Texas 78 – South Carolina 61 Game Summary
- South Carolina was on the ropes early on in the game and never led in a 78-61 loss to Texas in the SEC Championship in Greenville, Sunday.
- Texas came out hot and shot a blistering 68% from the field in the first quarter and took a double-digit lead into the second.
- Longhorns forward Justice Carlton had her way with the Gamecocks frontcourt early, scoring 13 of her 15 points in the first quarter.
- USC made a run midway through the fourth quarter on back-to-back baskets from Joyce Edwards (13 points) and Madina Okot, cutting the lead to 11. Texas answered right back with a 7-2 run, however, putting the game out of reach.
- In addition to failing to halt the Longhorns’ offensive momentum for long stretches, the Gamecocks struggled at the foul line, making just 12 of 23 (52%) free throws.
- Only two Gamecocks finished in double figures: Edwards (13) and reserve Maddy McDaniel (10).
- The Longhorns get a measure of payback after falling to South Carolina 64-45 in last season’s SEC Final.
- Texas wins its first SEC Women’s Tournament Championship, denying the Gamecocks what would have been their fourth straight SEC Tournament title. USC had won nine of the previous eleven Tournament Championships. Tennessee still leads the way with 17 titles.
- Despite the loss, South Carolina (31-3) is still in strong contention for a 1-seed in the upcoming NCAA Women’s Tournament. Both ESPN and CBS had projected UConn, UCLA, Texas and South Carolina as the four 1-seeds prior to Sunday’s SEC Championship.