The South Carolina Gamecocks clearly did not leave the locker room distracted by the big game that was approaching.
Zia Cooke scored all 17 points in a dominant first half and Aliyah Boston added 14 points and eight rebounds to lead South Carolina’s runner-up over Auburn 77-58 on Thursday night.
The Gamecocks (15-1, 10-0 Southeastern Conference) built impressive leadership and achieved a streak of 12 consecutive victories on Monday’s visit to No. 3 Connecticut. The reserves went into action in the second half, when the game got closer.
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“That was kind of hard to watch,” coach Dawn Staley he said, adding that she could have played the games even more minutes than she intended. This gave her something to improve after taking a 47-18 lead at halftime.
“We just have to do better,” said Staley. ” We have to play better on both sides of basketball, but it’s good to bring in some people who haven’t played for many minutes this year, because they need playing experience. ”
Cooke hit three points out of 3 within 50 seconds of the first quarter, while Gamecocks jumped 26-6 over Tigers (5-12, 0-9). She had 14 points in the quarter, including a chance at the bench at the bell.
“If you look at your statistics and your ability to catch and shoot, it is pretty accurate,” said Staley. ” When she gets clean, it looks like at the start of the shooting clock, her feet are fixed, they are expected 3s and more often she is very efficient with that.
” Yes, I want her to give all eyes open. ”
Boston hit 7 of 8 shots for South Carolina, which hit 49.2% of the ground (31 of 63), despite having cooled down considerably in the second half.
Victaria Saxton scored 11 points and Lele Grissett 10 for the Gamecocks. Destanni Henderson conceded nine assists without making a comeback.
South Carolina hit 18 of the 31 shots (58.1%) before the break.
Staley didn’t let anyone play for more than 25 minutes and nine players registered at least 14.
“She added some subs. Some players came in, I didn’t know who they were, ”said Auburn coach Terri Williams-Flournoy. ” They are very good and can come to you in many different ways. ”
Honesty Scott-Grayson led Auburn with 15 points. The SEC’s main rebound, Unique Thompson, scored 10 points from 4 of 13 shots and had eight rebounds. Those were eight points and six bags below their season averages.
BIG PICTURE
South Carolina: Won its 26th consecutive game in the SEC’s regular season, equaling the state of Mississippi for the fifth longest time in league history. He has 11 consecutive wins over the Tigers.
Auburn: It started 2 out of 27 from the floor (7.4%) for the second quarter. Shooting ended 23 out of 66 (34.8%). It remains unsuccessful in SEC games and never represents a major challenge in this.
CHALLENGING PLAYER
The Gamecocks hit the gas at the end, opening the game in a 17-3 run and never looking back. Carolina scored the first 10 points of the game, with Zia Cooke losing 3s in a row to the final six points before an Auburn basket ended the streak. Cooke started another run in possession of the next ball with his third 3 of the fourth with Brea Beal and Victaria Saxton buckets in the paint making it 17-3 Gamecocks.
KEY STAT
South Carolina continued its dominance on the glass, overtaking Auburn 51-29, including a 36-20 defensive rebound advantage, which helped hold the Tigers to just six points of second chance in the game.
NOTABLES
Carolina extended her regular SEC winning streak of the regular season to 26 games, the streak dating back to the January 2, 2020 clash against No. 13/13 Kentucky. The victory tied the state of Mississippi for the fifth longest streak in SEC history.
Gamecocks were lethal in the first quarter, shooting 64.7 percent of the field, including 60.0 percent beyond the arc, while keeping Auburn on just six points, the fifth quarter of a single-digit score for a South Carolina opponent in SEC play.
Student Zia Cooke could not be stopped in the first quarter, scoring 14 of her 17 points in the opening game, including 3 consecutive points during Carolina’s 17-3 opening game series.
Sophomore student Aliyah Boston did most of her damage in the third quarter, scoring eight of her 14 points after the break, before sitting for the entire fourth period. Boston was a force in glass, as it always is, holding eight boards.
Junior Victaria Saxton broke double digits for the third game in a row, scoring 11 points from his seven rebounds and three steals, drawing his career up by strikes.
Senior LeLe Grissett came back on top in the second half, scoring eight of her 10 points after the break. Grissett has added double-digit points in two of the last three games.
NEXT
The 2/1 Gamecocks (15-1, 10-0 SEC) leaves the conference for a trip to Storrs, Connecticut, and a meeting with the No. 3/5 UConn Huskies on Monday, February 8. Tipoff is set for 19h on FS1.