USC Women Hammer Hampton 69-49

HAMPTON, Va. (USC SID) — No. 1/1 South Carolina used a 19-5 run in the first half to pull away en route to a 69-49 win at Hampton Wednesday night. Junior Tiffany Mitchell matched her career high with six 3-pointers to finish with 20 points, while Alaina Coates posted her fourth-straight double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds. With the win, the Gamecocks matched their best start under head coach Dawn Staley with their third-straight 10-0 start to the season. Both teams were effective from outside early, but when the Gamecocks got more aggressive on the inside on both ends of the floor, they pulled away. Mitchell hit back-to-back 3s from the same spot on the right sideline in the opening minutes of the game to give the Gamecocks an 11-8 lead. After the Lady Pirates tied it up with a 3 from Kenia Cole, Mitchell hit again from the right sideline at the 13:42 mark for a 14-12 advantage that South Carolina would never relinquish. The Gamecocks built their 13-point halftime lead behind a 19-4 surge midway through the first half. A‘ja Wilson opened the run with a putback, and Bianca Cuevas turned an Alaina Coates block and Aleighsa Welch defensive rebound into a transition layup that sparked more up-tempo play. With Coates dominating the defensive glass and the Gamecock defense forcing the Lady Pirates into tough shots, the lead ballooned quickly. Wilson hit a pair of free throws, and Cuevas buried a deep baseline jumper. An offensive rebound extended the next possession, and Wilson made it a double-digit lead with a free-throw line jumper to make it a 24-14 game with 8:23 to play in the period. Hampton‘s top scorer, Malia Tate-DeFreitas hit a 3 to interrupt the sweep, but the Gamecocks went right back to work with a free throw from Elem Ibiam and a putback from Khadijah Sessions. Tate-DeFreitas hit a pull-up jumper, and Mitchell answered with five straight points. Ibiam‘s free throw made it a 33-19 game with three minutes left in the half. The second half began with much of the same, although the Lady Pirates coaxed the Gamecocks into a series of fouls that would not allow South Carolina to pull away. The Gamecocks finished with four scoring in double figures as Cuevas netted a career-high 12 points and Wilson posted her ninth-straight double-digit game with 12 as well. South Carolina shot 47.4 percent (9-19) from 3-point range, and out-rebounded the Lady Pirates 48-21.