GREENVILLE, S.C. — Team of destiny?
In the most impossible, improbable, inconceivable ending to a basketball game maybe throughout the entirety of Dawn Staley's golden era, No. 1 South Carolina women's basketball survived a scare from Tennessee with a 74-73 victory in the SEC semifinals.
And of all people, and all ways to win, it was Kamilla Cardoso with a walk-off, banked in a 3-pointer with the Gamecocks trailing by two as time expired. It was her first career attempt from beyond the arc in three years as a Gamecock, and only the second of her entire college career dating back to he time at Syracuse.
South Carolina (31-0) had let Tennessee (19-12) come all the way back from 23 pons down in what would have tied the largest comeback in program history, with superstar Rickea Jackson giving the Lady Vols the lead on a putback with 24.5 seconds to go. It was Tennessee's first lead of the entire game, and looked like it was going to be enough when the Gamecocks missed a shot at the other end and were forced to foul.
Tennessee's Jasmine Powell had two free throws with a chance to ice the game, but missed both with under four seconds left. It left South Carolina one final chance, but it did not have a timeout left to advance the ball. MiLaysia Fulwiley frantically dribbled the ball up the sideline in an attempt to get a halfcourt heave off, but Tennessee committed one of its two fouls to give with 1.1 seconds left.
It was a peculiar choice that gave South Carolina one final chance at an inbounds play, but it was still a heave at best with just over a tick to go. In came the outbounds, the only one in the neighborhood for a catch was Cardoso, and she had no time to do anything but launch a three.
The shot she literally had never once attempted in a game in over three years in Columbia, the shot she had to make to keep her team's perfect year alive.
Banked in. Bucket. Bedlam.
It was a season-low for points in a quarter right out of the gate for Tennessee (19-12) with just six in the opening frame, as South Carolina’s swarming defense at all three levels kept a shutout intact for over seven minutes. It could not have possibly been a more different start than Friday’s 10-turnover performance in the opening quarter, as the Gamecocks had a clean turnover-free quarter and hauled in offensive rebounds on nine of their 14 missed shots.
When Fulwiley picked off an entry pass and darted to the other end of the floor for a transition layup early in the second quarter, it put the Gamecocks up 35-12 and forced a timeout from Tennessee head coach Kellie Harper.
Anybody inside Bon Secours Wellness Arena at this point would have been forgiven for thinking the game was already over, another “name your score” type of blowout for the Gamecocks. But once the pre-amble to the Jackson show ended, the scales tipped towards Tennessee
Tennessee’s superstar only scored three points on 1-of-6 shooting amidst a first half riddled with foul trouble, but a more concerted effort to get her the ball afte the break enabled her to take over. Jackson scored a dozen in the third quarter, sometimes with smooth shooting and other times with brute force on drives to the basket the Gamecocks had no answer for once again.
No answers on defense inside, but one big, resounding, impossible answer on offense from Cardoso.
Championship Sunday awaits.
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