SAN ANTONIO – South Carolina coach Dawn Staley took her 500th career victory when Aliyah Boston and the best Gamecocks defeated Mercer 79-53 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.
Boston had 20 points and 18 rebounds for South Carolina (23-4), who took the lead forever when they closed the first half with a 16-5 streak. Victaria Saxton also scored 20 points in the Hemisfair Region game at Alamodome.
Gamecocks were national champions in 2017, when the Final Four was last played in Texas. They finished 32-1 last season, spent the last 10 weeks as No. 1 and Staley was the AP coach of the year, but did not have a chance to win another title because the NCAA tournament was canceled because of the pandemic.
Amoria Neal-Tysor had 15 points for Mercer (19-7). Jada Lewis added 14 points and Shannon Titus finished with 12.
Staley is 328-102 in his 13 seasons in South Carolina, after doing 172-80 in eight seasons at Temple. The SEC Tournament Gamecocks champion is in his ninth consecutive NCAA tournament, winning in the first round each time.
It was Boston’s 28th double-double in 60 career games. American Virgin Islands All-American striker had 15 points and 10 rebounds in the interval. She made a 3-point hoop on the doorbell, which came just after Lewis hit a 3 to end an 11-0 race for the Gamecocks.
After losing 11 points in the first quarter, Mercer opened the second with a 15-4 streak. They drew at 27 on a long jump from Neal-Tysor, leading Staley to a timeout, not long after Neal-Tysor had a theft and a tray to separate.