No. 1 South Carolina women extend streak, roll past Georgia

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Aliyah Boston scored 15 points and No. 1 South Carolina rode an overwhelming opening period to its 13th consecutive win, beating Georgia 88-53 on Sunday.

Destanni Henderson had 14 points for South Carolina (19-1, 7-0 Southeastern Conference). Boston had four of the Gamecocks’ 11 steals. Tyasha Harris added 13 points and seven assists.

Stephanie Paul led Georgia (12-8, 3-4) with 13 points.

South Carolina used its dominant defense to grab control early.

After Georgia’s Jenna Staiti scored the game’s first points, the Gamecocks’ 14-0 run left the Lady Bulldogs with double-digit deficits the remainder of the game. Harris sank a 3-pointer and added another jumper as the bookend baskets of the run.

South Carolina had seven steals in taking a 28-8 lead at the end of the opening period. Many of the forced turnovers followed Georgia’s ill-fated attempts to pass the ball inside. The Lady Bulldogs made only 3 of 13 shots from the field in the deflating opening period.

Gabby Connally’s third 3-pointer of the second period helped Georgia trim the South Carolina lead to 13 points at 34-21. The Gamecocks stretched the lead to 26 points in the third period.

Connally had 11 points and nine assists.

BIG PICTURE

South Carolina: After surviving their first real SEC challenge in Monday’s 81-79 win over No. 9 Mississippi State, the Gamecocks returned to their dominant form with their sixth conference win of at least nine points. … The Gamecocks, No. 1 in the nation with 8.3 blocked shots per game, had nine blocks.

Georgia: The Lady Bulldogs have lost 11 straight in the series with South Carolina. Georgia’s last win in the series came on January 13, 2013. … Five of Georgia’s eight losses have come against teams currently in the Top 25. … Georgia outscored South Carolina 22-19 in the second period but couldn’t mount a serious challenge to the lead. … Que Morrison and Malury Bates fouled out.

UP NEXT

South Carolina completes a two-game road swing at Mississippi on Thursday.

Georgia will face its third straight Top 25 team when it plays at No. 15 Texas A&M on Thursday.

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