It was ugly. The Gamecocks won the tap against Penn State and took a 3-0 lead on a Demetress Adams field goal and free throw–and not too much went well, from that point on. The Gamecocks had too many missed shots, too many fouls and too many turnovers to mount a serious, sustained threat against a Penn State team that succeeded with a game plan designed to take away South Carolina’s inside game.

 

In the first half, the Gamecocks had considerable trouble hitting a shot, but turned up the defensive effort to recover from an early 7 point deficit (6-13) and cut the lead to 11-13. Unfortunately, the Gamecocks then went scoreless for an 8-minute period, while Penn State went on a 9-0 run. C.J. Pace finally dropped a 3-point shot through to make the score 15-25 at halftime. The Gamecocks shot a horrendous 18% in the first half on 5 of 28 shooting. Penn State was not much better, with an 8 for 24 effort for a 33% shooting percentage from the field, but they also had nearly twice as many free throw attempts (7-11) as the Gamecocks (3-6.)

 

 

South Carolina came out fired up for the second half. Two quick steals and resulting layups brought the Gamecocks within 6 points of the Lady Lions at 19-25 and the Gamecocks again seemed to be back in the game, until a flurry of turnovers let the Penn State team reel off another 9-0 run. While the South Carolina team never gave up, they simply didn’t have enough offense to mount a serious threat on the Penn State lead. The Gamecocks team shooting improved only marginally (33%) in the second half, while Penn State improved to 50%, enabling them to continue to increase their lead. The Gamecocks were outscored in the paint by 30-12 and Penn State managed 20 points off of turnovers to USC’s 11.

 

The Lady Lions’ go-to player, Tyra Grant, scored 17 points to lead all players and break a 12-game PSU losing streak that started last season, in January of this year. Janessa Wolff and Brianne O’Rourke backed her up with 8 points apiece. Wolff also tied Mashea Williams to lead the team in rebounding with 5 each.

 

The Gamecocks were led by Demetress Adams, with her 13th career double-double: 11 points and 12 rebounds. C.J. Pace contributed 11 points and 6 rebounds and Brionna Dickerson had 10 points and 2 rebounds. Jewel May had 6 points and 5 rebounds and Sada Wheeler pulled down 6 more rebounds.

 

 

The South Carolina Gamecocks women’s basketball team returns to the friendly confines of the Colonial Life Arena on Wednesday, November 19th for their home opener against arch-rival Clemson. The game starts at 7 pm.