March 25, 2017
STOCKTON, Calif. — Junior guard Kaela Davis poured in 28 points to propel top-seeded South Carolina to a dominant 100-58 victory over No. 12 seed Quinnipiac in the NCAA Sweet 16 Saturday afternoon at Stockton Arena. The win sends the No. 3/4 Gamecocks back to the Elite Eight for the second time in three years and moves their record to 30-4 on the season. The Bobcats end their 2016-17 campaign at 29-7 following their setback.
Davis was clinical from beyond the arc, connecting on five 3-pointers en route to her second-straight 20-point outing. The junior standout netted 15 of her 28 points in the third quarter and finished the contest 9-of-13 from the field. Gamecock junior forward A’ja Wilson added 24 points on 7-of-9 shooting and finished the game 10-of-10 from the line, while junior guard Allisha Gray tallied eight of her 19 points in the second quarter to help send Carolina into the half with an 18-point advantage. Freshman guard Araion Bradshaw added a career-best five assists off the bench for the Gamecocks, whose 100 points Saturday marked a season high. Their 18-of-19 performance from the charity stripe was their best ever under coach Dawn Staley.
Carolina quickly established a double-digit lead out of the gate after opening the contest on a 16-0 run. Davis paced the Gamecocks during the stretch, knocking down a 3-pointer from the left wing to make it 5-0 before connecting on a jumper from the right side to push the advantage to 9-0 with 7:15 to play in the first quarter. The junior, who notched eight of Carolina’s first 12 points, converted a three-point play 50 seconds later after hitting her shot from the right elbow while drawing a foul. Her ensuing shot from the line gave the Gamecocks a 12-0 lead, and a pair of free throws by Wilson stretched the cushion to 14-0 with less than five minutes to play in the period.
The Carolina defense also keyed the run, and the Bobcats missed their first 10 field goal attempts of the afternoon after being forced to settle for jump shots throughout much of the opening period. The Gamecocks spent much of their time on the line down the stretch of the quarter, and seven of their final 11 points came off free throws. A jumper by Gray with 24 second remaining capped the dominant period and sent Carolina into the first break with a 22-7 lead. Davis and Wilson combined for 14 first-quarter points, while Quinnipiac managed to shoot just 2-of-14 from the field over the first 10 minutes.
Davis’ hot start carried over to the second quarter, and a pair of free throws from the guard and her second 3-pointer of the game produced a 29-10 Gamecock lead with 7:18 to play in the first half. Two steals from Wilson helped extend the advantage to over 20 points at 37-14, as the forward took the ball away and delivered a layup the other way before swiping it away on Quinnipiac’s next possession and finding Gray for an uncontested layup in transition with 4:17 remaining in the second period. The pair of juniors joined Davis on the list of Gamecocks to reach double figures in the first half, and Carolina headed into the locker room in front 45-27. Gray totaled eight second-quarter points and 12 for the half, while Wilson chipped in 16 points through the first two periods after making each of her first 10 free throw attempts. Carolina’s frontcourt size dictated the game down low, and the Gamecocks netted 14 points in the paint in the first half and held a 22-9 rebound advantage over the first two periods.
Davis remained the catalyst for the Carolina offense in the third quarter. The junior knocked in a jumper from the right side to push the lead back to 20 at 47-27, and she found Wilson down low for a layup that answered a Quinnipiac jumper and put the Gamecocks in front 49-29 with just over one minute gone in the period. Another 3-pointer from the guard stretched the lead to 52-29, and two more free throws from the junior gave her 20 points for the game and made it 54-29 with eight minutes to play in the quarter. The Wildcats suffered another slow offensive start to begin the half, and Quinnipiac totaled just four points in the first five minutes of the third period after opening the quarter 1-of-5 from the floor. Davis continued to score at will from beyond the arc, and a 3-pointer from the left wing followed by another jumper from the left corner opened up a 68-36 Gamecock advantage with 3:24 remaining in the quarter. The Suwanee, Ga., native capped off a 15-point performance in the third period with a layup, and Carolina headed into the final break leading 76-44. Davis and Wilson accounted for 23 of the Gamecocks’ 31 points in the quarter after combining to go 9-of-10 from the floor during the 10-minute stretch.
The Gamecocks, who scored 11 of the fourth quarter’s first 13 points, saw its lead grow to 40 when senior guard Tiffany Davis laid it in to make it 86-46 with 6:38 left to play. Four players converted a 3-pointer in the final period for Carolina, which maintained a lead of at least 35 points the rest of the way. The Gamecocks closed a strong offensive showing with a 9-of-13 shooting performance in the fourth quarter.
Carolina shot 61.0 percent from the floor, including a 75.9 percent clip in the second half after connecting on 22 of its final 29 field goal attempts. The Gamecocks boasted a 38-18 advantage in points in the paint and outrebounded the Bobcats 35-18 for the game.
GAMECHANGER
Carolina quickly grabbed control of the game after opening the contest on a 16-0 run. Gamecock junior guard Kaela Davis netted eight points during the stretch.
KEY STAT
The Gamecocks had no problem finding the bottom of the net from all areas of the court Saturday. The Gamecocks shot 61.0 percent overall, 94.7 percent from the line and 62.5 percent from beyond the arc.
NOTABLES
- Saturday’s victory gives the Gamecocks its third-straight season with at least 30 wins. Three of Carolina’s four 30-win seasons all-time have come under coach Dawn Staley.
- Carolina’s 10 field goals from beyond the arc against the Bobcats marked the fourth time this season the Gamecocks have totaled double-digit 3-pointers.
- Gamecock junior Kaela Davis has averaged 17.2 points in Carolina’s six postseason games this season. The guard has four 20-point outings over her last seven contests.
- Carolina junior forward A’ja Wilson has gone 21-of-22 (.955) from the line through three rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
UP NEXT
South Carolina will battle either second-seeded Oregon State or the No. 3 seed Florida State in the NCAA Elite Eight on Mon., March 27. Tipoff from Stockton Arena is set for 9 p.m. ET, and the contest will air on ESPN.
