COLUMBIA, S.C. — Destanni Henderson had seven of her 11 points in a decisive third-quarter run as No. 1 South Carolina pulled away from Missouri 77-62 Thursday night for its 30th straight win against Southeastern Conference competition.
Zia Cooke shook off a poor start to finish with 15 points for the Gamecocks while Aliyah Boston had 11 points and 12 rebounds for her ninth double-double this season and 22nd of her college career.
It was a satisfying win for South Carolina (16-2, 11-0 SEC), which was beaten at No. 2 UConn on Monday night only hours after returning to No. 1.
But Missouri (7-8, 3-7) made it difficult, trailing just 45-44 midway through the third quarter before Henderson took over. She hit a jumper, and then another driving basket where she was fouled. After missing the free throw, South Carolina rebounded and Henderson was open for a 3-pointer and a 52-44 lead with 2:30 left in the period.
(3) LOUISVILLE 85, GEORGIA TECH 70: Dana Evans scored 25 points in her home finale, Kianna Smith scored 13 of her 21 points in the third quarter and the Cardinals (19-1, 12-1 Atlantic Coast) won at home against the Yellow Jackets (11-5, 9-4).
(4) NORTH CAROLINA STATE 86, CLEMSON 65: Kayla Jones scored 21 points and the Wolfpack (13-2, 8-2 Atlantic Coast) regrouped from an upset loss, beating the Tigers (10-8, 5-8) in Raleigh, North Carolina.
(12) MICHIGAN 62, PURDUE 49: Naz Hillmon scored 21 points, Leigha Brown added 20 and the Wolverines (11-1, 6-1 Big Ten Conference) returned from a three-week COVID layoff with a win over the Boilermakers (6-10, 3-6) in West Lafayette, Indiana.
(20) KENTUCKY 71, (16) TENNESSEE 56: Chasity Patterson scored 21 points and the Wildcats (14-5, 7-4 SEC) were 10 of 20 from 3-point range to pull away from the Vols (12-4, 5-2) in Lexington, Kentucky.
RUTGERS 70, (21) NORTHWESTERN 54: Tyia Singleton scored a career-high 17 points, Tekia Mack had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and the Scarlet Knights (7-3, 3-3 Big Ten) upset the Wildcats (11-5, 9-5) in Evanston, Illinois.
(24) GEORGIA 74, AUBURN 54: Maya Caldwell had her first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds to help the Bulldogs (15-4, 7-4 SEC) defeat the Tigers (5-14, 0-11) in Athens, Georgia.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
MINNESOTA 71, (24) PURDUE 58: Marcus Carr scored 19 points, Gabe Kalscheur added 16 and the Golden Gophers (12-7, 5-7 Big Ten) rallied late for a win over the Boilermakers (13-8, 8-6) in Minneapolis.
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