No. 2 South Carolina women's basketball (19-1, 5-0 SEC) defeated Coppin State (4-16, 2-2 MEAC) 90-48 on Sunday in Baltimore, Maryland. This is the 15th season the Gamecocks have played at least one historically Black college or university.
Junior guard Tessa Johnson started off the games scoring with an early 3-pointer. The Gamecocks had an early 7-point lead before Coppin State hit back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the lead to one.
Johnson continued her impressive long-range shooting with three 3-pointers in the first quarter to give the Gamecocks a 22-14 lead after the first ten minutes.
South Carolina had four turnovers within the first four minutes of the game but settled in quickly after and avoided more as the first quarter continued. The Gamecocks capitalized on the Eagles' six turnovers in the first quarter, scoring 7 points off the miscues.
Freshman forward Alicia Tournebize made her second appearance since joining the team in the new year and scored her first points as a Gamecock in the second quarter. Tournebize ended the day with 8 points, one assist and one block.
Sophomore forward Joyce Edwards was the only player to reach double figures in the first half for either team with 11. Earlier last week against Texas, Edwards had a slower start early in the game. In the first half against the Eagles, Edwards was shooting 62.5% from the field and had four steals. Edwards was the team's leading scorer for the day with 26 points, three rebounds and five steals.
By the second quarter, the Gamecock offense really began to settle in and dominated the Eagles. South Carolina scored 16 points in the paint and had 35 points off Coppin State turnovers. By halftime, South Carolina was up 44-19 against the Eagles.
The Gamecocks came out of the locker room from halftime and immediately continued their dominant offense, scoring 8 more points in the first four minutes of the third quarter.
Coppin State tried to create some offensive runs in the second half, but not well enough to outdo the Gamecocks offense. Defensively, South Carolina limited Coppin State to just 29 points in the second half and only 18 points in the paint the entire game compared to South Carolina's 40 points in the paint.
Coppin State had two players in double figures, with senior guard Khila Morris finishing with 20 points and four rebounds, and senior guard Paris McBride with 12 points and four rebounds as well.
Senior guard Ta’Niya Latson found a rhythm in the second half and finished the day with 15 points and five assists. Johnson had five 3-pointers with 17 points and four assists.
What’s next?
The Gamecocks (19-1, 5-0 SEC) travel to Norman, Oklahoma, to take on Oklahoma (14-3, 2-2 SEC) on Thursday, Jan. 22 at 7:30 p.m. The game will be streamed live on ESPN.