South Carolina women's basketball survives Indiana 79-75
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South Carolina blew a 23-point second-half lead but Raven Johnson scored clutch points to beat Indiana 79-75 and advance to the Elite Eight.
Mackenzie Holmes hit a driving layup to pull Indiana within 74-72 with 36 seconds left, the closest the Hoosiers had been since the opening minute of the game. On the ensuing possession, Kamilla Cardoso, who had 22 points, got the ball in the post, drew a double team, and kicked out to Johnson for a three.
Holmes made another layup, but then Johnson was fouled. She made one of two free throws to give South Carolina a four-point lead.Johnson scored six of her 14 points in the fourth quarter while also dishing out six assists.
“I saw Raven’s eyes when it was coming down the stretch and our lead was diminishing,” Dawn Staley said. “I knew she wasn’t going to let us lose. I knew she was going to do something. She had two big baskets, the three and then the mid-range shot in the lane, and then she made one of two free throws. A lot of that was her making big plays, instinctive plays that really good point guards do when they need to do it.”
The teams traded 1-2 trips to the line. With 14.5 seconds left, Indiana drew up a three-point attempt for Yarden Garzon. Ashlyn Watkins soared in to block Garzon’s shot out of bounds. Indiana got the ball back but didn’t know what play to run and South Carolina survived.
South Carolina sprinted out to a 10-2 lead less than two minutes into the game, but then its offense bogged down. Indiana scored seven points over the next 3:33 to erase all but one point of the deficit. Sania Feagin ended the drought with a pair of free throws, but then Sydney Parrish got open for a three-pointer to tie the game at 12.
The Gamecocks settled into their offense and answered with a 14-3 run. During the run, Bree Hall, Raven Johnson, and MiLaysia Fulwiley each hit a three, and Kamilla Cardoso drew the second foul on Mackenzie Holmes.
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Indiana closed to within 34-28 midway through the second quarter, but South Carolina responded with another big run. Cardoso scored six points during a 15-4 run that put South Carolina up 49-32 at halftime. Things soon changed in the second half.
“I think in the locker room we were really composed,” Sydney Parrish said. “Everyone was really speaking their part, what they saw on the floor, trying to make defensive changes, seeing what they gave us. I think the biggest thing was how composed we were. We didn’t freak out because we were down big, and I think that helped us going into the game.”
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South Carolina pushed its lead to as much as 23 in the third quarter, but Indiana finally had a run of its own. Parrish scored eight straight points during a 10-0 run that cut the deficit to 61-50. Parrish missed a three that would have cut it to single digits, and then her former teammate Te-Hina Paopao made a layup to temporarily stop the bleeding.
“Offensively I think we were just a little stuck, not getting the flow of things,” Bree Hall said. “But we’re going to take note of that and change some things around.”
The Hoosier had momentum, however. Sania Feagin made a layup with a little under two minutes left in the third, and then the Gamecocks didn’t score again for over five minutes. The Hoosiers trimmed the lead all the way down to five on another Parrish three.
“I thought they did a good job of keeping us off balance,” Staley said. “I thought in the third and fourth quarters we took some ill-advised shots, and that’s been the tendency of our young basketball team is when we’re able to build a lead, they pretty much think any shot is a good shot.”
Staley called a timeout and set up a play for Cardoso. She made a strong layup to wake up the Gamecocks. Cardoso finished with a game-high 22 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. Indiana rarely had an answer for her.
“That was part of the game plan,” Cardoso said. “Just having my teammates supporting me.”
Parrish finished with 21 points to lead Indiana.
Notes:
Former Gamecock La’Keisha Sutton, who is from New Jersey, attended the game. She led South Carolina to the Sweet 16 in 2012, Staley’s first NCAA Tournament appearance at South Carolina. … South Carolina hit 8-16 from three. Indiana hit 13-33, led by 5-10 by Parrish. … South Carolina was only plus-two on turnovers but was plus-12 in points off turnovers. … The Gamecocks shot an even 30-60 for the game. The Hoosiers shot 45.9%. … All nine Gamecocks who played scored at least four points. … Dawn Staley’s outfit: Staley wore a blue camo Louis Vuitton jacket. … South Carolina’s next game is Sunday against Oregon State.
