Feb. 10, 2005
Athens, Ga, – – No. 18/18 Georgia claimed a 67-51 win over South Carolina Thursday at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens.
With the win, the Bulldogs improved to 19-6 overall and 8-3 in SEC play, while the Gamecocks dipped to 6-17 overall and 0-9 in conference.
Georgia put its stamp on the game with quickness, hustle and defensive intensity from the onset, getting out to a 10-2 lead after the first four minutes. South Carolina turnovers were a big part of the Bulldogs’ early surge, as the Gamecocks gave the ball away four times during the run, including a shot-clock violation on the first possession of the game. USC turned the ball over 13 times in the first half and 22 times in the game.
Carolina was able to gnaw into the deficit when Bulldog center Tasha Humphrey went to the bench with early foul trouble, but four first-half three-pointers from Georgia guard Megan Darrah led the Bulldogs into the locker room at the half with a 38-26 lead. Darrah scored all 12 of her points in the first half. Humphrey, who is Georgia’s leading scorer and rebounder, was saddled with foul trouble all game, and finished with eight points and five rebounds.
The Bulldogs came out of the half strong, going on another 10-2 run to expand the lead to 48-28 and put the game out of reach. Not helping the cause for Carolina was the fact that the Gamecocks converted on only four of their 15 attempts from the free throw line (26.7 percent.)
Sophomore Lauren Simms led the Gamecocks with 10 points, marking her 15th double-figure scoring game of the season. Guard Sherill Baker led Georgia with 13 points. USC forward Iva Sliskovic grabbed 10 rebounds, marking a new season high for the sophomore against SEC opposition.
Carolina played again without starting point guard Lea Fabbri, who missed her second game as she remains in Croatia to be with her father, who is ill in the hospital. Fabbri is out of the lineup indefinitely.
Including Thursday’s defeat, the Gamecocks have lost their last seven games this season and their last 15 games against SEC opposition, dating back to last season. Carolina has dropped its last 13 road games, dating back to an 84-61 triumph over the College of Charleston on Jan. 28, 2004. Georgia claimed its fifth consecutive win over the Gamecocks and improved to 13-1 at home this year.
The Gamecocks return to action when they host No. 1/1 LSU at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Colonial Center. Sunday’s game marks the sixth time in the program’s history that South Carolina plays the No. 1 team in the country. The game will be broadcast live on 1320 WISW-AM radio with Andy Demetra handling play-by-play and Robin Muller providing analysis. The broadcast can be accessed worldwide via the internet at www.uscsports.com.
