South Carolina women’s basketball defeated Missouri 112-71 Thursday in the team’s final home game of the regular season. The win clinches sole possession of the SEC’s regular-season title for the Gamecocks.
Freshman forward Agot Makeer got the action started with a pair of free throws. She started in place of junior guard Tessa Johnson, who was out with an upper-body contusion.
Senior guard Raven Johnson got her first points of the night shortly after on a pull-up jumper from the baseline, pushing the game to 4-1. Senior center Madina Okot was next, earning a putback layup for her first bucket.
Missouri started 1-6 from the field, with five of those shots coming from beyond the arc. Missouri junior guard Grace Slaughter’s second 3-pointer of the game brought the score to 8-7.
The Tigers called a timeout with 4:37 left in the first quarter after Okot’s fourth bucket. She had 8 points and four rebounds just over five minutes into the game.
Sophomore guard Maddy McDaniel picked off redshirt senior guard Jayla Smith at midcourt and earned an and-one score at the other end shortly after the timeout. After missing the free throw, sophomore forward Joyce Edwards grabbed the rebound for an and-one of her own, making her free throw and pushing the game to 21-7.
South Carolina exited the first quarter with a 20-point lead. Missouri shot 25% (4-16) from the field in the period, far less than the Gamecocks' mark of 54.5% (12-22). Edwards had 9 points in the quarter, and senior forward Maryam Dauda had 6.
Of Missouri’s 13 points, Slaugther had 12. She had seven attempts in the quarter, knocking down four. The rest of the team was 0-9.
The Gamecocks' first bucket of the second quarter came off a 3-pointer from Raven Johnson. Shortly afterwards, Okot was up to 12 points in just eight minutes played after back-to-back layups.
After shooting better than 50% in the first, at the 4:25 mark of the second, the Gamecocks were shooting 26.7% (4-15). Missouri was at 66.7% (4-6). After a media timeout, Edwards scored 4 quick points to improve the team’s lead to 21 points at 46-25.
South Carolina led 58-32 at halftime after a free throw by McDaniel ended the period. She had three steals in the first half to go along with 3 points and two rebounds.
The Gamecocks made only nine shots in the second quarter on 23 attempts, while the Tigers made seven of 14. South Carolina still outscored Missouri 24-19 in the quarter. The paint was controlled by the Gamecocks, with 32 of the team’s points coming in the paint, compared to the Tigers’ 10. Rebounds favored South Carolina 27-17 in the first half.
Edwards led the team in scoring with 17 at the break. Okot added 12 points and seven rebounds, along with senior guard Ta’Niya Latson adding 10 points and a team-high three assists in the first half.
Latson got the second half started with a pull-up jumper. Raven Johnson followed the score up with a triple that pushed the lead to 30 points for the first time in the game.
The Tigers had a stretch in the third that included knocking down four straight baskets, three coming from beyond the arc, but the Gamecocks' lead never fell below 20.
McDaniel knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers in the final two minutes of the third quarter, helping South Carolina hold on to a 22-point lead entering the fourth.
Missouri posted an efficient third quarter despite never trailing by fewer than 20. Scoring nearly doubled its halftime total, and the team notched 31 points on 62.5% (10-16) from the field. The Tigers drained seven 3-pointers in the period, shooting 58.3% (7-12) from beyond the arc.
Six points each from Edwards, McDaniel and Raven Johnson held Missouri off from crawling back into the game. The Gamecocks shot 57.9% (11-19) as a team in the third.
Just under six minutes into the fourth quarter, Okot reached 26 points on the day after she led a 12-0 run with six consecutive made layups. The run would reach 14-0 after a layup from Latson, and on the team’s next possession, Raven Johnson drained a 3-pointer to push the lead to 34.
Okot checked out of the game with less than two minutes to play. She had 26 points and 17 rebounds on the night.
South Carolina ended the game on a 24-2 run, earning a 41-point victory to conclude its regular-season home schedule. Edwards finished with 23 points, trailing only Okot. Latson had 17, and Raven Johnson had 16.
The win gives South Carolina sole possession of the SEC regular season title, avoiding sharing the honor with another program.
What's next?
The Gamecocks will head to Rupp Arena to face the No. 16 Kentucky Wildcats Sunday at 2 p.m. The broadcast will be on SECN+.