The No 1. South Carolina women’s basketball team extended its regular season winning streak to 14 games Thursday night, as an all-around performance saw the Gamecocks defeat Texas A&M 89-48.
With the victory on Feb. 24, the Gamecocks clinched the SEC regular season title outright for the fifth time in the past nine seasons.
“We want to win the SEC outright,” head coach Dawn Staley said. “I thought our players have been preparing extremely well for the opportunity to win it outright.”
The Gamecocks delivered on both offense and defense, stifling the Aggies' offense and going on multiple extended scoring runs. Staley said the game was “one of the most complete games that we’ve played all season long,” and praised the team’s efforts on both ends of the floor.
“(I’m) super proud of them, and I just want us, I want this team to get everything that they deserve — everything that they work for, everything that they earn — and this is one of the things that we’ve wanted to do.”
The Gamecocks’ season-high scoring display was highlighted by junior forward Aliyah Boston, who led the team with 18 points and accumulated her 20th consecutive double-double, an SEC record.
The record was previously held by Sylvia Fowles, who recorded a double-double in 19 straight games for the LSU Tigers during the 2006-2007 season.
“This league puts you in a position to do some historical things, and that’s exactly what it did for Aliyah,” Staley said. “I’m so happy for her. She etches her name in history.”
Senior guard Destanni Henderson provided her own offensive spark in the game as well, shooting 8-11 from the field and tallying an additional 17 points.
On the other side of the ball, South Carolina held its own against the Aggies’ offense, holding the home team to 30 percent shooting from the field and forcing 13 turnovers.
The Gamecocks also won the game’s rebounding battle. Although the two teams had a similar number of offensive rebounds — 17 for South Carolina and 13 for Texas A&M — the Gamecocks grabbed 14 more defensive rebounds, denying the Aggies extra opportunities to score.
Staley lauded her team’s overall performance and said she finds comfort in the fact she can rely on both her starters and reserves.
“It’s great to have them (the starters) play half of the game, and knowing that when our second and third units got in, they elevated,” Staley said. “We didn’t lose a quarter. We didn’t turn the ball over. We shot the ball pretty efficiently. We’re rebounding the basketball. And that was player one through 15 — all the eligible players came in and elevated our play, so it was a beautiful thing to witness.”
South Carolina (26-1, 14-1 SEC) will head to Oxford for its regular season finale against Ole Miss (22-6, 10-5 SEC). The game is set to tip off Sunday at 2 p.m. and will be broadcasted on the SEC Network.