Gamecocks Set for Women's Final Four Friday

NCAA TOURNAMENT FINAL FOUR
#1/1 SOUTH CAROLINA (33-2) VS #17/18 LOUISVILLE (29-4)
APRIL 1, 2022 |  7 PM ET |  MINNEAPOLIS, MINN.  |  TARGET CENTER

If you’re in Minneapolis, check out all the Women’s Final Four fan activities!

GAMECOCK NOTABLES

• South Carolina is playing in its fourth Final Four in the last seven NCAA Tournaments, the second-most appearances of any program in that stretch. The Gamecocks advanced to the title game once, winning the National Championship in 2017.
• Tonight’s game is the Gamecocks’ sixth against a top-10 opponent this season – its fourth against a top-five foe. South Carolina leads the nation with 12 wins over ranked opponents this season.
• South Carolina’s rebounding effort has been at a high level all season with the Gamecocks’ 1,686 total rebounds the program’s most  since 1977-78. Leading the nation in rebounding margin (+17.9), South Carolina grabs an SEC-best 45.9 percent of its own missed shots, turning 17.2 offensive rebounds per game into 16.4 points per game.
• The Gamecocks’ already stalwart defense – third in the nation yielding 50.5 points per game – has been even more vise-like in the NCAA Tournament, during which opponents have averaged just. 41.2 points.
• National Player of the Year Aliyah Boston captured that title via consistent dominance in the form of an NCAA-best 28 double-double, but she is punctuating it with an outstanding NCAA Tournament. Her 16.8 points and 14.3 rebounds per game lead the team, and she’s tied for the team lead with eight assists.
• Senior forward Victaria Saxton has elevated her glass work in the NCAA Tournament, twice resetting her game career high boards. Her 11.5 rebounds per NCAA Tournament game are second on the team.
• Junior Brea Beal’s versatility has been on full display in this NCAA Tournament. Against Howard, she was solid on the glass with six rebounds, including five offensive. Against North Carolina, she led the team with four assists. Against Creighton, she hit 5-of-9 field goals for 12 points to tie for second on the team.

BY THE NUMBERS

6 – Aliyah Boston is six rebounds shy the program season record (434) set in 1977-78 by Katrina Anderson.

41.2 – The Gamecocks have allowed just 41.2 points per game in this NCAA Tournament.

NOTES

The Louisville Series
South Carolina leads the all-time series with Louisville 17-4, but just one of those games has come since the two were members of the Metro Conference in the early 1990s.

The Gamecocks won the only recent meeting – an 83-59 decision in the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Challenge in Springfield, Mass., on Nov. 27, 2016.

Gamecocks’ Tournament Summary
South Carolina’s 2022 NCAA Tournament story has been the story of their entire season – primarily a defensive plot line with a subplot of impressive rebounding.

The Gamecocks have held their four opponents to just 41.2 points per game with #17/18 North Carolina (3/25) scoring the most of the group at 61 points.

South Carolina has a +23.5 advantage on the glass through four games and has out-rebounded all four teams by at least 15.

The Gamecocks’ 79-21 win over Howard in the opening round set NCAA Tournament first/second-round records for fewest points allowed in a first half (4), in a game (21) and tied the record for field goals allowed in a game (8). South Carolina also tied the record for rebounds in a game (69) and was second in rebounding margin (+41).

In defeating Miami (FL) 49-33 in the second round, the Gamecock defense set a record for fewest points allowed in the opening two rounds combined. Their 54 points allowed bested the previous record of 71.

Aliyah Boston was named MVP of the Greensboro Regional, and Destanni Henderson was an All-Tournament selection.

NCAA Tournament Take
South Carolina is in its 18th NCAA Tournament and its 10th straight under head coach Dawn Staley. The Gamecocks are 38-16 overall in the event with 12 Sweet 16 appearances, six Elite Eight seasons, four Final Four showings and the 2017 National Championship.

In her 22nd season as a head coach, Staley has taken a team to the NCAA Tournament 16 times. She is 32-14 at the event, including a 30-8 mark at South Carolina.

Gamecocks Against the Field
South Carolina is 2-0 this season against their fellow Final Four participants with wins over Stanford and UConn.

The Gamecocks played six of the other 15 teams in this season’s Sweet 16 – Maryland, NC State, South Dakota, Stanford, Tennessee and UConn – with wins over all six.

In the full 68-team field, South Carolina faced 15 of those teams and went 19-1 against them, including an 11-1 mark against the seven other SEC teams in the field.

Ranked Readings
Against ranked opponents, South Carolina is 97-66 (.595) in the Dawn Staley era (beginning 2008-09), and even that mark is skewed by the early seasons of her tenure.

Since the start of the 2014-15 campaign, the Gamecocks are 82-27 (.752) against ranked teams, including a 34-6 mark since the start of the 2019-20 season.

This season, South Carolina’s 12 wins over ranked opponents are more than any other team in the country and have come by an average of 13.1 points.

Junior Aliyah Boston leads the team against ranked opponents, averaging a double-double (18.3 pts/13.4 rebs) to go with 3.0 blocks per game. Zia Cooke has 13.5 points per game, and Destanni Henderson is also in double figures at 12.5.