Won by No. No. 1 South Carolina. 9 Oregon 80-63, face UConn

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PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas (AP) – After running in Oregon, top South Carolina is ready to face No. 2 UConn.

Zia Cooke scored 20 points and Laeticia Amihere added 18 to help South Carolina beat No. 1 overall. 9 Oregon 80-63 on Sunday in the semifinals of the inaugural Battle 4 Atlantis women’s tournament.

Today, the top two teams in the country will meet on Monday for the tournament title.

“We are excited. We chose to play in this tournament because we had the opportunity to play with the top teams in the country, ”South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said.“ That’s been our theme throughout the season, so why not? UConn has always been on our schedule for the last few years and we are still on schedule. It’s great for women’s basketball. “

The two teams met last season in another 1-vs-2 matchup, which UConn won in overtime.

“I love when we play good teams early so we get tested early,” Cooke said. “I think it’s going to be a good game.”

This is the first meeting between the Gamecocks (5-0) and the Ducks (3-1) since 2002. The two teams were favored to play for the national championship in 2020 before the NCAA Tournament was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Same different team since then.

Oregon came into the game shorthanded.

Ducks forward Nyara Sabally sat down to rest her right knee, which she pulled off in the opening round win against Oklahoma. He is treated every day, according to coach Kelly Graves. After playing 37 minutes and scoring a career-high 30 points in Saturday’s win, Sabally was given a day off.

“I don’t interfere with trainers and doctors,” Graves said. “If they tell me he can go, he can go. We were blessed to get him yesterday.”

The Ducks have already lost sophomore guard Te-Hina Paopao, freshman guard Taylor Bigby and USC junior transfer Endyia Rogers due to injuries.

South Carolina was able to take advantage, jumping to a 27-14 lead after a quarter. Oregon came at 32-23 midway through the second quarter before the Gamecocks closed out the half with a 12-3 burst.

Cooke started the spurt with a layup, Amihere scored six straight points and the Gamecocks led 44-26 at the break.

South Carolina scored 11 of the first 13 points in the third quarter to stop the game.

Chanaya Pinto scored 12 points to lead Oregon.

TIP-INS

Gamecocks won two previous meetings between the schools, the last meeting being at the 2002 Paradise Jam. … Aliyah Boston scored 16 points for the Gamecocks a day after having 23 in the opener. … Graves reached the 600-win mark in the opening round of the tournament.

BIG PICTURE

Oregon: The Ducks are gaining valuable experience for many of their reserves in the tough three -day tournament. They will be better when they become healthier.

South Carolina: The Gamecocks found a different way to win the first two games. They used a dominant presence inside to beat Buffalo and then used strong play from their guards to beat the Ducks.

MISCUES IN NO TIME

Oregon made 20 turnovers, leading to 27 points for the Gamecocks.

“We need to take care of the ball better,” Graves said. “They have 27 points from those turnovers. Credit is really good pressure on them.”

NEXT

Oregon: Will face No. 23 South Florida in third place game Monday.

South Carolina: Second-ranked UConn will face for the championship Monday.

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More AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https:/ / twitter.com/AP_Top25

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