CLEVELAND — The South Carolina Gamecocks are the national champions of women's college basketball again, avenging last year's loss to Iowa with a 87-75 victory in the title game.
Led by all all around effort and a tremendous bench effort, USC's depth and talent proved to be too much for Iowa, as they wore the Hawkeyes down as the game continued. It gives the Gamecocks (38-0) their third national championship in program history and their first ever undefeated year. The Gamecocks accomplished the feat after they lost all five starters from last season’s team that lost to Caitlin Clark’s squad in the national semifinals.
Staley immediately got emotional after the final horn sounded, crying alongside her players over the accomplishment.
“It doesn’t always end like you want it to end, much like last year. But my freshies are at the top of my heart because they wanted this. It’s awesome. .... It’s awesome. It’s awesome. It’s unbelievable,” Staley said. "When young people lock in and have a belief, and have a trust, and their parents have that same trust, this is what can happen. They made history. They etched their names in the history books.”
Iowa came out of the gate on fire, beginning on a 10-0 run that wasn't stopped until a Kamilla Cardoso layup. At one point, the Hawkeyes got the lead to 11 points, but the Gamecocks would go on 9-2 run in the first quarter to claw their way back into the contest.
Clark, the national player of the year who's garnered all kinds of national attention the last two years and led to record TV ratings, was as advertised, scoring 18 points in the first quarter, a women's championship game record. But she couldn't keep the pace all game long, finishing with 30 points.
“I personally want to thank Caitlin Clark for lifting up our sport. She carried a heavy load for our sport,” Staley said. “She’s going to lift that league (WNBA) up as well. Caitlin Clark if you’re out there you’re one of the GOATs of our game. We appreciate you.”
Inside dominance was a key in the game, perhaps best personified by a sequence in the second quarter involving Cardoso. The 6 foot 7 senior blocked an Iowa shot, then raced down the court. The ball was lobbed into her on the other end, and she overpowered an Iowa defender to get the layup and got fouled to convert a three-point play.
At the half USC held a 27-18 rebounding advantage and a 30-18 points in the paint disparity over Iowa.
Slowly, USC continued to erode Iowa's lead and took the lead for the first time with 4:53 in the second quarter. The teams would trade baskets over the last several minutes. But with Iowa up two with less than a minute before the half, Te-Hina Paopao would hit a three to give the team a one point advantage, and on the next play, Raven Johnson stole the ball from Clark and got a breakaway layup to put USC up by three, 49-46.
USC was nearly as hot to start the second half as Iowa was in the first, as they went on an 11-0 run that included the final points of the first half to give them their first cushion of the game. The Gamecocks lead got up to 10 when Bree Hall connected on a three with 2:41 to go in the quarter.
The Gamecocks would continue to get second chance points over and over again, as the rebounding disparity grew as the game went on. That allowed them to blunt several comeback attempts by Iowa.
USC now becomes the first team to go undefeated since UConn in 2016 and just the 10th team all time to go through a season unblemished. Including last season, when they went undefeated until the Final Four, USC is a staggering 74-1 over the last two seasons. When you add their last title run in 2022, they're 108-3 in three seasons.
The Gamecocks are also now undefeated in championship games, going 3-0.
South Carolina had a couple scares throughout the season that could have ended the perfect season. The Gamecocks were down at the half to Duke, LSU and Tennessee during the regular season before winning. The biggest threat came in the SEC Tournament semifinals game when they needed a last-second 3-pointer from Kamilla Cardoso to beat Tennessee and keep the perfect run alive.
The Gamecocks now further cement their position as the best in their sport with three championships since 2017, two near misses in 2021 and 2023, and the COVID stopped season when they were the top team going into the tournament that was canceled. No other team can boast the talent of the Gamecocks, and no other team has had anywhere near as much success.
With a title in hand, now comes the celebration. In previous title seasons, the Gamecocks do a celebration with fans at the Colonial Life Arena after returning home. A few days later, the team typically does a parade down Main Street in downtown Columbia. News19 will post those plans once they become available.