Traveling to Storrs, Connecticut, South Carolina (22-1, 10-0 SEC) competed to keep its undefeated season intact, but failed in doing so, losing 87-62.
These two teams are known for their 2014-15 season as being the best in the nation with the Gamecocks ranked No. 1 and Connecticut (23-1, 12-0 AAC) ranked No. 2.
The Huskies were able to fly past the Gamecocks and to earn themselves the new No. 1 spot in the polls, presumably.
Connecticut recently won an away game against Memphis 80-34 to only better themselves before taking on the No. 1 Gamecocks, giving them enough fuel to keep the victory on their home court.
South Carolina also recently beat the Georgia Bulldogs by a lengthy margin of 23 points, winning 58-35 in Athens, Georgia, and seemed ready to battle against Connecticut but fell short and lost its perfect record.
From the start of the first half, the two teams came out hot, scoring back to back and evening the playing field as the time went on. But as half time approached the Huskies managed to pull away, making the half time score 47-31.
Everything that you would expect up to this point. Both teams playing well on offense, with its best players leading the way.
— The Gamecock Sports (@TDG_Sports) February 10, 2015
One of Connecticut's most productive players was junior forward Breanna Stewart, who finished second in scoring with 22 points.
Meanwhile, South Carolina struggled to take care of the ball on offense. By the end of the first half the Gamecocks had accumulated 10 turnovers compared to Connecticut's five.
At the start of the second half it appeared the Gamecocks received a pep talk from head coach Dawn Staley because they came out scoring immediately, but could not amount to the baskets made by the Huskies.
Ultimately, Dawn Staley at least got to see her team play when trailing & on the road.
— The Gamecock Sports (@TDG_Sports) February 10, 2015
In the second half alone the scores were similar to those of the first half with Connecticut winning the half 40-31. South Carolina finished with 17 turnovers and 18 personal fouls compared to the Huskies turnovers and personal fouls count of 11 each.
Connecticut clearly shot the ball better, making 55.4 percent of its shots compared to South Carolina's 39.4 percent. Aside from the field goal percentage of both teams, the free throw margin was a big turning point. The Huskies made 17 of 23 free throws while the Gamecocks shot only 50 percent at the free throw line.
The top scorers for Connecticut included senior forward Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, who scored 23, sophomore forward Morgan Tuck, who added 17 and junior guard Moriah Jefferson, who put up 16 points while dishing out six assists.
Aside from the loss, South Carolina also had some impressive leading scorers including senior forward Aleighsa Welch and junior guard Tiffany Mitchell, with each player scoring 17 points. Also freshman guard A'ja Wilson contributed 10 points of her own.
Because of the loss, South Carolina should be bumped from the No. 1 spot in the country and the defeat was the team's first in 316 days.
Of course, it's got to be concerning for SC that the difference between them & UConn is 20+ points. But a lot can change by March.
— The Gamecock Sports (@TDG_Sports) February 10, 2015
Moving on, the Gamecocks will look to bounce back at home on Thursday when hosting LSU.
Although South Carolina lost, its season will go down in history, along with their new parody video of 'Fancy.'