N0. 9 seed Kentucky women’s basketball (23-10, 8-8 SEC) suffered its largest loss of the season in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals, falling 87-64 to N0. 1 seed South Carolina (30-2, 15-1 SEC).
This was the 79th game in the all-time series between Kentucky and South Carolina, The Gamecocks hold a 44-35 edge in the series.
This was the Gamecocks 10th straight win in SEC Tournament games, winning the last three SEC Tournaments. South Carolina has won 18 of its last 19 games in the conference tournament, the last team to knock them out was Kentucky in 2022.
In the regular-season meeting between Kentucky and South Carolina, the Gamecocks threatened to pull away with a 14-point first-half lead before Kentucky cut it to four points in the second half.
In this one, South Carolina took a double-digit lead in the second quarter and continued to build upon it.
The Gamecocks largest lead of the game was 26 points at early in the fourth quarter, this was the largest deficit Kentucky has faced all season.
Kentucky shot 43.1% from the field and 50% from three in the game. South Carolina shot 52.5% from the field and 50% on 3-pointers.
South Carolina forced 19 turnovers from Kentucky, scoring 25 points off these mistakes.
Kentucky scored first, as Tonie Morgan drove the lane and found a layup.
The Wildcats went scoreless for over three minutes, allowing South Carolina to build a 9-3 lead.
Kentucky made three straight field goals to pull back within one point, trailing 14-13.
South Carolina closed the quarter with an 8-2 run, holding a 22-16 lead after the first.
The Gamecocks began the second quarter with a 7-0 run to pull ahead by 13 points, forcing a Kentucky timeout.
Strack hit a layup that brought Kentucky back within single digits.
South Carolina’s Tessa Johnson scored 10 points on the next four possessions, extending the lead to 40-21.
Jordan Obi got a layup to fall, ending the Gamecocks 11-0 run.
The Gamecocks held a 44-27 lead at the end of the first half after outscoring Kentucky 22-11 in the second quarter.
The Wildcats faced a 19-point deficit late in the second quarter, this was Kentucky’s largest first-half deficit and its third highest deficit all season.
Kentucky shot 11 for 27 (40.7%) from the field and 3 of 8 (37.5%) from 3-point range in the first half. South Carolina shot 16 for 34 (47.1%), and 4 for 7 (57.1%) on 3-pointers.
South Carolina dominated down low in the first half, outrebounding Kentucky 21-17 in the first half and scoring 20 points in the paint.
The Gamecocks also forced 10 first-half turnovers with seven steals, scoring 13 points off those mistakes.
Johnson and Madina Okot both finished with double-digit first-half scoring.
Okot also grabbed 10 boards, giving her a double-double at halftime.
South Carolina opened the second half with a 13-6 run to pull ahead by 24 points, Kentucky called a timeout facing its largest deficit of the season.
Kentucky put together an 8-2 run cutting the Gamecocks lead to 61-41.
By the end of the third quarter, South Carolina grew its lead to 68-45.
Both teams scored 19 points in the fourth quarter, resulting in a 87-64 win for South Carolina.
Kentucky will now shift its sights to the 2025-26 NCAA Tournament ahead of selection sunday on Sunday, March 15 at 8 p.m. ET.
The Wildcats hope that their season performance is worthy of a No. 4 seed in the eyes of the selection committee. Kentucky’s blowout loss in the last game before the tournament hurts those chances, but the Wildcats still sit comfortably on the fringe.
