December 2, 2001

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Shaun Gortman returned from a midweek leg injury to score a game-high 20 points and grab five rebounds as host South Carolina held off pesky Syracuse 76-58 Sunday afternoon in women’s basketball action at the Carolina Coliseum.

Gortman, a senior from Columbia, missed Friday night’s game against Duquesne with a bone bruise. Gortman, though, showed no ill effects from the injury, coming off the bench at the 13:03 mark in the first half. Gortman hit a deep three-pointer from the right wing in her first minute of action, as she did not shy away from full action.

The Lady Gamecocks jumped out to a huge lead in the first half, scoring the game’s first 11 points. Jocelyn Penn poured in six of her 15 points to spark the USC charge. South Carolina stretched the margin to as many as 24 with 1:59 to play in the first half, carrying a 43-21 lead into the intermission.

Syracuse, much like Duquesne Friday night, hit a flurry of three-point shots to get back into the game in the opening stages of the second half. Guards Julie McBride and Leaf Newman combined for four of Syracuse’s six three-point baskets in the first 12 minutes of the second half. The Lady Orangewomen rallied behind runs of 8-0 and 7-0 to climb within seven points of South Carolina, 58-51, with 8:46 to play.

But the Lady Gamecocks rallied behind Gortman, who nailed three three-point goals over a 3:35 stretch down the wire to dash the Syracuse comeback bid. Gortman was 7-of-11 from the floor, including a sparkling four-of-seven from three-point range. Her second to last bucket of the day pushed her over the 1,000 career point mark, making her the 23rd player to accomplish the feat at South Carolina.

“Shaun did a very nice job for us offensively today, but it’s really her defense that makes us a good team,” said USC coach Susan Walvius. “I was glad to see us get out to the strong first half, but to be a great team we’ve got to be consistent. It almost looked like we were bored out there to start the second half.”

USC shot 54.5% from the field on the day while holding Syracuse to just 38.9% shooting. McBride paced Syracuse with 19 points on 7-of-17 shooting while Newman chipped in 12 points.

South Carolina returns to action Tuesday night when they host Temple at 7:00 p.m. in the Carolina Coliseum.