UConn’s second place will host the clash between the top two in the conference when they face South Carolina’s first place on Monday, February 8.
13-1 UConn crossed the Big East with an 11-0 record, but faced his first defect of the season when he hit the road to face SEC Arkansas opponent on January 28. South Carolina will be the Huskies’ third SEC test of their season, including a devastating victory over Tennessee on January 21.
From now on, the Gamecocks will be the last matches outside the Huskies conference and will resume play in the Big East until the NCAA women’s basketball tournament.
The Huskies are led by playmaker Paige Bueckers – who averages 20.4 points per game. Bueckers comes from an incredible 30 point performance in UConn’s victory over Big East’s enemy Marquette on Friday, 87-58.
Bueckers is one of four Huskies that offers double digits in UConn’s attack, along with Christyn Willams (16.8 ppg), Olivia Nelson-Ododa (13.5 ppg) and Evina Westbrook (11.3 ppg). UConn is the country’s No. 4 in offensive scores, averaging 87.1 points per game.
Here’s a look at South Carolina and UConn, courtesy of gamecocksonline.com:
ABOUT THIS GAME
- The South Carolina-UConn series includes the nation’s best ranked team for the eighth time tonight, with Gamecocks taking the title for the third time.
- This is the Gamecocks’ third trip to the Gampel Pavilion under coach Dawn Staley. His most recent visit was a 66-55 UConn win on February 13, 2017, which means that no current Gamecock played in the building before tonight.
- This is South Carolina’s fourth road game in its last five matches.
GAMECOCK NOTABLES
- South Carolina’s dominance of paint goes beyond its powerful attack area. Gamecocks are beating opponents in painting from 46.5 to 30.6 this season, with their paint points accounting for 56.4% of their attack. South Carolina guards account for 25.1 of these paint points per game.
- The recovery has been a calling card for Gamecocks this season, defeating their opponent on the boards in all games to qualify in third place in the country on the margin of recovery (+17.7). They have been especially potent in offensive glass, where their 17.6 offensive bags are in fifth place in the country and have led to 17.7 second chance points per game. In seven games against qualified teams, his average of 17.0 offensive rebounds yielded 18.0 second chance points per game.
- South Carolina’s offensive production of 82.4 points per game (12th in the NCAA) often steals the headlines, but it is the Gamecock defense that has been the catalyst for this season’s success. South Carolina had 12 opponents with less than 70 points, including four of the seven ranked opponents, three of which had less than 60 points. The effort like Gamecocks was ranked seventh in the country by a scoring margin (+23.4).
- The unanimous AP preseason All-American Aliyah Boston is just a sophomore, but has earned her place on the list of all national players of the year with her consistent dominance within and beyond the scoreboard. She ranks 18th in the country in average rebounds (18th) and 13th in blocks per game (2.9). Boston averages a general double-double (13.7 ppg / 11.3 rpg), in the SEC game (15.0 ppg / 12.2 rpg) and against ranked opponents (14.3 ppg / 11.4 rpg) . In her constantly expanding game, she also distributes 1.6 assists per game and averages 1.2 steals in the season.
- Student Zia Cooke was named to the Top 10 of Ann Meyers Drysdale last week and continues to lead the team with 16.2 points per game, ranking 11th in the SEC. Scoring double digits in 13 of the 16 games this season, Cooke appears to have emerged entirely from a brief offensive drop with 19.0 points per game in 52.0 percent of shots in the last two games, including 50.0 percent accuracy in 3-point range (5- de-10).
- The two new Gamecocks holders – juniors Destanni Henderson and Victaria Saxton – entered the season as relatively unknown, but emerged as keys to South Carolina’s success. Henderson is the 14th in the country, with the best SEC of 5.9 assists per game – a figure that rises to 6.5 in the league game – while adding 11.7 points per game. She has given five or more assists 11 times this season. Saxton is the ideal partner for Boston on the attack court, described by his coach as “low maintenance, high performance”. The active and athletic striker does not mind working in the trenches with fewer spotlights to contribute 10.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, including two doubles.
BY NUMBERS
3 – Three Gamecocks are among the SEC’s top 10 offensive rebounds – Boston (3.8, 2nd), Grissett (2.8, 7th) and Saxton (2.7, 8th).
6 – South Carolina hit six points in each of the last two games, hitting 54.5% beyond the arc on that stretch.
7 – Gamecocks’ seven games against qualified opponents are mostly drawn in the country. His six classified wins are also tied with the best number in the country.
11 – Sophomore student Aliyah Boston recorded double-digit rebounds in 11 of her 16 games this season and 26 of her career in 49 games.
20.3 – South Carolina is scoring 20.3 break points per game this season, while keeping opponents at just 7.7 per game.