The No. 3 South Carolina women’s basketball team won 65-43 against Georgia on Sunday afternoon at Colonial Life Arena.
The Gamecocks opened up the game with a layup from senior center Madina Okot, and Georgia responded with a 3-pointer from junior guard Rylie Theuerkauf to take a 3-2 lead early over the Gamecocks.
Sophomore forward Joyce Edwards was fouled on the next play and made one of two free throws to tie the game at 3-3. This was the only shooting foul called in the first quarter.
Georgia sophomore guard Trinity Turner scored 4 points on back-to-back drives to put the Bulldogs up 7-3. This lead was short-lived though, as senior guard Ta'Niya Latson scored a 3-pointer to cut the lead to one.
From there, the Gamecocks reclaimed the lead with a Latson layup and a jump shot from senior guard Raven Johnson for a 10-7 lead five minutes into the game.
After the basket from Raven Johnson, both teams went on a two-minute scoring drought that was ended by a jump shot from freshman guard Agot Makeer.
South Carolina ended the first quarter on a 8-0 run and a 16-7 lead, with both teams struggling to find their footing on offense. South Carolina shot 35.3% from the field and Georgia shot 27.3%.
Latson was the only player to make a 3-pointer and hit more than one field goal in the quarter for the Gamecocks. She talked about how it felt to hit the lone 3-pointer postgame.
"It felt good. I just shot it with confidence," Latson said. "It just eased my nerves a little bit."
Junior guard Tessa Johnson scored the first points of the second quarter with a mid-range jump shot to increase the Gamecock lead to 18-7.
A turnover by South Carolina gave Georgia a fast-break layup to make it 23-12, and Okot scored on a put-back layup to increase the lead to 25-12.
Both teams struggled from beyond the arc in the second quarter, with neither hitting a 3-pointer.
After a 7-2 run, South Carolina ended the second quarter with a 30-14 lead. Defense and the team’s ability to grab rebounds helped limit the Bulldogs to 7 points in each quarter of the first half.
The Gamecocks struggled again in the second quarter, going 6-for-21 from the field and 0-for-6 from the three-point line.
Things turned around for both teams offensively coming out of halftime. Georgia started on a 7-2 run early in the quarter after 4 points from sophomore guard Dani Carnegie and a made jumper from Theuerkauf.
Theuerkauf led the way for the Bulldogs in the third with 8 points. She shot 3-for-4 from the field and was a perfect 2-for-2 from the three-point line.
Georgia’s offense continued to improve throughout the half and out-scored the Gamecocks 19-18 at the end of the third quarter, ending with a score of 48-33.
South Carolina had its most efficient quarter to close out the game against the Bulldogs, shooting 50% from the field.
The quarter started with 5 points from freshman guard Ayla McDowell and a made jumper from Raven Johnson. Raven Johnson made two more shots to end the quarter.
The Gamecock defense also shined as the Bulldogs were held to just 10 points in the quarter along with a two-minute scoring drought near the end of the quarter.
Junior forward Vera Ojenuwa scored on a jumper for the last points of the game, which ended in a 65-43 win for the Gamecocks.
Okot and Joyce both tied for leading scorers of the game with 14 points and Johnson had 10 points. Latson in her first game back from injury posted a statline of 9 points, 3 rebounds, and a team-high of 3 assists against Georgia.
What's next?
The No. 3 Gamecocks return to Colonial Life Arena on Jan. 15 to play the No. 2 Texas on Jan. 15 at 7 p.m. The game will be streamed on ESPN.