Gamecocks Notch 10th-Straight Win Over Clemson

Box Score

CLEMSON, S.C. – South Carolina senior Mikiah Herbert Harrigan poured in 13 points as No. 5/6 South Carolina (6-0) notched its 10th-straight win over in-state rival Clemson (2-4) 84-48 on Sunday at Littlejohn Coliseum. Six Gamecocks finished in double figures as Carolina stayed perfect on the season.
 
The Gamecock frontcourt dominated with Herbert Harrigan and Aliyah Boston tying for team-high honors with 13 points each. In the final rivalry game of her career, Herbert Harrigan narrowly missed a double-double with nine rebounds, including five on the offensive end, and added a pair of blocks as well. Boston grabbed four rebounds, swiped three steals and blocked a shot.
 
The Gamecock backcourt got hot late with four guards finishing in double-figure points. Tyasha Harris led that group with 12 points to go with her team-high four assists. Brea Beal dialed in her outside shooting, hitting 3-of-5 from 3-point range to finish with 11 points. Zia Cooke and Destanni Henderson each scored 10 points, and Henderson matched Harris’ team-high four assists.
 
South Carolina continued its first-quarter dominance on Sunday, jumping out to a quick 9-2 lead fueled by a Boston jumper, a pair of layups from Herbert Harrigan and a three-point play from Cooke. Clemson’s Kobi Thornton tried to slow Carolina’s momentum with a jumper, but Herbert Harrigan got the Gamecocks back on track with her third layup of the quarter. Carolina closed the opening period on a 9-4 run, punctuated by a Harris jumper to take a 20-9 lead after one.
 
Herbert Harrigan tallied the first point of the second with a free throw, and followed that with another layup. Clemson hung around early in the second, at one point cutting the Carolina lead to 10 after a pair of Thornton free throws made it 23-13, but Boston shut the door on that mini-rally with five straight points, followed by a Harris bucket to make it 30-13. Clemson got in a groove in the final six minutes of the half, but Carolina still carried a 42-23 lead into halftime.
 
After opening the third with a pair of Herbert Harrigan free throws and a Harris layup the third turned into the Beal show. The freshman came alive, scoring eight points in the quarter to push her total for the game to 11. The Carolina defense went into lockdown mode in the third, holding Clemson to one field goal and six total points as the Gamecocks went into the fourth with a 65-29 lead.
 
The Carolina bench mob got in on the scoring in the fourth with junior LeLe Grissett pouring in six points and notching three blocks in the period. Sophomore Elysa Wesolek and freshman Olivia Thompson each drained a three as the Gamecocks cruised to their 10th-consecutive win over the Tigers, leaving the Upstate with an 84-48 win.
 
GAMECHANGER
The Gamecock defense never let Clemson get comfortable, holding the Tigers to just nine points in the opening quarter. South Carolina came out of halftime on a similar tear, yielding just six point on one Tiger field goal in the third quarter.
 
KEY STAT
The Gamecocks smothered the Tigers, holding Clemson to a 26.2 shooting percentage for the game. In the third quarter the Tigers went 1-of-12 from the field for 8.3 percent shooting.
 
NOTABLES

• The Gamecocks held Clemson to single-digit scoring in the first and third quarters today. For the season Carolina has held opponents to single digits in a quarter 11 times in their 24 quarters played.
• Aliyah Boston has cracked double figures in all six of her games as a Gamecock.
• Six Gamecocks scored in double figures today for the fourth time this season, surpassing the 2014-15 team’s three games of six double-figure scorers for the most in the Staley era.
• Brea Beal scored eight of her career-high 11 points in the third quarter.

 
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks (6-0) are off to the U.S. Virgin Islands for the Paradise Jam where they will open play against No. 18 Indiana. The clash with the Hoosiers is set for an 8 p.m. ET start on Thu., Nov. 28.