No. 1 South Carolina’s 43-game win streak snapped following loss to No. 5 UCLA
By Jacob Lev, CNN
(CNN) — It was a historic night at the Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles on Sunday.
No. 1 South Carolina women’s basketball was stunned by No. 5 UCLA 77-62. The loss hands the reigning champions its first in 43 games, the last one coming at the hands of Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the NCAA Tournament national semifinals in April 2023.
It is also South Carolina’s first road loss in 33 games, which was the third-longest streak in NCAA Division I history.
The Bruins dominated from start to finish with Londynn Jones leading the way with 15 points to secure the program’s first win over a No. 1 team, having been 0-20 previously.
Bruins head coach Cori Close told the FS1 broadcast after the game that South Carolina has “set the standard” for the women’s game but also commended her players and assistant coaches for the work they have put in ahead of this daunting matchup.
“We really believed we would win,” Close said. “We always say it begins before it begins and you do the work mentally. And we prepared really well and executed the heck out of the scouting report. … I’m so lucky to work with the smartest coaches in America.”
Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley, who was 4-0 against UCLA coming into Sunday’s game, commended the Bruins team for playing “on all cylinders.”
“I think it was great for the game,” the three-time national champion told reporters. “I just told our team this is our second loss in two years so no it doesn’t feel good but yes, we have to figure things out a little bit. … This is what we usually do to other teams. It doesn’t feel good being on the receiving end of it but we also know we got beat by a great team.
“Beautiful basketball by UCLA. Beautiful on both sides like I can’t – I am on the opposite side of it but you can’t help but to love up on it. … We ran into a buzzsaw today.”
The Bruins improved to 5-0 on the season and are next scheduled to play University of Tennessee at Martin in Honolulu on Friday. South Carolina fell to 5-1 and play Iowa State on Thursday in Fort Myers, Florida.
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