The Daily Gamecock

Gamecocks pull away from No. 12 Texas A&M

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Over the past few years, head coach Dawn Staley’s South Carolina program has been dominant. Since the 2012-13 season, the Gamecocks are 73-13 and have beaten 11 of their 13 SEC opponents at least once during that span, but entered Monday night’s game with zero victories against Texas A&M. 

For that reason, No. 1 South Carolina (19-0, 7-0) felt like it needed to prove itself with the visiting Aggies in town, and the Gamecocks did just that, defeating No. 12 Texas A&M (16-5, 4-3) 79-61. 

It wasn’t easy, though. South Carolina saw an eight-point halftime lead trickle down to just two points, but the Gamecocks pulled away from the Aggies, leaning on the play of freshman power forward A’ja Wilson and ever-reliable junior shooting guard Tiffany Mitchell.   

Staley is just happy to finally get a win against the Aggies.

“It feels great,” Staley said. “Anytime you can win against a team that you really haven’t had success against, it’s always a great thing.”

The win extended South Carolina’s winning streak at Colonial Life Arena to 27 games, tying Connecticut for the longest active streak across the country.

South Carolina used a pair of one-sided runs to separate itself from the Aggies. The first one came in the first half when the Gamecocks trailed 24-20 12 minutes into the game. South Carolina then went on a 19-7 run to lead by eight at halftime.  

After allowing the Aggies to make seven of their first 14 shots from the field, South Carolina’s defense tightened up and held Texas A&M to just 35.4 percent shooting for the rest of the night.  

Junior point guard Khadijah Sessions and freshman point guard Bianca Cuevas made life tough for Texas A&M with active hands on the defensive front. The duo combined for five steals, and the Gamecocks pressured Texas A&M into committing 16 turnovers. 

On the other end of the court, South Carolina’s offense stayed hot. The Gamecocks made 49.1 percent of its shots with freshman power forward A’ja Wilson scoring a game-high 18 points. Junior shooting guard Tiffany Mitchell scored in double-digits for the 15th time in 19 games this season, adding 16.  

Wilson believes that things are starting to go her way as the season has progressed.  

“It’s all coming together now,” Wilson said. “It’s a great time to start coming together.”

Ultimately, South Carolina made its mark close to the basket as the Gamecocks scored 44 points in the paint.  

The tandem of senior power forward Aleighsa Welch and sophomore center Alaina Coates gave the Aggies’ interior defense fits, as the pair combined for 24 points while adding 18 rebounds.  

Still, Texas A&M remained resilient, and quickly cut South Carolina’s halftime advantage down to two points less than four minutes into the second half after junior point guard Jordan Jones knocked down a three-pointer.

Jones scored 14 points while senior power forward Achiri Ade scored a team-high 15.  

However, the Gamecocks responded with a 20-6 run of their own over the next eight minutes.

Mitchell attributed South Carolina’s ability to put teams away to the Gamecocks’ willingness to stick to a game plan.

“Everybody knows the game plan and we just try to stick to it,” Mitchell said. “Nobody tries to do too much and everybody knows their role.” 

As the game went on, Texas A&M became overwhelmed by the Gamecocks’ depth. Staley was able to play 12 different players and South Carolina’s bench outscored the Aggie reserves 41-8.  

Staley knows how big of a role the Gamecocks’ depth plays in her team’s success.

“One of the keys that we always put to win a game is bench production,” Staley said. “I don’t think anyone else in the country has what we have coming off the bench.”

Texas A&M head coach Gary Blair was frustrated for most of the game with his team’s play, and he commended the fan environment inside of Colonial Life Arena. Over 13,000 spectators watched South Carolina earn its seventh SEC win of the year.

“Your crowd is better than Tennessee’s,” Blair said. “They get after it. Your students are sitting close, your promotions are good. I like everything you’re doing here.”

South Carolina will have little time to enjoy the win. The Gamecocks host Alabama Thursday night. Staley’s team defeated the Crimson Tide 102-59 in Tuscaloosa on January 8.  


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