Despite senior DeYona Gaston’s second 30-point game in SEC play, the Auburn Tigers (11-11, 2-7 SEC) fell 66-83 on the road to No. 2 South Carolina (21-1, 9-0 SEC), who remains atop the SEC leaderboard with its perfect conference record.
Despite a seven point deficit to begin the game, the Tigers were tied with the Gamecocks at 27 points a piece after a 3-pointer from senior Celia Sumbane with 5:50 left in the second quarter.
That would be the only tie of the game, and South Carolina took advantage of six Auburn turnovers in the final five minutes to end the first half on a 13-3 run and go into the locker room up 40-30.
The Gamecocks only outscored the Tigers by three points in the third quarter, but an 18-7 run to begin the fourth quarter solidified the win for the Gamecocks.
Gaston led the charge for the Tigers once more, scoring an SEC-game best 31 of Auburn’s 66 points. Gaston also added four rebounds in her 35 minutes on the floor.
Sumbane, freshman Yuting Deng and senior Mar’shaun Bostic all joined Gaston with double-digit points.
Sumbane totaled 11 points, five rebounds and shot 3-for-4 from behind the arc. Deng and Bostic both tallied 10 points, with Deng accounting for the other two Auburn 3-pointers in her first Auburn start and Bostic racking up nine of the Tigers’ 14 assists.
The South Carolina roster depth, which came into the contest with its Division I-leading 42.0 points per game, outlasted the Tigers 39-2, with a pair of underclassmen being the Gamecocks’ leading scorers coming off of the bench.
Freshman Joyce Edwards, a 2024 McDonald’s All-American selection, tallied her second-straight conference game with 18 points. Edwards was all over the scoring sheet, adding five rebounds and two assists for the Gamecocks.
Sophomore MiLaysia Fulwiley was right behind Edwards with 17 points, which also marked her second-straight SEC game in double figures after scoring 11 at No. 18 Tennessee.
The Gamecocks locked down the Tigers on defense, forcing 23 turnovers and scoring 25 points off turnovers. South Carolina’s 16 steals was the second most for the Gamecocks this season.
Today’s victory for South Carolina marked an SEC-record 70th straight regular-season home win and the 13th consecutive win over Auburn.
The Tigers will return to Neville Arena to face the Texas A&M Aggies on Thursday, February 6, seeking their third conference win and third straight at home. Tip is set for 6 p.m. CST and will be streamed on SEC Network+.
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Emily Porch is a senior majoring in Sports Production from Sylacauga, Alabama. She joined The Plainsman in fall 2021.
You can follow her on X (Twitter) at @emilycporch
