WBB: Dominant Fourth Quarter Lifts South Carolina over UConn

The Gamecocks’s Destiny Littleton hit a three in the final minute of the third quarter to break a 54-54 tie, and then the fourth quarter was all Gamecocks. The Gamecocks outscored the Huskies 16-3, held the Huskies to 1-10 shooting, forced seven turnovers, and outrebounded the Huskies 11-6.

“You didn’t really see the impact in the first half,” Dawn Staley said. “The third and fourth quarters are when you start feeling what our defense does to teams.”

“The combination of their defensive pressure in the fourth quarter and our inability to handle their pressure was basically the game,” Geno Auriemma said. “For 30 minutes we did everything we set out to do and then we just ran out of gas.”

Staley said this South Carolina team might be the best defensive team she has had.

“You’re going to get me in trouble, but yes, the best and the deepest,” she said.

Destanni Henderson was outstanding in the fourth. She started the quarter by finding Kamilla Cardoso for a layup and then hitting a jumper. She had two steals, drew an offensive foul, and forced a shot clock violation. She was responsible for 11 of the 16 fourth quarter points, scoring seven and assisting on two more baskets, while also grabbing a pair of rebounds. She did it all while guarding UConn’s Paige Bueckers.

“She’s learned how to utilize her speed. She was more deliberate in the second half. She was changing her shots at the basket,” Staley said.

Henderson finished with 15 points, six assists, six steals, and four rebounds, redeeming herself from an awful game at UConn last season. What Henderson didn’t do, Aliyah Boston did. She finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds, two assists and a block in 34 minutes. Everything UConn threw at her, Boston adjusted to.

“I just had to be dominant. Since we got here, Coach was emphasizing that I need to be dominant and take over,” Boston said. “I knew there would be a double, but I needed to work quickly or be patient and just read how they’re playing it.”

After the game, Boston was asked if she is the best player in the country. She hesitated and said Staley could answer first.

“Do I think she is the best player?” Staley said. “22 points 15 rebounds in a big-ass game.”

Both teams were playing the third game in three days, with South Carolina on short rest from playing progressively earlier start times. But South Carolina’s superior depth helped wear down UConn.

“For 30 minutes I thought we were better,” Auriemma said. “For ten, the ten that matter, they were better.”

It was by design for South Carolina, especially against Bueckers. She finished with 19 points, seven assists, and five rebounds, but had just six points on 3-9 shooting in the second half and was part of at least three turnovers in the fourth quarter.

““We just kept pressure on her. We tried to not give her any open looks, we tried to fight over screens, we tried to chase her off,” Staley said. “I think we just made her work hard, and sometimes with a player like that if she’s going to play as many minutes that she has to play for them, we’re hoping that it takes a toll on her.”

“For the entire second half she wasn’t a factor,” Auriemma said.

South Carolina outrebounded UConn 42-25, and had as many offensive rebounds as UConn had defensive rebounds. That enabled South Carolina to attempt 67 shots, compared to just 50 for UConn. Staley knew South Carolina could control the glass and emphasized that a shot on the rim, even a miss, was a good play.

“Coach talked about the guards when they’re driving just to get it up on the glass,” Boston said. “I just wanted to make sure I was crashing the boards, even if I didn’t get it back up, because it gave us another possession.”

The Gamecocks scored the first six points of the game, but the Huskies answered with a 20-2 run. They led by 13 in the second quarter, and Zia Cooke was on the bench with two fouls. Needing a spark to keep from getting blown out, Staley put Cooke back in. Cooke delivered, scoring four points during a 6-0 run (the other basket was a putback by Boston) that got the Gamecocks back in the game. They were able to trim the Huskies’ lead to 36-33 at halftime, and Cooke, who finished with 17 points, and Boston did most of the work during a 13-4 run to start the third quarter.

Notes:

Littleton was 2-4 from three and had two rebounds. Staley praised her “championship behavior” for being ready to contribute after playing just 16 minutes the last two games. … Evina Westbrook had 14 points for the Huskies, but nine came in the first quarter and just three in the second half. … Cardoso had four points and six rebounds off the bench. … South Carolina had eight turnovers in the first quarter, three in the second quarter, and just three in the second half. UConn finished with 19 turnovers. … The Huskies had 13 points off turnovers, all in the first half. … South Carolina’s next game is Friday afternoon against Elon.

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