#1 South Carolina holds off #11 Utah
South Carolina Women’s Basketball: News • Recruiting • Schedule • Roster • Stats • SEC Standings • NCAA Polls • Scholarship Chart
#1 South Carolina overcame turnovers, foul trouble, and a brilliant game from Alissa Pili to hold off #11 Utah for a 78-69 win.
Pili scored a career-high 37 points and almost single-handedly kept Utah in the game. South Carolina tried every available player against Pili, but she went around the bigger players, muscled through smaller players, and nailed threes if they didn’t chase her on the perimeter.
But in the fourth quarter, Kamilla Cardoso finally had an answer. She blocked a layup attempt by Pili, forced a couple of turnovers, and forced Pili to pass into a missed shot. Pili had just six points in the fourth quarter.
South Carolina led for all but 43 seconds, but Utah cut the deficit to 69-67 with less than three minutes to play. Bree Hall, who was just 1-6 shooting up to that point, attacked the rim and was fouled on the layup, converting a three-point play to put South Carolina up five.
Hall added a breakaway layup later for the final margin, and finished with seven points, four rebounds, and two blocks.
South Carolina led by 11 after one quarter, but Utah’s Pili took over in the second quarter. She scored 14 points in the second quarter alone and had 21 of Utah’s 30 points when she picked up her third foul with 4:44 left.
Utah couldn’t build on the moment built by Pili, and didn’t make a field goal the rest of the half.
Top 10
- 1Breaking
DJ Lagway
Florida QB to return vs. LSU
- 2
Dylan Raiola injury
Nebraska QB will play vs. USC
- 3
Elko pokes at Kiffin
A&M coach jokes over kick times
- 4New
SEC changes course
Alcohol sales at SEC Championship Game
- 5
Bryce Underwood
Michigan prepared to offer No. 1 recruit $10.5M over 4 years
[GamecockCentral for $1: In-depth coverage and a great community]
Both teams battled through significant foul trouble as the officials called an extremely tight game. Pili and Cardoso were both sidelined in the first half because of foul trouble, and other than Chloe Kitts, South Carolina’s entire frontcourt had at least two fouls by halftime.
By the end of the game, 41 fouls had been called. Four players had three fouls, three had four, and one fouled out.
Utah entered the game averaging 13.9 three-pointers per game, by far the best in the country. Dawn Staley wanted to run Utah off the three-point line, and the Gamecocks were mostly successful. Utah hit just 5-20 from behind the arc, season-lows for makes, attempts, and percentage.
While Utah relied almost exclusively on Pili, South Carolina got another balanced attack. Four players scored in double figures, led by Cardoso’s 17. Te-Hina Paopao added 15.
Chloe Kitts and MiLaysia Fulwiley each had 11 points, and for much of the first half, they were the entire Gamecock offense. Kitts added a game-high seven rebounds and a team-high four assists. Fulwiley went 3-3 from three and played solid defense.
RELATED: South Carolina-Utah Box Score
Notes:
South Carolina wore its “Cocky” alternate uniforms. … Sahnya Jah was the only Gamecock that did not play. … Every Gamecock who played scored. … South Carolina was just 12-18 from the foul line, but Cardoso went 5-5. … South Carolina shot 6-16 from three. … Ashlyn Watkins had eight points and six rebounds off the bench. … South Carolina committed a season-high 23 turnovers, including an uncharacteristic five from Raven Johnson. Utah only managed 11 points off the turnovers. South Carolina had 18 points off 17 Utah turnovers. … Dawn Staley’s outfit: Staley wore a beige Gucci hoodie. …South Carolina is off this week for exams and then returns to the court Saturday against Presbyterian.
