COLUMBIA, S.C. — The stakes were high surrounding the No. 1 South Carolina women’s basketball team as it hosted ESPN’s “College GameDay,” its first ABC broadcast, the season’s first sellout crowd at Colonial Life Arena and the No. 12 Tennessee Volunteers on Sunday.
Despite the off-court commotion, USC accomplished the first of this season’s goals in a 67-53 win over Tennessee, winning at least a share of the SEC regular-season title and earning the top seed in the upcoming SEC tournament.
Head coach Dawn Staley said the Gamecocks (25-1, 13-1 SEC) communicated what was up for grabs with a win over the Lady Vols (21-6, 10-4 SEC), and the emotions of senior day and the weight of conference implications didn’t keep South Carolina from the win.
“This is one of the championships that we wanted throughout this journey,” Staley said. “Hope we can get three more.”
South Carolina has now won 13 straight after falling in its first SEC contest at Missouri on Dec. 30 — its lone loss of the year. The Gamecocks also tallied their 11th win over a Top-25 opponent in the 2021-22 season, a number that leads the country.
South Carolina star forward Aliyah Boston led all scorers with 16, joined by Zia Cooke (12 points) and Destanni Henderson (11 points) in double-digit scoring. Rae Burrell led Tennessee with 14 points, as the Lady Vols’ leading scorer Jordan Horston was unavailable with an elbow injury.
Here’s what we learned about the Gamecocks.
South Carolina hits SEC milestones
With its win over Tennessee on Sunday, South Carolina has clinched at least a share of the 2021-22 SEC regular-season crown.
Two conference games remain for a one-loss South Carolina, both on the road at Texas A&M and Ole Miss. The Gamecocks need to win one of those games to be outright conference champions.
If USC loses both of its next two games — and either LSU or Florida win out — that team and USC would be named SEC regular-season champions.
“We clinched it, but we clinched a tie,” Staley said. “We own the tiebreaker to win outright, and that’s the hard part. Once you know you’ve at least clinched it, you may have a tendency to let your foot off the gas. But I don’t think this team (will).”
The Gamecocks have won the SEC regular-season title in six of the last nine seasons. USC last won the conference’s regular-season crown in 2020.
The Gamecocks also earned the No. 1 seed in the SEC tournament with the win over Tennessee. South Carolina holds tiebreaker wins over LSU and Florida, which both have three losses in conference play, solidifying its top seeding in the tournament.
This year’s SEC tournament is March 2-6 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
Aliyah Boston ties SEC record for double-doubles
Boston is officially at the top of the SEC record books in consecutive double-doubles, earning her 19th straight against Tennessee.
The Gamecocks’ candidate for national Player of the Year is now tied with LSU’s Sylvia Fowles, who tallied 19 consecutive double-doubles with the Tigers from 2005-06.
“It’s really exciting,” Boston said. “I’m blessed to be able to do that, and I just thank God for allowing me to be able to do that — but on to the next one.”
Boston grabbed her 10th board, rebounding her own missed layup, with 4:33 left in the third quarter. She’d already scored 12 points for the Gamecocks when she came down with her 10th rebound.
Boston played 12 minutes in the first half and was sent to the bench after being called for her second foul with 3:34 to go in the second quarter. She tallied eight points and eight rebounds before halftime.
Boston’s streak dates back to the Gamecocks’ Nov. 29 games against Elon.
Saniya Rivers, who scored seven points with four assists and two rebounds in 20 minutes against Tennessee, said she and the team become just as excited as USC fans in Colonial Life Arena when Boston tallies another double-double.
In the postgame press conference after Tennessee, Rivers turned to Boston. Rivers encouraged Boston, who often says she doesn’t prefer talking about herself, to express more outward pride in her accomplishment.
“It’s amazing that you do that consistently,” Rivers said to Boston. “Every game, you should honestly be more proud.”
“I’m chilling,” Boston told Rivers.
“Be humble, but you can smile about it,” Rivers replied.
Boston played 28 minutes on Sunday and left the game with 1:12 to go in the fourth quarter. She finished with 16 points, 12 rebounds and one assist.
Offense rolls in third quarter behind Boston, Henderson and Rivers
South Carolina went into halftime with a nine-point lead over Tennessee but hadn’t found a lot of amount of success on the offensive end, shooting just 31% in the first half behind a 12 of 39 effort from the field.
The Gamecocks found much more offensive rhythm in an electric third quarter, scoring 25 behind an efficient transition offense and Boston’s presence in the paint.
Destanni Henderson, who celebrated her senior day on Sunday, and freshman Saniya Rivers both created opportunities on the fast break, contributing to the Gamecocks’ 11 points in transition during the third quarter.
Boston scored eight of her 16 points in the third, helping South Carolina head into the fourth quarter with a 17-point advantage over Tennessee.
Next South Carolina women’s basketball game
Who: No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks (25-1, 13-1 SEC) vs. Texas A&M Aggies (14-11, 4-9 SEC)
When: 8:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Reed Arena in College Station, Texas
