Jan. 25, 2007
:: South Carolina claimed a 79-51 win over Florida Thursday.
:: With Thursday’s win, South Carolina has now won four of its last six games against Florida and two straight over the Gators, as the Gamecocks won an 81-63 decision in Gainesville last year.
:: Melanie Johnson enjoyed her most productive game against an SEC opponent this year, scoring 22 points and grabbing 12 rebounds against Florida Thursday. Johnson’s performance marked the fourth 20-plus point performance for a Gamecock this year, as Kellindra Zackery went for 28 points against North Carolina A&T, Johnson scored 23 in the season-opener against East Tennessee State and Lauren Simms scored 20 last game at Mississippi State.
:: Johnson has feasted on the Gators the last two years, as she scored a career-high 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds against Florida last season.
:: South Carolina Head Coach Susan Walvius made a slight adjustment to the startling lineup for Thursday’s game, as she went with Lauren Simms, Stacy Booker and Shannel Harris in the backcourt, with Demetress Adams and Ilona Burgrova in the frontcourt. Burgrova replaced Lakesha Tolliver in the starting lineup.
:: After giving up a bucket on Florida’s first offensive possession, South Carolina proceeded to go on a 12-1 run to take a 12-3 lead with 16:20 remaining in the first half. South Carolina raced out to a 24-5 lead in the first 12 minutes and eight seconds of the game and took a 35-16 lead into the locker room at halftime. The Gamecocks held the Gators scoreless for a span of eight minutes and five seconds during that run.
:: South Carolina held a 35-16 lead at halftime. Including Thursday’s game, the Gamecocks are now 11-1 when leading at the half.
:: South Carolina limited Florida to 6-of-32 shooting in the first half (18.8 percent). Including Thursday’s game, Carolina has now limited four different opponents (Mercer, UNC Wilmington, Alabama and Florida) to less than 20 percent shooting in a half. Florida’s 16 first-half point marked the second-lowest first-half total ever for the Gators against an SEC opponent.
:: Lauren Simms finished Thursday’s game with 10 points. She is now only 13 points shy of hitting the 1,000-point mark for her career.
:: Lakesha Tolliver blocked three shots Thursday, marking the 14th consecutive game in which she has blocked a shot this year. Tolliver has blocked at least two shots in 10 of her last 11 games. She ranks among the top five shot-blockers in school history with 107 rejections and has a legitimate shot at breaking Michelle Murray‘s school record of 148 blocks next season.
:: Ilona Burgrova set a new career high with five blocks Thursday night.
:: Iva Sliskovic scored 12 points Thursday, marking her 10th double-figure scoring game of the year and the 45th of her career. Including Thursday’s game, Sliskovic now needs 71 points to hit the 1,000-point mark for her career.
:: Senior guard Lea Fabbri sat out her third straight game with a sprained right ankle. She will not play against Kentucky Sunday. Her status is questionable for next Thursday’s game at Tennessee.
:: South Carolina entered Thursday’s game ranked among the top 20 teams in the nation in rebounding margin (7th; +10.9), steals (11th; 12.8 per game), blocked shots (18th; 5.6 per game) and scoring margin (19th; +15.3).
:: The Gamecocks return to action when they host Kentucky at 3 p.m. Sunday. The Wildcats won a 59-55 decision over South Carolina when the two teams met in Lexington earlier this year.
