South Carolina Basketball: Gamecocks' NCAA Tournament march continues with close win over Indiana

South Carolina basketball coach Dawn Staley and her team avenged their last double-digit loss (in the 2019-2020 season) by beating Indiana in the Sweet Sixteen
South Carolina basketball guard Raven Johnson defending against Indiana
South Carolina basketball guard Raven Johnson defending against Indiana | Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports
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South Carolina Basketball vs. Indiana Hoosiers
Stats, Scoring, and Observations

South Carolina basketball played one of their toughest games of the year, but the Gamecocks outlasted the Indiana Hoosiers by a score of 79-75 to advance to the Elite Eight.

Here are the stats from the game:

STATS

Indiana

Points

Leader: Sydney Parris with 21

Rebounds

Leader: Yarden Garzon and Chloe Moore-McNeil each with 6

Assists

Leader: Chloe Moore-McNeil with 8

Steals

Leader: Chloe Moore-McNeil with 3

Blocks

Leader: Mackenzie Holmes with 2

Team

The Hoosiers shot 45.9%/39.4%/66.7% and had 14 turnovers

South Carolina

Points

Leader: Kamilla Cardoso with 22

Rebounds

Leader: Kamilla Cardoso with 7

Assists

Leader: Raven Johnson with 6

Steals

Leader: Raven Johnson and Ashlyn Watkins each with 2

Blocks

Leader: Kamilla Cardoso with 3

Team

The Gamecocks shot 50%/50%/68.75% and had 12 turnovers

BOX SCORE

OBSERVATIONS

  • Starters: Raven Johnson-Te-Hina Paopao-Bree Hall-Ashlyn Watkins-Kamilla Cardoso
  • Kamilla Cardoso dominated Mackenzie Holmes in the 1st quarter, forcing her to the bench with foul trouble and scoring 5 early points. The 2nd quarter was no better for Holmes. In the 1st half, Cardoso had 13 points on 6-7 shooting and 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks while Holmes had 4 points on 1-6 shooting as she only scored when a guard was switched onto her and when she shot free throws after a guard was switched onto her.
  • Indiana had a clear plan: shoot the three a lot. They took 17 shots from outside in the 1st half. They made 6.
  • Carolina's hot shooting from outside continued in the Sweet Sixteen. In the 1st quarter, Dawn Staley's team went 5-7 from the perimeter.
  • In the 1st half, the Gamecocks had four different runs of at least 7-0.
  • Indiana owned the 3rd period as they made difficult shots and defended pretty well. The 4th started in a similar way as the Hoosiers had a 10-0 run in the 3rd and another 10-run that split the 3rd and 4th quarter.
  • After halftime, Kamilla Cardoso was the team's only consistent source of offense as the Gamecocks struggled a bit on both sides of the court.
  • Indiana was the better team in the 2nd half, but the Gamecocks' strong 1st half was enough for USC to hold on for the win.
  • Raven Johnson went 3-3 on 3-pointers in the game.
  • The Hoosiers made 13 3-pointers, the most the Gamecocks surrendered in a game all season.
  • Kamilla Cardoso was the difference, going 10-12 from the floor for 22 points and 3 blocks, completely dominating the All-American vs. All-American matchup with Mackenzie Holmes.

Schedule

Schedule