Two heavy hitters met up in Minneapolis, Minnesota on Sunday evening in hopes of adding another title to their program’s history. South Carolina Gamecocks held the UConn Huskies to just eight points in the first quarter and held a 22-8 lead. The Gamecocks never looked back as the Huskies would never get within 6 points the rest of the evening. South Carolina went on to defeat UConn in convincing fashion, 64-49.
What an evening and what a great season for the South Carolina Gamecocks. The finish the year with a 35-2 record and a National Championship.
Their only two losses came by a combined 3 points (1-point loss to Missouri and a 2-point loss to Kentucky).
History was made. Over 1,000 credentials were given out for the event, over 18,000 attended, and …
… to top it off, Dawn Staley became first Black coach in men’s and women’s DI history to win multiple national championships. She and the Gamecocks previously won a title back in 2017.
Quotes:
- “First things first, though, you have to be really good. You have to be really well-balanced and you have to be all the things that South Carolina is. You have to have good guard play. Your big guys have to be able to dominate either at one end or the other. Then you need a little bit of luck.” –Geno Auriemma via ESPN.
- “We’re 1-0, so we’re 100 percent too.”- Dawn Staley.
Notable Performances:
South Carolina
- Aliyah Boston- 35 minutes, 11 points, 3-8 FG, 5-8 FT, 5 offensive, 16 total rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, and a turnover.
- Zia Cooke- 30 minutes, 11 points, 5-13 FG, 0-4 3PT, 1-2 FT, 5 rebounds, and a turnover.
- Destanni Henderson- 34 minutes, 26 points, 9-20 FG, 3-6 3PT, 5-6 FT, an offensive rebound, 2 total rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 2 turnovers.
UConn
•Paige Bueckers– 39 minutes, 14 points, 6-13 FG, 1-3 3PT, 1-2 FT, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal, a block, and a turnover.
Local Angle
Rock Island’s Brea Beal was the starting guard for the Gamecocks in their Championship win as well as all season long.
She finished with 2 points, 4 rebounds, an assist, and a block in the win despite the foul trouble.
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