The South Carolina holds Duke out to reach the fifth consecutive final
Birmingham, wing. – The South Carolina returned to the Final Four for a fifth consecutive season, but it was not easy.
Gamecocks with high-level seeds, in defense of national champions, obtained everything they could manage from Duke of second seed, winning 54-50.
The southern Carolina exceeded a bounce differential of 41-30, led by its prominent players Chloe Kitts and Sania Feagin. Kitts finished the game with 14 points and Feagin added 12, with the couple who scored the eight final points of the Gamecocks. Kitts arrived great in the fourth quarter, marking eight of his 14 points. Te-Hina Paopao was also an important part of the South Carolina spark in the second half, marking eight of her points in the second half and ending without a turnover.
This was not such an easy game as some expected. The South Carolina is followed by four points entering the fourth quarter, but has moved late. This was the story of the Tournament for the South Carolina, since he had to find a way to win late against Maryland in Sweet 16 and at home against Indiana in the second round.
Despite having a lot to improve, the Dawn Stley team is returning to the Final Four with the aspirations of the national championship. Gamecocks will play the winner of the Texas and TCU match in Final Four on April 4th.
South Carolina has a lot to improve
Gamecocks could advance in Tampa, Florida. For their fifth consecutive final, but on Sunday it was far from a convincing performance of the reigning champions. The South Carolina rose to an advantage of 10-2 just five minutes from the start of the game and seemed to be in complete control. But the Gamecocks were missing again a predicted freshness and allowed their opponent to stay around.
In the first half, the South Carolina had 10 turnover, it was less-8 in the offensive rebound differential and did not have a Field Goal for the last six minutes of the frame, allowing Duke to crawl again at stake. The Blue Devils took the command two minutes in the third quarter and led almost the entire period, taking a four -point advantage in the fourth quarter.
The Gamecocks responded at the beginning of the fourth, using a 10-0 race between the third and fourth quarter to regain the advantage with 6:43 on the left, but even then they were unable to put the Blue Devils away. Duke had the opportunity to potentially win the game in the second courses, but an Ashlon Jackson 3 came short. – Ben Pickman, staff writer
The bounce battle costs almost the gamecocks
The South Carolina is proud to be one of the best rebound teams in the country. The Gamecocks have an average of almost 30 defensive rebounds and 14 offensive rebounds per game and record just over 14 second chance points per game. But against the Blue Devils, the South Carolina struggled on the glass. 41-30 and 19-6 were exceeded on the offensive glass. While Duke had only 12 second chance points, the extra goods helped Duke to make 16 more shots than his opponent.
A potential matchup with TCU or Texas awaits the South Carolina in Tampa, both teams with physical and expert frontcounts players. This is an immediate area that the South Carolina staff will face if the Gamecocks hope to advance to the championship match. – Pickman
Toby Fournier Stars for Blue Devils at loss
Toby Fournier, Duke’s top scorer during the regular season, will not be happy with the result of the Eight Eight match on Sunday, but the 6 feet serial number-2 has concluded his first NCAA tournament with an extraordinary performance. He scored 18 game points, adding six rebounds and three blocks.
His Stat line is only a reflection of the shock that Duke provided Sunday. Coach Kara Lawson brought Fournier to the bench just 37 seconds at stake, trying to provide a push of energy to his team. And while Fournier took part of the first period to settle in the game flow, it was an integral part in helping Duke to almost bring out a historical disturbance. – Pickman
(Photo: Gary Cosby Jr. / Usa Today via Imagn)
