KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — It was a rematch between the Lady Vols and No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday afternoon, but this time inside the home of the Gamecocks.
Tennessee was looking to beat a number-one team for the first time since 2005, but a combination of inconsistencies on offense, a struggle to keep an aggressive pace on defense, and waiting to pick things up until the fourth ended in a 76-68 win for South Carolina.
Star forward Rickea Jackson drives past Kamilla Cardosa in transition for a wide-open layup to give Tennessee an early 4-2 lead, but staying ahead of the Gamecocks didn't last long.
Sara Puckett missed a wide-open deep ball, but South Carolina's Te-Hina Paopao sank her on the other end of the court. The Gamecocks took the lead, 7-4.
Later in the first quarter, Tennessee went to the free throw line on two straight possessions to cut into South Carolina's lead, 18-14. However, two consecutive turnovers plagued the Lady Vols immediately after, and the Gamecocks led after one, 20-14.
Jasmine Powell was a spark Tennessee needed early in the second quarter. The fifth-year guard knocked down the first three of the day to keep the Lady Vols within one, and two minutes later, after Cardoso widened the gap, she sank another three to take the lead, 24-23 game.
However, South Carolina went on a 7-0 run ignited by a Bree Hall three. Cardosa followed the shot with four points to give the Gamecocks a seven-point lead.
Jackson got the lead down to four with an and-one, but South Carolina closed out with a jumper, two made free throws, and a block on Jackson's layup attempt to snatch its largest lead at that point. The score was 40-32 at the half.
The Lady Vols were without points for three minutes and seventeen seconds with six minutes remaining in the third quarter. Turnovers continued to haunt Tennessee, and Jackson's travel marked the Lady Vol's tenth on the day.
Jackson broke the scoring drought with a fadeaway jumper off the glass, and Tennessee cut the lead to 10 with five minutes remaining in the third, 46-36.
The fifth-year stole the ball and knocked down another fadeaway jumper. With 4:20 remaining in the third, Jackson was shot 8-17 from the field, leading the team with 19 points.
As impressive as Jackson was playing, South Carolina continued to speed up, and Paopao's layup gave the Gamecocks their largest lead at that point, 53-40.
Tennessee went on a 10-0 run from the end of the third into the fourth quarter. Rickea Jackson ended the run with a huge offensive rebound and put it back to make it a five-point game, 59-54.
Jewel Spear knocks down an important three, and Jackson scores a layup to cut the lead to three points, 63-30. However, Cardosa quickly responded with back-to-back layups to get the Gamecocks back up by seven before Head Coach Kellie Harper called a media timeout.
Tennessee couldn't tighten up on the glass in the final minutes, and South Carolina was scoring off offensive boards to widen the gap. Spear knocked down her second three on the day to make it an eight-point game, 73-65.
South Carolina finishes a perfect regular season with the win over Tennessee.
Jackson finished with 29 points, 16 comin from the second half.
The Lady Vols needed to beat the Gamecocks to secure a double-bye in the SEC Tournament, but if Alabama loses against Texas A&M, Tennessee will be the fourth seed. The Crimson Tide and the Aggies play today at 3 p.m.
