Jan. 6, 2008
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COLUMBIA – South Carolina junior Brionna Dickerson scored nine straight points in a 90-second span to spearhead an 86-47 victory over Savannah State this afternoon at the Colonial Center. The Tigers (8-7) battled the Gamecocks early, trailing just 18-22, before Dickerson sparked the Gamecocks (11-4) on offense and the Carolina defense yielded just two points to the Tigers over the final seven minutes of the first half.
Neither team found points easily early on with the Gamecocks cracking the scoreboard first when a pair of offensive rebounds led to Demetress Adams’ put-back a minute into the contest. SSU’s Lashara Smith sank a pair of free throws to tie things up, and the Tigers took a 3-point lead on an Antoinette Williams free throw and a short jumper off the drive from Patrice Robinson. Ilona Burgrova hit a lay-up off an in-bound play to cut the lead to one, and Dickerson put back her own miss for a 6-5 Gamecock lead with 15:16 on the clock.
Freshman Jordan Jones drained a deep 3-pointer from the top of the arc, but 2007 Division I Independent Newcomer of the Year Ivy Smith drove to the right side to sink a lay-up and pull Savannah State back within two. Just over a minute later Robinson hit a mid-range jumper on the right baseline to knot things up at 9-9 with 12:05 remaining in the half. Jewel May converted on a traditional three-point play, and an Adams free throw and a Jones jumper from the right elbow pushed the lead to six at 15-9. Robinson again answered the Gamecock spurt with a jump shot, but Burgrova recorded a put back and a free throw to push the margin to seven. Back-to-back turnovers allowed Smith to net the next five points for the Tigers, pulling the visitor within two at 16-18 at the 8:23 mark.
While C.J. Pace and Jones started the half’s closing 21-4 run, it was Dickerson’s burst that clawed into the Tigers. She began her spurt with a 3-pointer from the right wing, then sank a pair of free throws before draining another three from the right wing in transition. After Burgrova blocked Smith’s shot on the other end, Dickerson snagged the rebound and pulled up for a mid-range jumper and a 32-18 lead with 4:06 left in the half. While the Tigers were one-and-done on their end for the rest of the half, the Gamecocks continued to clean up their offensive glass, pulling down 10 boards that led to 12 second-change points in the period.
South Carolina warmed up from 3-point range in the second half and took advantage of its opportunities at the free-throw line, hitting 20-of-26 from the stripe, to out-score the Tigers by 20 points in the final 20 minutes.
Four Gamecocks reached double figures in scoring, led by Dickerson’s 18. Jones added 16, while May netted a season-best 14 in just 18 minutes of play. Adams posted her sixth double-double of the season with 11 points and 12 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end, and Burgrova snagged 10 rebounds as well.
South Carolina’s 11-4 record is its best in non-conference play since the 2002-03 team went 12-1 en route to an NCAA Tournament berth. The Gamecocks open Southeastern Conference play at Alabama on Thu., Jan. 10, before hosting 2007 NCAA champion Tennessee on Sun., Jan. 13, at 3 p.m.
