Gamecock Women’s Basketball Blasts Purdue 85-49

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina sophomore Destanni Henderson scored a team-high 15 points as the No. 5/6 Gamecocks made a triumphant return to Colonial Life Arena with an 85-49 win over the Purdue Boilermakers on Sunday. Six Gamecocks cracked double figures in a game that was dominated by a smothering defensive effort and powerful rebounding.

Henderson finished with 15 points, six rebounds and two steals. Senior Tyasha Harris poured in 14 points and dished out five assists. Freshman Zia Cooke tallied 14 points, including eight in the third quarter, along with five rebounds and three assists. Senior Mikiah Herbert Harrigan scored eight of her 12 points in the first half in addition to her five rebounds and a pair of assists. Junior LeLe Grissett finished with a season-best 11 points and narrowly missed out on a double-double after she snagged eight rebounds. Freshman Aliyah Boston rounded out the double-digit scorers with a packed stat line of 10 points, six rebounds, four blocks, four assists and two steals.

The Gamecocks set the tone early with a 7-2 run to start the game ignited by a Harris jumper. Freshman Brea Beal added a layup and a free throw, while Harris bookended the run with another jumper. Purdue cut into the lead with a pair of buckets from Karissa McLaughlin and Dominique Oden, but the Gamecocks responded with a pair of Herbert Harrigan buckets to push the lead back to five, 11-6. Lyndsey Whilby got on the board for the Boilermakers, but Carolina put the clamps on after that, rattling off a 9-0 run to establish control, and finished the quarter on a 15-5 surge to take a 26-13 lead after one.

Carolina’s defense kept the pressure up in the second, holding the Boilermakers to three points through the first 5:44 of the period. The Gamecocks outscored Purdue 13-3 in that window, including four points each from Grissett and Henderson as the lead swelled to 23 at 39-16 with 5:44 to play in the half. Purdue put together a little run late in the half, but buckets from Cooke and Beal sent the Gamecocks into the half with a 43-25 lead.

Cooke caught fire in the third, scoring eight of her 14 points as the Gamecocks got into an offensive groove with full-court defensive pressure that led to a pair of backcourt turnovers for the Boilermakers. Boston notched six of her 10 in the third, along with three of her four blocks. The Boilermakers had their best offensive quarter of the day, tallying 17 points, but the Gamecocks kept overpowering them to take a 68-42 lead into the fourth.

Carolina’s defense crushed any hopes of a late Purdue rally, not allowing the Boilermakers to convert a field goal in the final quarter. Henderson helped finish off the Boilermakers, scoring five of her team-high 15 in the fourth as the Gamecocks cruised to an 85-49 win.