Big crowds show for tournament in Columbia

South Carolina’s first home NCAA tournament game since 2002 brought out the fans.

Friday’s two-game session had an announced attendance of 10,644, below USC’s average attendance (12,540) but not bad considering USC’s 5 p.m. start. Several events throughout the Vista snarled traffic, and reports of a stalled train across a major thoroughfare delayed some until halfway through the first half.

Syracuse coach Quentin Hillsman, whose team played the nightcap, still was impressed.

“The ladies are going to play South Carolina on this floor tomorrow, and it’s going to be sold out,” Hillsman said. “There’s going to be 13-14,000. It’s going to be an unbelievable atmosphere for women’s basketball, and we like that.”

Postseason blues The Gamecocks’ success the past two years has been tied to many players, but mostly to Tiffany Mitchell. The two-time SEC Player of the Year has earned All-America status in each year.

USC is hoping the postseason begins reflecting her regular seasons – soon.

Mitchell was 3-for-7 for seven points and five turnovers in USC’s win against Savannah State, which continued a string of so-so NCAA tournament performances. Mitchell was mostly missing as a freshman, scoring 18 points on 5-of-15 shooting with five turnovers in two games in 2013. As a sophomore, she had two 20-point games, but 24 of those points came from the free-throw line. She was a combined 13-for-36 with six turnovers in three games.

“Tiffany Mitchell is at a point where I think she’s trying to do too much. I think she’s got to let the game slow down and take what the defense gives her,” coach Dawn Staley said. “I wanted to put her back in the game, then I thought about making her mad, sitting her the rest of the game, so she’ll be ready to play on Sunday.”

Challenging the best USC’s win against Savannah State was the 31st of the season and the 33rd straight at home, each a school record. The Gamecocks topped the 1979-80 team (30-6, AIAW Final Four) in each category.

That team, featuring all-time leading scorer and rebounder Sheila Foster, didn’t lose a home game from Dec. 10, 1977, to March 4, 1980.

The Gamecocks haven’t lost a home game since Feb. 10, 2013, when No. 14 Texas A&M beat them 50-48.

This story was originally published March 21, 2015 at 11:00 PM with the headline "Big crowds show for tournament in Columbia."