COLUMBIA, S.C. – Coastal Carolina women's basketball guard
Arin Freeman led the Chanticleers in scoring as the Chants fell 102-39 to the No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia, S.C., on Wednesday afternoon. With the loss, the Chanticleers dropped to 5-6 on the season, while the Gamecocks remained undefeated and improved to 12-0 with the win.
The loss snapped the Chants' three-game winning streak and wrapped up the non-conference portion of the 2022-23 schedule.
CCU's Freeman recorded a team-high 15 points, while
Aja Blount,
Deaja Richardson, and
Miriam Recarte added six points each. Blount finished with a team-high five rebounds, as Coastal was outrebounded by 39 at 64-25.
South Carolina's Ashlyn Watkins led the Gamecocks with a game-high 16 points to lead five players in double-digit scoring. Zia Cooke, Sania Feagin, Laeticia Amihere, and Aliyah Boston chipped in with 14, 13, 11, and 11 points, respectively. Boston recorded a double-double with 10 rebounds.
USC jumped out to a 5-0 first-quarter advantage before the Chanticleers' Freeman hit a mid-range jumper to cut the home team's lead to three at 5-2. South Carolina took a 13-2 lead with an 8-0 burst, capped off by a layup by Boston. After a layup by Freeman for CCU, the Gamecocks pushed their lead to 18-4, highlighted by a Cooke three-point jump shot.
Coastal's Blount scored her first basket with a layup to close the scoring for the Chanticleers in the first quarter, only to see USC finish off the first period with a 12-0 run for the 30-6 first-quarter lead.
CCU's Freeman attempted to get the Chanticleers going in the second quarter, as the Little Rock, Ark., native scored the first three CCU baskets to trail by 30 at 42-12. South Carolina's Watkins answered the visiting guard with four baskets of her own.
After USC pushed its lead to 44-12, Coastal's
B'Aunce Carter made a layup for her only basket of the contest. Despite trailing by 30, CCU's Freeman hit a long-range three-point jump shot only to see the home-standing Gamecocks close out the first half with a 7-0 run for the 53-17 halftime advantage.
The third quarter action began with the host team increasing its lead to 66-19 with a 13-2 surge, sparked by a Cooke three-pointer and capped by a Victaria Saxton fast break layup. Coastal answered with a pair of free throws by Freeman, which was followed by a Richardson layup to cut into the USC advantage at 66-23.
After six Gamecock points, Coastal's Recarte sandwiched a pair of USC free throws with a pair of three-pointers to give the visitors from Conway, S.C., some life as the Chants trailed 74-29. South Carolina pushed its lead to 75-29 by going 1-of-2 from the free throw line, which was followed by an old-fashioned three-point play by Coastal's Blount to make it 75-32. The Gamecocks closed the third-quarter action by sandwiching an
Amaya Adams layup as the Chanticleers trail 79-34.
With just 10 minutes left to play, the home-standing Gamecocks opened the fourth period with a 12-0 run to take a 91-34 advantage. Coastal got in the scoring column with a pair of free throws by Richardson, which was followed by a second layup by Adams to cut into the USC lead at 91-38. South Carolina closed the final quarter with an 11-1 run as the final point the Chanticleers would get would come from a Blount free throw for the final margin of 102-39.
Coastal Carolina will return to action on Thursday, Dec. 29, as the Chanticleers will open Sun Belt Conference play on the road in Harrisonburg, Va., versus newcomer James Madison. The opening tip is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
For complete coverage of CCU women's basketball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalWBB (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram), or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUSports.com.
