November 16, 2001
COLUMBIA, S.C –
Shaun Gortman scored 23 points, grabbed five rebounds and recorded two steals to lead host South Carolina to a decisive 94-74 win in its season opener over Furman Friday night at the Carolina Coliseum.
The win was Carolina’s 200th all-time in the Carolina Coliseum, the full-time home of the Lady Gamecocks since the 1974-75 season. USC is 200-87 all-time on its current home floor.
Trailing 32-23 with 5:12 to play in the first half, Carolina overcame a sluggish start to rally behind a 13-2 run to close the first half, erasing the nine-point deficit before the intermission. Kelly Morrone, who set a personal career high with seven assists, hit her only three-point bucket of the night to trim the lead to six before Christina Ciocan scored five straight points. Carolina held a 36-34 edge at the break.
A resilient Furman squad stayed right with Carolina during the first six minutes of the second stanza, trailing 50-45 at the 14:00 mark. Carolina, though, began to convert on fast break opportunities and beat the Furman zone defense, stretching their advantage to 13 with 6:39 to play at 74-61, putting the game out of reach.
Gortman, a senior from Columbia, was 8-of-18 from the floor and 5-of-11 at the line in a dominant performance. Gortman was the key factor in Carolina’s second half surge, scoring 10 points over an eight-minute stretch in the second half.
Senior Teresa Geter chipped in nine points and eight rebounds while Jocelyn Penn returned to action for the Lady Gamecocks with a 10-point effort. Penn was a redshirt last season.
“I don’t think our team was pleased with themselves in the first half,” said Head Coach Susan Walvius. “We had to make a few adjustments against their zone at the half. You’ve got to get motivated by your defense, and we did that tonight in the second half.”
Furman placed three players in double-figure scoring as Deshara Shealey paced the Lady Paladins with 18 points and five assists.
South Carolina returns to action this Sunday, November 18, against Louisiana Lafayette at 2:00 p.m. in the Carolina Coliseum.
