CLEMSON – Despite holding No. 1 South Carolina to a season-low in first half points and shooting percentage, Clemson’s third quarter implosion, along with an onslaught of offense from its rival, led to a 65-44 Gamecock victory at Littlejohn Coliseum Thursday night.

After rivaling the Gamecocks in nearly every statistical category throughout the first half, the Tigers failed to score for the first five minutes of the third quarter, while the Gamecocks, led by nine points by guard Tessa Johnson, jumped out to a large lead.

Clemson (3-1) outscored South Carolina (3-0) 16-14 in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough to overcome 21 Tiger turnovers or 15 percent shooting from beyond the arc. However, Clemson did hold the Gamecocks to only three made shots from long range and 34 points below their season average thus far.

How it Happened

• The Tigers and Gamecocks opened the game trading baskets off of turnovers, putting up four points each in the first two minutes of play. South Carolina’s Tessa Johnson opened up the stalemate with a three-pointer, the first of the night for either team. 
• The Gamecocks then jumped out to a 10-2 run, largely fueled by Clemson’s 0-for-5 shooting in that span. Tiger guard Mackenzie Nelson got her team back in the fray, scoring nine of Clemson’s first 10 points. By the end of the first quarter, the Tigers had cut the lead 19-14.
• A three-pointer from Clemson guard Rusne Augustinaite in addition to layups from Jenna Lawrence and Edie Clarke stopped the bleeding of another Gamecock run and South Carolina led 30-21 at halftime.
• Through three regular season games until Thursday’s matchup at Littlejohn, the Gamecocks had outscored their opponents 153-61 in first halves, outscoring ranked opponents Maryland and North Carolina by an average of 23 points in the first two quarters. No opponent had been within 10 points of the Gamecocks at halftime this season.
• In the first half, Clemson grabbed 23 rebounds to the Gamecocks’ 20, but scored four fewer points in the paint. Additionally, South Carolina scored 11 points off of turnovers to Clemson’s four, despite the Tigers forcing nine Gamecock turnovers.
• As they have in each of their contests this year, the Gamecocks jumped out to a large third quarter lead, keeping the Tigers from scoring for the first five minutes of the third quarter. In that span, South Carolina scored 13 points to take a 22-point advantage.
• Clemson fought back in the fourth quarter, scoring 16 points to the Gamecocks’ 14. Jenna Lawrence added five points off the bench, scoring the Tigers’ second three-pointer of the night.
• Both teams struggled from beyond the arc, shooting just 25 and 15 percent, respectively, from long range. The opponents also each struggled at the charity stripe. Clemson missed seven attempts, while South Carolina only shot 55.2 percent from the line.
• Guard Mackenzie Nelson led all Tigers with 17 points, three rebounds and one assist. She made 11 free throws. Mia Moore added 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting.
• For the Gamecocks, Johnson finished with 13 points on 3-of-10 shooting while Chloe Kitts added 12 points.

Up Next

The Tigers will look to get back into the win column Sunday at Littlejohn Coliseum as they will host Stetson at 5 p.m.