Turnover-plagued USC blown out by No. 1 South Carolina in season-ending loss
No. 9 USC struggles to contain Joyce Edwards and Madina Okot and commits 27 turnovers in a 101-61 loss to South Carolina in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
USC guard Jazzy Davidson looks at the scoreboard during the second half of a 101-61 loss to South Carolina in the second round of the NCAA women's basketball tournament on Monday. (Nell Redmond / Associated Press) Monday night served as a litmus test for ninth-seeded USC to see how a program on its way back to prominence measured up against top-seeded powerhouse South Carolina. The Trojans were no match in the frontcourt against South Carolina, suffering 101-61 season-ending loss in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
South Carolina’s Joyce Edwards and Madina Okot got going early, scoring nine of the Gamecocks’ first 11 points. South Carolina would finish the game with 60 points in the paint. Edwards finished the game with 23 points and 10 rebounds and Okot had 15 points and 15 rebounds.
Read more: USC views its comeback win over Clemson as a key, culture-building moment USC freshman Jazzy Davidson , who scored a phenomenal 31 points in her NCAA tournament debut Saturday against Clemson, missed her first two shots. But she recovered and found some offensive rhythm, finishing with 16 points. Kennedy Smith picked up the slack in the first half, scoring nine of USC's first 15 points.
Unfortunately, she struggled after that and finished four for 15 from the floor. Davidson hit a three with 3:54 left in the first half that seemed to give the Trojans some life despite a 14-point deficit. However, things just got worse — USC (18-14) turned it over six times before halftime.