The LSU Tigers hosted the South Carolina Gamecocks on Valentine’s Day matchup. A thrilling contest between two of the best teams in the country lived up to the expectation and resulted in a win for South Carolina.
The Tigers started strong at home, taking a five-point lead in the first quarter. By halftime, the Gamecocks were ahead by one point, and they didn’t let that momentum slip away until the final buzzer.
South Carolina won the game 79-72. Guard Tessa Johnson led the team in scoring with 21 points, two rebounds, and one assist. Three other players scored in double digits, and Madina Okot registered a 12-point and 17 rebounds double double.
From the LSU Tigers, Flau’jae Johnson led the charge with 21 points and eight rebounds, but didn’t get the necessary support from other players. Despite LSU’s loss, they were able to make the game competitive, and fans were entertained.
The marquee matchup garnered huge numbers, averaging 1.7 million viewers, and became the fourth most-watched ESPN NCAA WBB regular-season game on record. It was also the most-watched women’s college basketball game across all networks this season. The LSU vs South Carolina matchup peaked at 2.2 million viewers.
Staley was very happy with her team’s performance and heaped praise on some of the players who contributed immensely toward the win.
“I think if they could have gotten a couple of other blows throughout the second half, they might have had enough energy to make some more slow plays down the stretch, but they were exhausted. They got us over the mountain top,” Staley said about Tessa and Raven Johnson.
Staley gave a special shoutout to Okot, who registered a double-double.
South Carolina’s Dawn Staley Praised Madine Okot
Okot had 12 points and 17 rebounds in the game in 31 minutes. It was a game-winning performance from the Gamecocks’ center, but that wasn’t the only impressive thing she did on the court against LSU.
Okot finished the game with that statline without committing a single turnover.
“Madina has been ramping up. Ever since we took the pressure off of her for two games (coming off the bench), we decided that she didn’t have a choice, and she had to get back in the starting lineup. I think she made big plays for us,” Staley said.
The head coach praised her for making probably the biggest play of the game and helping the Gamecocks stay in the game throughout the four quarters.
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