The South Carolina women’s basketball team entered Colonial Life Arena for a game against the University of North Carolina at Greensboro — just two days removed from an 88-80 win over No. 6 Ohio State.
The Gamecocks wanted to make quick work of the Spartans after the Buckeyes took the game down to the wire and used the usual means to do so, relying on a huge run and a heavy inside presence to quickly dispose of the Spartans 91-44.
Posting up big numbers
The Gamecocks have four players in the frontcourt that could start for nearly any team in the country, and all four contributed in huge ways against the Spartans.
Forwards A’ja Wilson, Sarah Imovbioh and Jatarie White and center Alaina Coates split time against UNCG and combined for 50 points and 31 rebounds.
Even better for the Gamecocks, none of the four played more than 21 minutes.
In less than a half of play, Wilson amassed 19 points, 10 rebounds and matched a career-high six blocks. Six of her boards came on the offensive glass and the 6-foot-5 sophomore even registered two steals. Her 9-14 shooting was also impressive.
Overall, the Gamecocks scored 52 of their 91 points in the paint and outrebounded the Spartans 48 to 36.
With such talent in the frontcourt, the Gamecocks will continue to pound the ball inside over the course of the season.
The run
Dawn Staley has coached teams that have become famous for quick runs that create separation. The Gamecocks had one big one midway through the first half. The Gamecocks led by eight with 15 seconds left in the first quarter.
Sophomore guard Bianca Cuevas hit a three-pointer at the buzzer and the Gamecocks pulled away from there. By 4:19 into the second quarter, the Gamecocks had outscored the Spartans 15-2 and cruised for the rest of the game.
The team is used to big runs and led 19-5 just five and a half minutes into the Ohio State game. Last season, the Gamecocks consistently used big runs to distance themselves from opponents, many of which came quickly and nearly unnoticed.
The Gamecocks will look for consistency against elite teams to make another deep tournament run.
Up Next
The Gamecocks will begin a five-game road trip beginning with Clemson on Wednesday and ending with three games in Waikiki, Hawaii before returning for a home showdown with No. 14 Duke on Dec. 6.
Quotable
UNCG head coach Wendy Palmer on playing the Gamecocks: “It was a great experience for my young ladies to come play against the best in the country.”
Wilson on the early inside presence: “That’s something that we focused on last year and it’s something we plan on focusing on this year.”
Staley on getting the ball inside: "That was the gameplan, that's probably always gonna be the gameplan from here on out with the personnel that we have."