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          South Carolina's NCAA championship win over Iowa draws praise

          • Brianna Williams, ESPNApr 8, 2024, 07:56 AM

          The South Carolina Gamecocks completed their undefeated season with a 87-75 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes in the NCAA women's national championship.

          With their win, the Gamecocks became the first team since at least 2000 to win a title after returning zero primary starters from the team that reached the Final Four in the previous season.

          Despite coming off the bench, Tessa Johnson led the Gamecocks in scoring with 19 points. Kamilla Cardoso was second for South Carolina with 15 points. Three of Iowa's starters, including Caitlin Clark, tallied 40 minutes in the contest. Clark led all scorers with 30 points, 18 of which came in the first half.

          After losing to the Hawkeyes in last year's Final Four, Dawn Staley's squad completed its revenge tour. South Carolina joined the 1991 Tennessee Lady Volunteers as the only teams to win the national title game against the team that eliminated them in the previous women's NCAA tournament. Staley's third title also puts her in the company of Geno Auriemma (11), Pat Summitt (8), Kim Mulkey (4) and Tara VanDerveer (3) as the fifth head coach to win a trio of national championships.

          From Gamecocks alum and Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson to Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and beyond, plenty of praise poured in for the national champs.

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