SOUTH CAROLINA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

The Gamecocks overcame a slow start to pull away for an easy 75-49 win over the Flyers.

The game had all the hallmarks of a let-down: a non-name opponent, on the road (in the cold), coming off a huge win, and with a young team. Not to mention you have freshman Zia Cooke wanting to put on a show in front of her hometown fans.

For about five minutes, all of South Carolina’s biggest concerns were realized. South Carolina was sluggish, unfocused, and Cooke was forcing bad plays. South Carolina trailed 5-4 two minutes into the game, and was up just 8-5 at the media timeout. The break was just what South Carolina needed to get refocused.

"That was one of the things I was looking forward to, to see how they would respond," Dawn Staley said. "I thought for the most part in the beginning of the game they were ready to go."

Cooke missed another jumper, but grabbed the miss and scored near the rim. Mikiah Herbert Harrigan added a jumper and then a free throw, and Cooke banked in a three. After a Flyer free throw, Cooke added a couple of free throws, and then drained a three of a turnover. Victaria Saxton added a free throw to put the Gamecocks up 22-6 at the end of the first quarter. LeLe Grissett opened the second quarter with a layup to cap a 20-1 run.

South Carolina held Dayton without a field goal for nearly an entire quarter, 9:20, before Shakeela Fowler made a jumper with 8:38 left in the second. South Carolina held Dayton to just 18 percent shooting in the first half and had a 27-17 rebounding edge.

The Gamecocks led 41-21 at halftime, and a 10-0 run in the middle of the third quarter stretched the lead to 29. Like they did against the Terrapins, the Gamecocks dominated the Flyers inside. They outrebounded the Flyers, who entered the game fifth in the nation in rebounding margin (+23), by ten. They outscored the Flyers 36-6 in the paint, blocked ten shots and altered countless others, and attempted seven more free throws.

Cooke, who said she expected about 100 friends and family to make the two-hour drive from Toledo to Dayton from the game, did not disappoint. Scoring off her own miss seemed to settle her down and from that point on she put on a show. Cooke finished with a career-high 27 points and seven rebounds. She entered the game shooting just 30.5 percent from the floor, but went 9-15 (60 percent) and 5-6 from three.

"That's the Zia that they're used to seeing and I'm glad that she had a great game," Staley said. "I know that she's been working really hard shooting the basketball and finally she saw that ball go in. I know that she was relieved."

Reigning SEC freshman of the week Aliyah Boston had a relatively quiet game. She scored the first two baskets for South Carolina, but finished with just 11 points, two rebounds, and a block and steal as Dayton’s shooters tried to avoid her at all costs. Brea Beal also struggled offensively, scoring one point while going 0-4 from the floor and 1-4 from the line. But she didn't let the lack of scoring affect the rest of her game, as she tied her career -high with ten rebounds and played strong defense.

Notes:

Former Gamecock Araion Bradshaw went scoreless with six rebounds and an assist for Dayton. Staley was gracious talking about Bradshaw after the game. "She won a national championship as a freshman, and AB was looking for more opportunity to play. She found a place that would give her a bigger role and she's done well..… Olivia Thompson, who scored 10 points in seven minutes against Alabama State, was scoreless in four minutes. … Jenna Giacone led Dayton with 18 points. … Dayton’s leading scorer Erin Whalen, went 0-8 from the floor and was held scoreless. … Herbert Harrigan scored ten points and blocked four shots. … Saxton had 13 points, six rebounds, and three blocks. … South Carolina was just 14-24 (58 percent) from the free throw line. … South Carolina’s next game is at home against Appalachian State on Sunday.