Gamecocks hold off late comeback, defeat LSU

COLUMBIA, SC --- With the loss to No. 2 UConn far behind them, Dawn Staley and the No. 1 Gamecocks have gotten back to their winning ways in consecutive games.

Although the LSU Tigers attempted a furious comeback over the waning minutes of the game, South Carolina (17-2, 12-0 SEC) secured the 66-59 victory on Sunday.

The game started quickly, with LSU scoring the first two buckets and initially limiting the Gamecock offense. However, this four point lead would be the only lead LSU would hold the entire game. Once USC got rolling, they stayed in front. The Gamecocks would on a 12-0 run after surrendering those early buckets, thanks to a stingy defense led by Aliyah Boston. The star forward had two blocks in the and was key in limiting LSU’s offense early on.

USC kept pushing during the second half, scoring and defending at high levels especially in both the third and fourth quarters.

Even though they were down by as many as 18 points, LSU never stopped fighting and for a brief time began closing in on the Gamecocks’ lead as time waned in the 4thquarter. But with time waning and the lead cut down to 5, LSU’s lead scorer Jailin Cherry fouled out, and the Tiger’s offense collapsed.

South Carolina guard Destanni Henderson lead the Gamecocks with 19 points, while Zia Cooke scored 13 of her own. Aliyah Boston continues to be arguably the best all-around player on the roster, recording a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds and also blocking 6 shots.

The win is the second this season against the Tigers, and it keeps the Gamecocks undefeated in SEC play. On Thursday, South Carolina will travel to No. 16 Tennessee (12-4, 6-2 SEC) with a 7:00 pm tipoff on the SEC Network.