and Dozier has been making day-to-day progress on her injured right hand, with Cuevas (coaches’ decision) expected to play.

“We got to go,” Staley said. “No one’s going to take it easy on us. We want to win.”

Staley reflected on what it took to get here, saying that she always thought of winning an SEC title but not of doing it multiple times. She admitted she’s thought of winning numerous national championships, though, and that goal is still out there.

The mission of not sharing an SEC championship was accomplished. “Last year, that feeling really got under our skin,” Sessions said. “Being on top and being No. 1 and not sharing is a great feeling, but we still have unfinished business.”

And that may have to be accomplished through fatigue.

“Everybody’s body probably feels the same way,” Sessions said. “But this is when the real champions come out. If you want to win the national championship, you got to pull through.”

NOTE: Former assistant coach Darius Taylor attended the game. He is married to Georgia coach Joni Taylor.

TURNING POINT

With the Bulldogs refusing to go away, trimming a 16-point lead to five in the fourth, Sessions knocked a rebound loose and fed Wilson for a bucket. The Gamecocks continued to miss their free throws but made enough to weather the Georgia rally.

3 POINTS

Star of the game: Sessions was throwing herself all over the court for loose balls and finished with six steals. She also had 13 points.

Play of the game: Sessions hit USC’s first 3 immediately after Georgia took its only lead. The Gamecocks never trailed again.

Stat of the game: The Bulldogs were 6-of-21 from the 3-point line. They’re normally the third-best 3-point shooting team in the SEC.

FROM THE BASELINE

Khadijah The Clock: Sessions hit another long-range shot to beat the first-half buzzer, draining a 30-footer for a 14-point lead. She got on “SportsCenter” earlier this year when she hit a 70-foot heave against Kentucky.

The Cars’ Greatest Hits: Not “Bye Bye Love,” but “Drive.” When the shots aren’t going, the Gamecocks still haven’t figured out to drive the lane. A bucket, a foul or a second-chance opportunity would be the result, but USC seemed tentative to challenge the Bulldogs’ interior.

It would have been “Just What I Needed.”

UP NEXT

Who: South Carolina at Alabama

When: 7 p.m. Monday

Where: Coleman Coliseum, Tuscaloosa, Ala.

TV: SEC Network

This story was originally published February 18, 2016 at 9:00 PM with the headline "GREEDY GUTS: Gamecocks out-tough Georgia to claim sole possession of SEC title."