South Carolina Basketball: 6 thumbs up from a historic national championship win
By Kevin Miller
South Carolina Basketball vs. Iowa Hawkeyes
Thumbs Up 3: Bench Mob
South Carolina's bench isn't like normal bench units.
One, the Gamecocks only have five players on the bench. Two, they play four bench players in the rotation, and all nine rotation players play significant roles. Every player in the rotation played between 15 and 28 minutes per game this season.
The bench mob was really good against Iowa, outscoring the Hawkeye reserves 37-0.
Tessa Johnson led all Carolina scorers with 19 points on 7-11 shooting. MiLaysia Fulwiley added 9 points and filled up the box score with a team-high 4 assists, 4 rebounds, and a huge block. Ashlyn Watkins and Sania Feagin were solid contributors who combined for 9 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.
The freshmen Johnson and Fulwiley injected some much-needed energy into the Gamecocks in the 1st half when they were behind, playing far beyond their experience level.