South Carolina held off Georgia Tech for a 76-65 win to advance to the Elite Eight.

South Carolina’s first two tournament games were defensive slugfests, but offense carried the day in the Sweet 16. South Carolina shot 56% from the floor, 8-14 from behind the arc, and made all six of its free throw attempts.

South Carolina had first half runs of 10-2 and 12-2, and a 9-0 third quarter run pushed the lead to 17, but every time defensive lapses let Georgia Tech back into the game.

“Our offense carried us today with our ability to hit layups and stretch and hit threes,” Dawn Staley said.

South Carolina led by 12 heading into the fourth quarter, but the lead was quickly down to eight after Georgia Tech answered South Carolina’s 9-0 run with a 9-0 run of its own. Then Georgia Tech went to a full court trap in the fourth quarter that caught South Carolina off guard. The teams traded baskets until a three by Kierra Fletcher cut the South Carolina lead to six with four minutes to play.

“It's the Sweet 16, so every team is going to bring their all. We knew that coming into the game it wasn't going to be just a cakewalk, it was something we were going to have to work towards to get,” said Laeticia Amihere. “We knew we were not going to be shaken up because this is the Sweet 16 and every team is going to give their best.”

Destanni Henderson scored on a baseline drive, and then drove and kicked to Zia Cooke for a three in transition. Lorela Cubaj, who finished with 15 points and seven rebounds, nailed a jumper, but then the Gamecock defense picked the right time to clamp down.

Aliyah Boston forced a turnover and then hit a jumper late in the shot clock. Brea Beal blocked a three-point attempt by Lotta-Maj Lahtinen and then Fletcher missed a rushed three as the Gamecocks held the Yellow Jackets scoreless over the final 2:32.

South Carolina used just seven players, but got significant contributions from all seven as Boston had an uncharacteristically quiet game. Cooke got hot early and scored South Carolina’s first eight points on her way to a team-high 17 on 5-6 shooting from three. Laeticia Amihere added 15 and a team-high seven rebounds, while Victaria Saxton had 12. Henderson had nine points, Beal had eight, and Destiny Littleton was the low scorer with six points. Boston also had the first seven points of the third quarter, but finished with just nine points, five rebounds, and three assists.

“The thing with Aliyah is she's an all-around player,” Amihere said. “Look at the accolades. It's not only scoring, it's defense as well. Although she's not giving us some buckets on the board, she's doing so much more to give our team the boost that we need.”

Lahtinen finished with 20 points for Georgia Tech, but had just four after halftime when South Carolina made defensive adjustments, including putting Beal and her seven-inch height advantage on Lahtinen.

“Today I thought we were focused and tight,” Staley said. “Defensively, in the first quarter we had some miscommunication on our ball-screen defense. In the second quarter we just had to scrap it because they weren’t doing what we game planned for. The coaches got together and said we’re going to do what they’re doing.

“You can’t put a square peg in a round hole.”

Notes:

South Carolina will be making its fifth appearance in the Elite Eight. All but one have come under Staley, who has now reached the Elite Eight in four of the last six tournaments, where she is 2-1. … South Carolina grabbed the last two rebounds of the game (Beal rebounded a shot she blocked and then Cooke grabbed a missed three) to keep its streak intact: the Gamecocks have not been outrebounded in a game this season. … South Carolina turned the ball over 13 times, including an intentional shot clock violation late. But Georgia Tech had just 16 points off the turnovers while South Carolina had 22 points off 12 Georgia Tech turnovers. … South Carolina shot 100% from the foul line for the second time in program history (12-12 against Marshall in 1988) and first time in the NCAA Tournament. … Henderson had seven assists. … South Carolina native (and one-time Gamecock target) Loyal McQueen had nine points. … South Carolina will face the winner of the Texas-Maryland game.