March 6, 2008
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Cold shooting in the first half was South Carolina’s undoing in a 71-57 loss to Florida in the first round of the SEC Tournament this afternoon at the Sommet Center. While the Gators (18-12) hit 6-of-15 from 3-point range in the first 20 minutes, the Gamecocks (15-15) managed just 19.2 percent accuracy from the field in that period. The 17-point halftime deficit was too much to overcome, although South Carolina outscored Florida 40-37 in the half and improved its shooting to 45 percent.
The first half was an offensive struggle for the Gamecocks, who hit just 5-of-26 (19.2 percent) from the field, while the Gators poured in 34 points, thanks in large part to 19 points from Depree Bowden. After falling behind early, South Carolina knotted things up at 10-10 on a 3-pointer in transition from Ebony Jones with 13:50 on the clock. The Gators wasted little time in regaining the lead however, as Bowden hit a pull-up jumper with the shot clock winding down and Aneika Henry and Sha Brooks hit back-to-back layups to push the margin back to 16-10 less than two minutes later.
With turnovers and minimal offensive rebounding, the Gamecocks put just three more points on the board over the next nine minutes. Bowden hit a pair of 3-pointers from deep in the left corner for a 22-11 lead, which grew to 17 points a 34-17 by halftime.
The Gamecocks got on track offensively in the second half by stepping up the defensive pressure. South Carolina narrowed its deficit to 11 points with 12:21 left in the game, forcing a series of Gator turnovers and crashing the boards. Demetress Adams battled underneath three times for a put back, and Samone Kennedy swiped a steal and drove for a layup. After Bowden drove the left side of the lane for a layup to end a three-minute scoring drought for the Gators, South Carolina rattled off the next six points. Adams hit a layup from the left side, Kennedy finished another drive to the basket, and Ilona Burgrova made it a 31-42 deficit with a layup from the left block off a feed from Ebony Jones.
With just under 12 minutes remaining, the Gators answered with an 11-2 run to push their lead back to 20 at 53-33, going back to dribble penetration to get a series of layups. The Gamecocks had one more surge in them, going on a 12-2 run beginning at the 2:34 mark, but they ran out of game to finish the rally.
Burgrova led the team with 12 points, while Adams was a point and rebound shy of a double-double with nine points and a game-high nine rebounds. Kennedy handed out five assists to go with six points as well.
With a 15-15 record this season, the Gamecocks will wait for the WNIT bracket announcement on Mon., Mar. 17, to see if their season will continue.
