Jan. 4, 2006
• Wednesday’s game marked the seventh time in the history of the South Carolina women’s basketball program that the Gamecocks have faced the No. 1 team in the nation and the third time that the top team in the country visited Columbia. Carolina hosted No. 1 LSU last season and No. 1 Tennessee in 1998.
• Entering Wednesday’s game, Carolina ranked as the top team in the nation in field goal percentage defense, limiting the opposition to 29.0 percent shooting from the field. The Gamecocks ranked third in the nation in scoring defense (48.1 opponent points per game), third in the nation in rebounding margin (+13.8), second in the nation in blocked shots (7.8 per game) and sixth in the nation in average scoring margin (+26.7 points per game).
• When Tennessee took a 25-21 lead into the locker room at halftime, it marked the first time all year that South Carolina trailed at the half. It also marked the Lady Vols’ lowest scoring output of any half this season.
• Lauren Simms (16 points) eclipsed her previous season high of 13 points.
• Including Wednesday’s game, Melanie Johnson has grabbed five or more rebounds in 10 of Carolina’s 13 games this year.
• South Carolina and Tennessee list the series record as two different figures. The figure Tennessee uses includes games played against South Carolina before South Carolina fielded varsity basketball in 1974-75.
• Please note that South Carolina’s next game is set for 1 p.m. ET Sunday at Kentucky. The game was originally set to tip off at 2 p.m. ET but was moved to accommodate television.
• Tennessee owns a 34-1 all-time series advantage over Carolina, dating back to 1979.
