Short-handed Missouri (12-2) handed #1 South Carolina (12-1) its first loss of the season with a 70-69 overtime win.

Missouri dressed just eight players due to COVID issues, and played only seven. Leading scorer and rebounder Aijha Blackwell was out, as was key reserve Izzy Higginbottom. Also out were Skylah Travis, Jayla Kelly, and Micah Linthacum. But South Carolina couldn’t overcome offensive struggles, and Lauren Hansen made a layup with 0.1 seconds left to clinch the upset.

South Carolina built a 69-64 lead in overtime, but Missouri scored the final six points of the game. Hayley Frank, who finished with 21 points, scored a layup over Aliyah Boston, who had four fouls, to pull MIssouri to within 69-68. Destanni Henderson got to the rim but couldn’t convert, setting up Hansen’s heroics. After a timeout with 14.1 seconds left, Hansen, who also finished with 21 points, got a screen from Frank to get free from Brea Beal. Victoria Saxton and Boston were too late on help defense, and Hansen’s scoop layup bounced off glass and in.

“I thought we did a good job at the first penetration but then the second one we weren’t able to keep her in front,” Dawn Staley said. “She made a tough shot, but she got a right-handed layup and she made us pay for it.”

South Carolina shot 38.2% from the floor, the fourth consecutive game under 40% for the Gamecocks. In the last three games, South Carolina was able to overcome the shooting problems thanks to stifling defense, but Missouri shot too well. The Tigers were 42% from the floor, 7-25 from three, and 13-16 from the line. Meanwhile South Carolina’s starting backcourt of Henderson and Zia Cooke was a combined 6-31, despite getting open looks.

South Carolina had a chance to win in regulation, getting possession of the ball with 20.1 seconds left and able to hold for the final shot. Henderson drove, but ended up in the same space as Boston. Beal was open in the left corner, but Henderson passed back to Cooke, who had to put up an off-balance shot at the buzzer.

“We wanted to take the last shot. We wanted Henny to make a play if she could make a play, but I thought she got a little too deep,” Staley said. “We probably wanted to go into Aliyah off of that play.”

Boston finished with 17 points, 12 rebounds, and two blocks. She did most of her damage in the second half and overtime, with all but one point and three rebounds coming after halftime. But she only played 28 minutes because of foul trouble, including a couple of questionable calls and an ill-advised reach-in.

“When Aliyah was able to be on the floor she was impactful. When she was saddled with foul trouble, we really take a hit,” Staley said. “28 minutes is a lot of minutes, but it’s not enough for us to survive.”

Kamilla Cardoso picked up the slack for Boston, scoring 14 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Along with solid play by Saxton, Laeticia Amihere, and Beal (10 rebounds), South Carolina was able to control the paint, finishing plus-ten rebounding and grabbing 20 offensive rebounds. South Carolina ended up taking 18 more shots than Missouri, but simply couldn’t get the ball in the basket.

“I told our players the stat sheet looked very similar to games we won, and because we won you tend not to look at the things you didn’t do well,” Staley said. “We’ve got to shoot the ball better. We’ve got to play with pace. We’ve got to do a better job of getting our post players the ball, especially when they are as efficient as they are. We’ve got to hit shots. We’ve got to take good shots.”

Notes:

South Carolina was without LeLe Grissett and Saniya Rivers due to health and safety protocols. Grissett missed her second game in a row. … Former Gamecock LaDazhia Williams, who had been limited following knee surgery, played 38 minutes and had her first career double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. … Announced attendance was 6,139. … South Carolina’s game against Ole Miss has been postponed. South Carolina will add a game if possible, otherwise the next game is Thursday at LSU.

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