#1-South Carolina 94 — #4-Oklahoma 68 (Game Summary)
- USC head coach Dawn Staley and her players insisted that Saturday’s rematch with Oklahoma was not about avenging their 94-82 OT loss to the Sooners in January. It was about advancing to their sixth straight “Elite Eight.” Carolina got both
- The Gamecocks started the “Sweet 16” much the way they did their previous tournament games in Columbia. In their opening round win over Southern, USC scored the first 18 points of the game. In the Round of 32, Carolina began with a 13-0 lead against Southern California. On Saturday, it was a 10-zip for the Gamecocks before the Sooners got on the board
- USC hit four three-pointers in the opening quarter to enjoy a 23-13 lead at the end of the first. Raven Johnson led the way with 9 points for the Gamecocks, while OU’s Aaliyah Chavez kept the Sooners in it with seven first-quarter points
- Carolina kept the pedal down in the second quarter, outscoring OU 24-15 behind sizzling shooting from the field. USC was 9-of-16 in the period, with Ta’Niya Latson scoring ten points to help push USC’s advantage to 47-28 at the break
- Latson led the Gamecocks with 18 first half points, while Johnson tallied 16 in the opening twenty minutes. USC was prolific from outside in the first half, knocking down seven three-pointers
- USC also neutralized Oklahoma’s interior threat in Raegan Beers. The senior transfer, who registered a double-double (18 points & 14 rebounds) in Oklahoma’s upset of the Gamecocks in January, was held to just six points in the first half. She finished the game with 14 points and 8 boards
- The second half was about maintaining their edge and keeping the lead. That’s exactly what USC did, outscoring their SEC rivals by seven to finish off their 34th win of the season
- According to ESPN, it’s the first time in which USC has scored 90 points in three consecutive NCAA tournament games. The point total was fueled by 51% shooting from the field (34-of-67) and a ridiculous 71% from three-point range (10-of-14)
- Carolina will face either TCU or Virginia on Monday night in the “Elite Eight” with a berth in the “Final Four” on the line
