Auburn women’s basketball looks to pull off an upset as the Tigers take on No. 1 South Carolina in Neville Arena Thursday.
One game removed from a three-game win streak, Auburn fell to Arkansas 54-51 in a narrow loss Sunday. Auburn shot 18-of-56 from field-goal range while the struggles continued from deep by shooting 1-of-14. After showing resilience by climbing back from a 15-point deficit, two missed free throws late in the game cost Auburn’s momentum.
In the loss to Arkansas, Aicha Coulibaly and Honesty Scott-Grayson shot 0-of-8 and 3-of-11 from the field, respectively. Coulibaly and Scott-Grayson’s contributions are vital for Auburn’s success against South Carolina as the two combined to score 30 points per game.
The Gamecocks are coming off an 81-77 victory against No. 4 Uconn with a 26-point contribution from Aliyah Boston. Boston scored 10 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in last season’s matchup against Auburn.
South Carolina looks to remain undefeated while Auburn hopes to play the villain.
Zia Cooke leads South Carolina with an average of 14.8 points per game while Boston sits just behind her averaging 13.5 points per game and 10 rebounds per game.
The Gamecocks defeated the Tigers once already in the 2022-2023 season in early SEC play, 94-42. The Gamecocks have shown dominance against Auburn as they are undefeated in this matchup for the last ten years. Auburn (13-9, 3-7) sits at 11th in the SEC while South Carolina (23-0, 10-0) is second behind 11-win LSU.
South Carolina has won 29 consecutive games dating back to the start of last year’s NCAA Tournament. The Gamecocks average 82 points per game while also holding their opponents to just 48 points per game — the lowest in the nation.
South Carolina leads the nation in field goal defense (29.9%), blocks per game (9.7), rebound margin (+21.5) and scoring margin (+33.9).
Auburn aims to continue its string of success as it looks to improve its standing in the SEC tournament beginning March 1.
The game tips off at 7 p.m. CST and will be televised on SEC Network+.
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