It had been a long time since the USC women had to deal with a regular season defeat prior to Sunday’s 77-62 loss at UCLA. The Gamecocks had not lost a non-tournament game since falling in overtime at Missouri 70-69 on December 03th, 2021. The Gamecocks, of course, went on to win the National Championship in April.
Maybe the Gamecocks will get another shot at the Bruins in the Final Four next spring. Time will tell on that. But for now, the Gamecocks will have to regroup as they were handled in a way they usually handle opponents.
The Bruins led the entire game and dominated the first half taking a 43-22 lead at the break. UCLA shot 52% in the opening half to 26% for the Gamecocks. USC actually won the second half 40-34 but it wasn’t nearly enough. They trailed by 20 going to the fourth quarter and never got closer than the final margin.
One of the side stories of the game was star guard MiLaysia Fulwiley only playing three minutes and taking two shots. She was averaging 20 minutes and 13 points per game coming in.
Te-Hina Paopao led the Gamecocks with 18 points. Tessa Johnson was the only other Gamecock in double figures with 14 points.
With the loss, the following winning streaks were snapped: 43 overall games, 33 on the road, 27 non-conference and 12 against ranked teams.
The Gamecocks are now 5-1 and will play Iowa State on Thursday in Fort Myers, FL.