Jan. 10, 2008
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – South Carolina suffered a 65-54 defeat to Alabama at the Coleman Coliseum tonight in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams. Poor shooting in the first half led to an early deficit, but the Gamecocks (11-5, 0-1 SEC) battled back to within eight at the break. A second-half surge brought the deficit to three before the midway point of the period, but another Alabama (8-8, 1-0 SEC) rally left the Gamecocks trailing by double digits again. Senior Ilona Burgrova was the leading scorer for South Carolina with 13 point, but the Gamecocks lost the battle of the boards 29-35.
Alabama jumped out to a 26-9 lead as the Gamecocks struggled to find their offense. The Crimson Tide hit 11 of its first 16 shots, including three 3-pointers, and out-rebounded Carolina 12-6 over the 12-minute stretch. South Carolina pulled within a point at 6-5 on Ebony Jones’ 3-pointer from the left sideline, but Caitlin Hollifield converted a traditional three-point play and Camilla Blands drained a triple from the right side for a 12-5 advantage five minutes into the game. C.J. Pace broke up the surge with a long jump shot, but the Tide’s cause was helped when Demetress Adams was forced to the bench with her second foul of the half.
The Gamecock felt Adams’ absence on offense and on the glass, allowing the Tide to go on a 9-0 run. Dedrea Magee hit a 3-pointer, and Talisha Chandler went inside for back-to-back buckets. Tierney Jenkins capped the spurt with a mid-range jumper, giving Alabama a 21-7 advantage. The lead grew to 26-9 on Hollifield’s 3-pointer and a long jumper from Chandler with 8:40 on the clock.
South Carolina was forced to bring Adams back in the game, and things turned around almost immediately. The Gamecock inside game began cranking out points, while the defense generated four steals on Alabama’s next four possessions. Ilona Burgova kicked things off with a lay-up off a pick-and-roll, and Adams drove the lane for a lay-up herself. The duo combined for the next eight points as the Crimson Tide’s lead shrank to 28-19 with a tick over three minutes left in the half. Both teams went cold over the final stretch with Brionna Dickerson hitting a pair of free throws, and Blands draining just one as Alabama took a 28-21 lead into halftime.
Out of the break, Alabama pushed its lead out to 33-23 before Jordan Jones hit her first 3-pointer of the game two minutes into the half. Blands made it a nine-point game with a lay-up off a scramble, but the Gamecocks came right back. Samone Kennedy drove the lane for a lay-in, and Jones drained another triple in transition, cutting the Gamecocks’ deficit to 31-35 with 16:56 left in the game. A third Jones 3-pointer, this one from the right side, cut the margin to three at the 12:43 mark.
A series of Gamecock miscues yielded a four-minute scoring drought, allowing Alabama to push its lead back to 13 points at 51-38 as Tamara Williams and Chandler combined for 10 points in the spurt. The Crimson Tide held the Gamecocks back down the stretch with solid defense of the 3-point line and just enough free-throw shooting.
For the Gamecocks, Adams reached double-figure points with 10 despite being limited by foul trouble to just 22 minutes. Dickerson collected a team-high six rebounds, tying for game-high honors as well.
The Gamecocks return home to host reigning national champion Tennessee on Sun., Jan. 13, at 3 p.m. The game will be broadcast live from the Colonial Center on CSS.
