The No. 23/22 South Carolina women’s basketball team defeated the Eagles of Georgia Southern, 75-54, Tuesday night at the Carolina Center. South Carolina, 5-0, had four players to post a double-digit point total in the 21-point win. The win tied the best start ever for Carolina in Head Coach Susan Walvius’ tenure.
In the first half, it was a back and forth battle by both teams. The first half saw nine lead changes or ties before South Carolina finally took control of the game when they went on an 18-8 run. The run gave South Carolina a 44-34 edge heading into the locker room.
South Carolina opened up the second half with an 8-2 run to extend the lead to 13, but Georgia Southern would fighte back. The Eagles, 3-2, used a 10-2 run to cut the deficit to four, but that was as close as they would get for the remainder of the game. South Carolina would then end the game on a 22-5 run to put the Eagles away for good with a 75-54 final.
USC was led by Jocelyn Penn who recorded 26 points and 11 rebounds for her third double-double of the season and 13th of her career. Kelly Morrone posted 17 as she went five for nine from three-point land. Cristina Ciocan recorded 12 points and 8 assists. Petra Ujhelyi tallied 12 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 block shots.
“Georgia Southern outworked us and we were careless with the ball,” said USC Head Coach Susan Walvius. “We want to be the best team in the country and we didn’t play like that today. We looked as if we were still in the Virgin Islands. We looked really tired and I know we are better than we looked. Georgia Southern is as quick as any SEC team and they apply excellent defensive pressure. We need to play better when we start the SEC.”
The Gamecocks will return to the Carolina Center Tuesday as they host Southern Conference opponent Wofford at 7pm.
