Hall and Kitts Lead Top-Seeded South Carolina to Sweet 16 with 64-53 Win Over Indiana

In a live update from Columbia, the South Carolina Gamecocks turned things around after a tough first half, defeating the Indiana Hoosiers 64-53 in their second-round NCAA Tournament matchup. The Gamecocks were trailing 26-25 at the break, having shot just 10 of 29 in the first half. However, they came out of halftime on fire, hitting nine of their first 10 shots in the third quarter, taking control with a 20-7 run.

South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley described the halftime atmosphere as “chaos,” noting that multiple voices from her players were all speaking at once, pointing out what needed to be fixed from the first half. “It’s not like a board meeting where there’s one person talking at a time,” Staley said with a smile. “It is chaos.” Regardless of the chaos, it certainly worked as the Gamecocks found their rhythm, and once Kitts hit a 3-pointer to put South Carolina up 38-30, the momentum was firmly in their favor. The team continued to roll, and Hall’s 3-pointer further extended their lead. The Gamecocks improved to 18-1 in their past four NCAA Tournaments, which includes titles in 2022 and 2024, with a semifinal loss to Iowa in 2023.

South Carolina’s Kitts reflected on the game, saying, “We were all just missing our easy lay-ups, and there wasn’t really flow in the game” during the first half. “Then the second half, we turned it around.” After their hot third quarter, Indiana could never get closer than seven points, as the Gamecocks pulled away for the victory.

Shay Ciezki led Indiana with 12 points, while Sania Feagin contributed 10 points for South Carolina, which improved to 18-0 in NCAA Tournament games played at home.

For Indiana’s Chloe Moore-McNeil, the third quarter was where the game turned. The Hoosiers were outscored 26-14 in that period, committing five of their 16 turnovers. Moore-McNeil noted, “Obviously, they’re the No. 1 team in the country in terms of transition offense and capitalizing on people’s turnovers… I think, yeah, they did have pressure on us, but at the same time, I think we did have some careless mistakes.”

Key Takeaways

Indiana: The Hoosiers fought hard in the first half, but couldn’t keep up with the deeper, more talented South Carolina squad over the course of 40 minutes.

South Carolina: The Gamecocks were given a scare by Indiana for the second straight year. After almost letting a big lead slip away in last year’s Sweet 16 before winning 79-75, South Carolina had another sluggish first half. However, they turned things around and pulled away in the second half. Coach Dawn Staley will likely use this slow start as a lesson for her team moving forward.

Leveling the Playing Field

Indiana coach Teri Moren raised a point that may spark conversation in the future of women’s basketball tournaments. She suggested that it may be time to consider moving to full neutral sites for the women’s tournament, similar to the men’s tournament. After hosting first- and second-round games at Indiana’s Assembly Hall for the past two years, Moren reflected on the advantages of home-court play. “I think we’ve got to get to a point where we sort of mirror what the guys do and have neutral sites because matchups matter,” she said. “But home-court advantage matters. Again, I’ve been a recipient.” She continued, “So I think that’s going to be something that may change as we move forward with women’s basketball.”

Stay tuned for more updates on the NCAA Women’s Tournament as the action unfolds.