South Carolina women's basketball kicked off its highly anticipated 2021-22 season with an exhibition against Benedict Monday night. The Gamecocks leaned on their size advantage in a 98-41 victory, out-scoring the Tigers 60-10 in the paint and finishing with a 64-31 advantage in rebounds. Four individuals reached double figures in scoring, led by Kamilla Cardoso's 18 points.
Benedict denied most of the offense's post action early in the opening quarter and took advantage of a South Carolina scoring drought to push ahead 15-12 with three minutes to play. The Gamecocks turned to the bench for a big spark to close the period, and Cardoso made her debut a memorable one, piling up six points in a row on her own with a fast-break layup capping the run and putting her side back in front for good at 18-17. The center also brought down four rebounds – three on the offensive glass – and added a block in her four minutes on the court in the first.
The Tigers scored the opening basket of the second quarter, but from there it was all South Carolina, which finished the period on a 20-1 run in the final five minutes of action to take a 48-25 lead into the halftime break. The Gamecocks attacked the interior, hitting on 10-of-16 two-point field goal attempts with Cardoso and Laeticia Amihere perfect on their five combined shots around the basket. The advantage inside continued on the glass, with the team posting a 32-20 margin for rebounds that included 15 on the offensive side and led to 16 second-chance points.
Coming out of halftime, the Gamecocks connected on their first three baskets of the third to extend the run out to 26-1, with the defense remaining stout. Benedict made just three baskets on 15 shots in the quarter, and South Carolina's post players made sure to limit any extra opportunities with a 22-5 advantage in rebounds. On the offensive end of the court, it was the team's most productive quarter of the night, with 28 points coming from nine different Gamecocks.
It was the defense shining again in the final period, allowing seven points and three made field goals to the Tigers in the fourth quarter. The team finished with three blocked shots and a 14-6 advantage in rebounds and ended the final 3:09 of the game without allowing a point to Benedict. Aliyah Boston had a strong quarter on both ends of the court, scoring a team-high six points with two rebounds, a steal and a blocked shot in five minutes of playing time. Destiny Littleton also enjoyed her best period of the night, with five points, a pair of assists and two rebounds playing out the entire ten minutes of the quarter.
The team opens the season at NC State. on Tuesday, Nov. 9. The game has a 5 p.m. tip and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. The Wolfpack enters the season ranked fifth in the country, the game will be a rematch of last season's meeting where State came away with a 54-46 win at Colonial Life Arena.