Women's Basketball . February 14, 2026

Dawn Staley Captures 500th Career Win in Victory Over LSU

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Tessa Johnson scored 21 points as No. 3 South Carolina beat No. 6 LSU 79-72 on Saturday night and extended its winning streak over the Tigers to 18 games.

Trailing 73-72, LSU had a chance to take a one-point lead with 45.5 seconds left, but Flau’jae Johnson missed two free throws.

South Carolina (25-2, 11-1 SEC) closed out the Tigers (22-4, 8-4) by scoring six straight points, including Madina Okot’s layup with 25.5 seconds left and her two free throws with 16.1 seconds remaining.

Raven Johnson added 19 for the Gamecocks, Okot had a double-double with 12 points and 17 rebounds, and Joyce Edwards scored 10 points.

Johnson led LSU with 21 points, and Mikaylah Williams added 11.

The Tigers had their chances, but wasted too many opportunities. They missed 10 layups and nine free throws.

Despite leading for only 4:09 in the first half, South Carolina flipped LSU’s 21-16 first-quarter lead into a 41-40 halftime advantage.

The Tigers led by as many as five points several times in the second quarter, but never could pull away. Despite Johnson scoring eight points, the Gamecocks countered with 5-for-9 shooting from 3-point range in the period.

Tessa Johnson and Raven Johnson combined for 19 of South Carolina’s 25 points in the second period. Tessa Johnson, the SEC’s leading 3-point shooter, scored 11 points and was 3 for 4 from long distance.

LSU opened the third quarter missing eight of its first 11 shots, including two layups. South Carolina capitalized with a 9-2 run for a 50-42 lead with 5:20 left in the period.

Tigers’ reserve forward Bella Hines and Jada Richard sparked rallies that twice cut the Gamecocks’ margin to three points. But South Carolina scored the final four points in the period for a 60-55 lead entering the final quarter.

LSU scored on layups on four straight possessions, two by Flau’Jae Johnson, forcing the Gamecocks to call a timeout with 3:44 left and clinging to a 69-68 lead. But South Carolina never lost the lead.

Gamecock Notables

With the 79-72 victory over LSU, head coach Dawn Staley recorded her 500th career win at the helm of the Gamecocks. The win also marked the 18th straight against the Tigers.
Eight Gamecocks who hit the floor scored, with four of five starters finishing in double figures.
Tessa Johnson led the offense for the third time this season with 21 points, scoring 16 of them in the first half, highlighted by four made 3s. She became the first Gamecock with back-to-back 20+ point games over AP top-10 teams since Aliyah Boston (2019-20).
Raven Johnson drained a new career-high 19 points, tying career highs of three 3s and eight made free throws along the way, all while handing out a team-high six assists.
Madina Okot continued to be a force on the glass, grabbing a team-high 17 boards on top of 12 points for her 16th double-double of the season. Her final basket, followed by two made free throws, gave the Gamecocks a five-point lead with 15 seconds remaining in the game.
Agot Makeer finished with five points, checking in and hitting a 3 just a minute later in the fourth quarter to extend South Carolina’s lead, where they remained on top.