Zia Cooke scored 19 points and Victaria Saxton added 13 to help South Carolina’s No. 4 defeat the state of Mississippi in 21st place by 75-52 on Thursday night.
After scoring just 10 points in the first quarter and losing by one, South Carolina used a dominant second quarter to take control of the game.
Cooke scored the first eight points to trigger a 12-0 streak that led to a 36-23 lead at the break and the Bulldogs never recovered.
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Mississippi State (8-6, 3-4 SEC) only hit 22 out of 65 field shots in the game, as Bulldogs were never able to consistently find the bottom of the net, despite some good appearances within the painting. Second-year All-SEC player Rickea Jackson scored just two points in the first half, before finding an offensive pace in the second half and scoring the team’s best score, 15 points.
It was a dominant painting performance for the Gamecocks (13-1, 8-0), as they overcame the State of Mississippi by 44-28 on the inside and had a 51-38 rebound advantage. Gamecocks star Aliyah Boston had just six points but had 12 rebounds.
Saxton had 11 rebounds for a double-double.
BIG PICTURE:
South Carolina: South Carolina’s victory kept them at the top of the SEC ranking as they seek the SEC’s second consecutive title.
Mississippi State: Bulldogs are in the midst of their worst basketball phase in seven years. The defeat for Gamecocks was the third in a row for MSU and the first streak of three consecutive defeats since 2014.
CHALLENGING PLAYER
South Carolina had difficulty shooting at the start, making 4 of 14 field shots in the first quarter, but a bucket of Zia Cooke towards the end of the period started a 14-0 streak, with Cooke taking the first eight points in running, which gave Carolina an advantage that she would not abandon.
KEY STAT
The Gamecocks, who have struggled with the charity track a few times this season, were 19 out of 22 (0.864) of the track tonight, their best mark in the SEC game,
NOTABLES
Tonight’s win gives Garnet and Black six wins over ranked opponents this season, more than any other team in the country.
Carolina extended her winning streak in the SEC’s regular season to 24 with the win, drawing the program record originally set on January 3, 2016 until January 26, 2017.
Gamecocks continued to show their power in the glass, overtaking the state of Mississippi by 51-39. This is the fifth game with more than 50 rebounds in the SEC for Garnet and Black.
Second grader Zia Cooke crashed during Carolina’s 14-0 run in the first half, scoring eight of her 19 points, the best of the game, to help Gamecocks take control of the game. Cooke hit a perfect 6 of 6 on the free-throw line.
Junior Victaria Saxton controlled the cup all night, pulling five of his 11 rebounds in the first quarter and scoring seven of his 13 points in the third quarter to get his second double-double of the season and his first conference game this year.
Senior LeLe Grissett ended Carolina’s 14-0 series in the first half with consecutive buckets and added seven more points in the second half, ending with 11 points and five rebounds.
Sophomore Aliyah Boston was dominant in the glass in the second quarter, scoring eight of her 12 rebounds. She also scored three blocks, giving 130 for her career, drawing 10th place in the program’s history in just her 47th career game.
NEXT
Gamecocks No. 4/3 (13-1, 8-0 SEC) return to Columbia to host Alabama (12-3, 5-3 SEC). Delivery is scheduled for 3 pm Eastern Time on Sunday on the SEC Network.