No. 1 South Carolina remains undefeated after the Gamecocks gave No. 11 UConn everything it could handle in a dominant 83-65 victory.
Per usual, the Gamecocks flexed their depth as eight players scored and four players reached double figures. Senior guard Te-Hina Paopao led the offensive effort with a season-high 21 points while going 8-of-12 from the field. She set the tone early with 16 points in the first half.
Gamecocks guard Raven Johnson added a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds, and Ashlyn Watkins was excellent on both ends of the court with 15 points, three blocks and two steals. Meanwhile, the South Carolina bench outscored UConn's 19-3.
"All of our kids are confident," South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said during the game. "All of our kids are probably starters in our program and probably every other program across the country."
South Carolina had a 14-point advantage at halftime and continued building on that momentum after the break. The Gamecocks pulled off the win despite missing leading scorer and rebounder Kamilla Cardoso, who is currently playing for the Brazilian national team in the 2024 FIBA Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
UConn's Aliyah Edwards, Paige Bueckers and Ashlynn Shade all had double-figure scoring games and combined for 54 of the Huskies' points.
South Carolina improved its perfect record to 23-0 overall. Meanwhile, UConn drops to 20-5, with all five losses coming against AP top 15 programs.
Next up, UConn will try to bounce back on the road against Xavier on Feb. 14. The Gamecocks will visit Tennessee on Thursday, Feb. 15.
