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Cardoso, Boston lift No. 1 South Carolina past Auburn 94-42
Women's Basketball  . 

Cardoso, Boston lift No. 1 South Carolina past Auburn 94-42

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Kamilla Cardoso scored 16 points and Aliyah Boston had 13 points and nine rebounds to lead No. 1 South Carolina to its 13th straight win over Auburn, 94-42, on Thursday night.

The Gamecocks (15-0, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) won their 21st straight overall, dating to their successful run to an NCAA Tournament title last season.

Victaria Saxton had 12 points and Zia Cooke, coming off a career high 31 in a win at Georgia last Monday, was the fourth South Carolina player in double figures with 10 points.

A big part of coach Dawn Staley’s game plan was to get her star player playing like a star once more after Boston was held to single-digit points and rebounds in South Carolina’s first two SEC games.

Boston played just 19 minutes in the 76-34 romp over Texas A&M and was swarmed by as many as four defenders by Georgia in the Gamecocks’ 68-51 victory on Monday.

Boston was active and on target from the start against Auburn. She made three of her four attempts — including her first 3-pointer of the season — as the Gamecocks took a 26-7 lead after the first quarter.

The game’s only drama down the stretch came as Boston was stuck on nine rebounds in the final period. The crowd gasped on several possessions as Boston had chances to grab that rebound, but came up short.

Boston finished with four of her team’s nine blocked shots.

South Carolina kept pouring it on after taking control, leading by 32 points at the half and 44 after three quarters.

Aicha Coulibaly had 16 points to lead Auburn (10-5, 0-3), which hasn’t beaten the Gamecocks since a 53-49 win at home in January 2012.

Notables

  • The Gamecocks showed out on offense against the Tigers, with 25 assists on 36 made field goals, 10 players scoring in the first half and four finishing in double digits.
  • The 52-point margin of victory is the Gamecocks’ sixth highest in an SEC regular-season game.
  • The defense stood strong, tallying nine blocks and holding Auburn to just 28.6 percent from the field.
  • South Carolina’s win over Auburn marks the 35th consecutive victory at home.

  • Kamilla Cardoso led the team in scoring for the second time this season, putting up 16 points with half coming in the third quarter as part of 12-7 run to extend South Carolina’s lead to 42.
  • Aliyah Boston had a strong first half, notching two of her four blocks and seven of her 13 points, including scoring four of the first eight to open the game.
  • Victoria Saxton scored a season-high 12 points and five rebounds on the night, putting down six of the first 19 for the Gamecocks in the opening quarter.
  • Zia Cooke score in double digits for the 12th time this season (87th in her career), with six of her 10 points coming in the third quarter, including a 3 to cap an 11-4 run by South Carolina.
  • Raven Johnson tied a career high with seven assists in addition to three steals and zero turnovers.

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