Dawn Staley and the South Carolina Gamecocks show their dominance in a huge win against Mississippi Valley State
Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks play with the same tenacity she displayed as an All-American player at the University of Virginia. But not even some of her Cavaliers squads laid a beating on a team like the one she and her ‘Cocks laid on poor Mississippi Valley State on Friday.
The Gamecocks set a new school record – holding a team to 19 points. They will look to continue their momentum heading into the ACC/SEC Challenge against 18th-ranked North Carolina Tar Hills.
Several key stars stood out for the ‘Cocks, who no stand at an impressive 5-0 on the young season. They have scored over 100 points on three of those victories (against Maryland, Clemson, and Mississippi Valley State), and they look like a team destined to return to the Final Four.
The ‘Cocks are currently ranked number one in the NCAA Women’s Top 25, and they showed it over the weekend, with MVSU scoring only seven points in the second half of the ballgame.
Kamilla Cardoso logged her fourth double-double on the year, notching 14 points and 10 for the ‘Cocks. Point guard Raven Johnson added 12 points, eight rebounds, five steals, and five assists, and Staley pointed out how she helped spearhead the blowout win.
“Raven has grown and matured to the point where she knows when she can take some chances,” Staley said. “She’s always been wanting to put heat on the other team’s point guard picking them up down the court, and obviously she got steals today, but the amount of pressure she applies … I thought she did a great job of disrupting without gambling as much.”
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