The No. 1 South Carolina women’s basketball team was beaten by No. 5 UCLA 77-62 on Sunday afternoon at Pauley Pavilion. The loss saw the Gamecocks’ 43-game win streak end, having gone the entire 2023 season undefeated and winning the national championship.
South Carolina entered its top-five headline matchup against UCLA as the nation’s top ranked team.
The matchup marked the sixth meeting in program history between the Gamecocks and Bruins, with South Carolina leading the all-time series 4-2.
The two programs last met in the Sweet 16 of the 2023 NCAA Tournament, a game which the Gamecocks won 59-43. UCLA head coach Cori Close had never beaten South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley in head-to-head encounters until this season.
The game served as an early season test for both teams in Los Angeles, with the court shared by two teams with national championship hopes. Both teams are projected as top seeds in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
The Gamecocks struggled to find the basket in the opening quarter, going 4-18 on field goals. UCLA’s defense proved challenging, forcing tough shots and four turnovers from the Gamecocks and taking advantage of fast-paced transitions.
"They were relentless," Staley said. "They didn't allow us to get any clean looks. They ran us off the screens. I mean, hey (they) did a great job of just locking in and playing forty minutes of locked in defense."
Neither team was able to score for the first two minutes of the game, but then UCLA opened the scoring through freshman guard Elina Aarnisalo’s fast break layup after a steal.
Sophomore guard Tessa Johnson responded with the Gamecocks’ first points with just five minutes left in the opening quarter. The Bruins prevented the Gamecocks from scoring in the paint, resulting in a slow start for South Carolina.
Junior guard Londynn Jones for UCLA hit back-to-back 3-pointers from range, giving the Bruins a substantial 18-5 lead. Johnson responded with a shot of her own from beyond the arc, scoring 12 of the Gamecocks’ first 17 points. The Gamecocks found itself down 20-10 after the first quarter.
"Tessa's a player, she knocked down some threes for us to get us a little bit of momentum, but we needed a lot more than Tessa today," Staley said. "Tessa's a player that's going to have an extraordinary career for us."
Midway through the second quarter, Johnson’s second 3-pointer of the game cut UCLA lead's to 9 points, bringing Johnson's numbers to 5-6 from the field on the afternoon. UCLA went on a 7-0 run in response, highlighted by a 3-pointer from junior guard Timea Gardiner.
A three minute scoring drought for South Carolina was ended by a 3-pointer from senior guard Bree Hall. But UCLA quickly answered with a three from Jones, her third of the game, pushing the Bruins' lead back to 16.
Elina Aarnisalo’s 3-pointer late in the first half pushed UCLA's lead to 19 points. The Bruins went into halftime with a commanding 43-22 advantage, shooting 6-11 from beyond the arc.
South Carolina came out with more intensity to start the second half, with a 7-2 run. Senior guard Te-Hina Paopao scored four points and assisted junior guard Raven Johnson, who drained a 3-point shot.
But UCLA quickly reasserted control, restoring its 20 lead with a layup from junior center Lauren Betts, who is averaging 21.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per game this season. Betts added another layup late in the third quarter, extending UCLA’s lead to 61-39.
A better third quarter from South Carolina saw the team outscore UCLA 19-18, but the Gamecocks were unable to make a significant dent in the deficit.
Senior forward Sania Feagin opened the fourth quarter with a pair of jumpers as the Gamecocks and Bruins traded possessions. But UCLA's dominance on the offensive glass kept the ball in its hands, preventing the Gamecocks from gaining momentum or possession of the ball.
With a few minutes left in the fourth, junior guard Kiki Rice delivered a well-timed assist, kicking the ball out to Jones, who sank a 3-pointer on the fast break, extending UCLA's lead to 71-48.
A late 3-pointer by Paopao and jumper by freshman forward Joyce Edwards attempted to cut into the UCLA advantage in the closing moments. The Gamecocks again outscored the Bruins 21-16 in the fourth quarter, but it was not enough for the team to come back.
The Bruins proceeded to run out the clock, handing the Gamecocks its first loss in over a year and only its second in the last two years.
"This is what we usually do to teams. It doesn't feel good when you're on the receiving end of it, but you also know you got beat by a great team, executing on both sides of ... the basketball," Staley said. "It was fluid on both sides of the ball, they wanted it, and I thought our kids fought."
Struggles in the paint
South Carolina struggled against UCLA’s defense, being limited to just 34 rebounds compared to the Bruins' 41. UCLA also won the rebound battle 23-16 in the first half.
A crowding of the paint by UCLA denied entry passes and forced the Gamecocks to commit turnovers. This defensive effort kept junior forward Chloe Kitts quiet, limiting her to just 2 points and seven rebounds.
"We're in transition from having a dominant big to not having a dominant big and figuring out how we can incorporate our big scoring the basketball," Staley said.
The Gamecocks struggled to score second-chance points and did not attempt any free throws in the first half.
UCLA dangerous from range
UCLA maintained its efficient shooting throughout the game, with five players reaching double digits and seven contributing multiple field goals. The Bruins shot 14-27 from the field in the first half, while South Carolina struggled, shooting just 9-34.
UCLA's defense forced the Gamecocks into tough shots, and the Bruins capitalized on counter opportunities, extending its lead. The Gamecocks limited Betts' influence, who only scored 11 points, but other UCLA players hurt them.
The Bruins’ offense on the wings was led by Jones, who scored 15 points and was a perfect 5-5 from beyond the arc. Aarnisalo added 6-10 shooting and 13 points, while Rice used her speed in transition to provide three assists and also make five field goals.
"They actually executed our game plan to a tee. I thought we did a great job on Betts, but we got killed by everybody else," Staley said. "We got to figure out how we control everybody else and not allow them to get as many open looks."
Although the Gamecocks shot 15-32 in the second half and outscored the Bruins 40-34, the team was unable to overcome its early struggles. South Carolina finished the game 24-66 from the field, while UCLA shot 28-59.
"We knew we were going to play a really good UCLA team. We didn't anticipate them shooting the way they shot the basketball," Staley said. "Our shot selection is something that we're dealing with on a daily basis."
43 games undefeated streak ended
A loss to the UCLA Bruins brought an end to South Carolina's program-record 43-game unbeaten streak, which spanned the entirety of the 2023 season and the first five games of the 2024 campaign.
South Carolina had won 85 of its last 86 games and hadn't lost in the regular season since December 2021. In this time, the Gamecocks won a national title, defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes for its second title in three years.
The Gamecock win streak was the seventh longest in NCAA history and second in SEC history, behind Tennessee with 46 wins.
"Geno (Auriemma) and Chris Dailey have been servant leaders in our sport," Staley said. "They've been the gold standard in college basketball and for someone that's dedicated their lives to young people and to our game, it's only fitting that they're the ones that are holding the throne of being the winningest coach, coaches in our game."
What’s next?
The Gamecocks will travel to Fort Myers, Florida, to face No. 8 Iowa State in the Fort Myers tipoff. The game is set for Nov. 28 at 1:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on FOX.