No. 2 South Carolina tops Duke 83-66

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Madina Okot had 23 points and No. 2 South Carolina (6-0) defeated Duke, 83-66, in the semifinals of the Players Era Championship on Wednesday.

South Carolina will face No. 4 Texas in Thursday’s championship, while Duke will play No. 3 UCLA for third place. Texas beat UCLA, 76-65, earlier in the day.

Joyce Edwards scored 22 points for the Gamecocks, while AP preseason All-American Ta’Niya Latson finished with 12. Raven Johnson also contributed with 10 points.

Toby Fournier led Duke (3-4) with 16 points. Riley Nelson finished with 14 points and Ashlon Jackson had 11.

The Gamecocks, who came into the game having scored 56.6% of their points in the paint this season, did so Wednesday with 69.8% of their points against Duke coming in the key, where they outscored the Blue Devils 58-28.

Duke held a one-point lead through one quarter, outscoring the Gamecocks, 15-14, while holding South Carolina to just 37.5% (6 of 16) shooting.

The Gamecocks came alive in the second quarter, though, outscoring the Blue Devils, 26-12, while turning the tables to put the defensive clamps on Duke, which hit just 5 of 14 (35.7%) from the floor in the period.

South Carolina held a 40-27 lead at halftime, despite going 0 for 7 from 3-point range. The Gamecocks finished the game 1 of 10 from behind the arc.

Gamecock Notables

• The Gamecocks were a force in the paint, outscoring Duke by 30 (58-28), while being dominant on the fast break 24-8.
• Madina Okot finished with a season-high tying 23 points, adding 13 boards for her fifth double-double of the season and second game with 20+ points.
• Joyce Edwards posted 22 points for her seventh consecutive game in double-figures, also marking her fourth with 20 or more. 10 of her points came in the third quarter in just as many minutes, helping the Gamecocks stay on top by double-digits, all while handing out a team high six assists.
• Ta’Niya Latson had half of her 12 points in the fourth quarter, netting six points in six minutes to put the Gamecocks up by 13 late.
• Raven Johnson had her fifth game with at least 10 points, adding half in an 18-9 run in the second quarter that helped put South Carolina on top, where they remained for the rest of the game.