South Carolina Stands Apart Because of a Remarkable Ability to Rally

There are plenty of South Carolina statistics designed to cause nightmares for opponents. The Gamecocks entered Thursday with the largest margin of victory per game in the country (38.6 points). They boast Division I’s best offensive rating and best defensive rating. On a per-possession basis, they score more than anyone else, and they allow their opponents to score less than anyone else, too. They hold leads in statistical categories that feel wholly incongruent: When’s the last time you saw a team leading the country in block rate and three-point percentage? There have been some truly stacked Gamecocks teams in Columbia over the last few seasons. Yet this one is different. It’s better.

And in that sea of gaudy, terrifying numbers, there is one that should terrify opponents more than any other: 10.

That’s 10 as in, “South Carolina has won 10 consecutive games when trailing by double digits,” a streak dating back to November 2021. Generally, losses have been a rare phenomenon for this program as of late, with just three combined over the last three seasons. But all of those losses came in close games. Every time the Gamecocks have fallen behind by double digits since ‘21? They have come back to win. They have done it again, and again, and again—10 times over. It’s a rather nightmarish paradox. When is a team in the most danger against South Carolina? When it builds a big lead.

On Thursday, No. 9 LSU became the latest program to learn this, hosting a conference battle against No. 1 South Carolina. The Tigers looked in control for the majority of the game. Their lead was intact from the opening minutes until midway through the fourth quarter and grew to as large as 11. But the Gamecocks reacted exactly as history would suggest in that scenario.

They found a way to come back and win, South Carolina 76, LSU 70.

This game had been circled on the schedule for months: LSU won the national championship in 2023, and South Carolina won in ‘22, yet both teams have evolved considerably since their respective titles. LSU stocked up in the transfer portal to take on the role of superteam. South Carolina lost its entire starting five and nonetheless managed to emerge stronger and more well-rounded. The Gamecocks entered Thursday as the last remaining undefeated team in Division I. ESPN brought College GameDay to Baton Rouge to greet a sold-out gym. The game delivered on the hype.

LSU did just about everything right in the first half. They stifled the Gamecocks’ ability to get offensive boards. They were especially adept at limiting South Carolina center Kamilla Cardoso, usually a stalwart force in the paint at 6’ 7”, and they forced and capitalized on turnovers. A win did not look in reach so much as it looked in hand. But there is no team that thrives in the second half like South Carolina. And that was on full display as the Gamecocks steadily applied pressure before breaking out a final, deadly burst in the closing minutes on Thursday.

Related: South Carolina’s Ability to Win Ugly Should Terrify the Rest of the Country

The schools took opposite trajectories into the fourth quarter. South Carolina looked more settled, poised, self-assured. LSU simply looked more tired. This is not a Tigers roster with a particularly deep bench; any fatigue or foul trouble can prove damning with their limited options. Such was the case on Thursday. LSU star Angel Reese picked up her fourth foul with eight minutes left to play—albeit on a questionable call—and her fifth soon after. Her absence created a window for South Carolina to finalize its attack. It was Reese who had been responsible for most of the work inside on Cardoso; without her, LSU found itself stretched thin, and the outcome felt like a foregone conclusion when she left the floor.

Gamecocks junior guard Bree Hall would make a pair of tie-breaking, dead-on three-pointers, and Raven Johnson would ice the victory with a driving layup on the final possession. Ultimately, South Carolina outscored LSU in the fourth quarter 24 to 14. It ended a 29-game home winning streak for LSU and extended an unbeaten year for South Carolina. And in a season that has been so full of upsets, with early dramatic movement in the rankings, it underscored a key point.

There may have been plenty of shake-ups and displays of parity and open questions about the Final Four. But there’s one constant here. Still, for now, South Carolina stands apart.