FoghornLeghornCock
12-05-2007, 11:38 AM
Posted on Wed, Dec. 05, 2007
Women's basketball | Gamecocks shut down Bucs
Burgrova breaks out of her slump and the USC defense does the rest in a rout
By CHRIS DEARING - Special to The State http://www.thestate.com/gamecocks/story/248758.html
Ilona Burgrova was hoping this type of performance would finally come. She admitted she has struggled so far this season and needed a breakout game to get her confidence going.
Burgrova had reached double figures only once in the first seven games and was having trouble finding her way with USC’s revamped backcourt.
But it all came together in the Gamecocks 72-26 victory against Charleston Southern at the Colonial Center on Tuesday night.
The 6-foot-6 senior tied her career-high with 17 points to go along with nine rebounds as USC improved to 6-2, its best record since the 2003-04 team opened 7-1 en route to its most recent NCAA tournament appearance.
“I’ve been unable to finish,” Burgrova said. “This was a break though hopefully. I have to thank our guards. They realize when they are open and when we are open and they were able to feed us the ball (on the inside). I’m glad I was able to get some points finally, but I have to thank them for getting me the ball.”
Burgrova was 8-for-9 from the field.
According to South Carolina coach Susan Walvius, over thinking her shots has hurt the Czech Republic native. She came in shooting 45 percent even though the majority of her shots come from inside the paint.
“Ilona is so analytical,” Walvius said. “She is so hard on herself and that probably causes her some. She replays every possession. She over analyzes herself and missing little chippy shots.
Walvius also wanted to see the inside game be more productive, and she got exactly what she was looking for. Burgrova combined with Demetress Adams and Lakesha Tolliver to score 34 points and pull down 31 rebounds. The Gamecocks held a 38-10 advantage on points in the paint.
And the defensive effort was something Walvius said had been lacking in the first few games. But the Gamecocks held Charleston Southern to 16.7 percent from the field, the second lowest total ever. The record is 14 percent by Bethune-Cookman two years ago.
“This was a better defensive effort by our team,” Walvius said. “Our defense created a lot of offense for us. We put a lot of pressure on the ball and denied passing lanes. For the most part, it was our best overall effort of the year.”
South Carolina held the Buccaneers to 14.8 percent from the field in the opening twenty minutes to sprint to a 35-12 halftime lead. Charleston Southern was 4-for-27 and it slightly improved in the second half as the Bucs shot 18.2 percent.
USC held Charleston Southern (3-5) without a field goal for the first 5:17 of the game and then topped that performance by not letting them score for the first 5:41 of the second half.
“All of the top teams, the defense creates a lot of offense,” Walvius said. “I think we need to set the tone with out defense. We did a good job of that tonight.”
Jump shots. Lakesha Tolliver became the schools all-time record holder for blocks. The senior from Dreher blocked five shots to give her 151 for her career, breaking the mark of 148 by Michelle Murray. ... The Gamecocks had three players in double figures led by freshman Jordan Jones career-high 19 points.
Women's basketball | Gamecocks shut down Bucs
Burgrova breaks out of her slump and the USC defense does the rest in a rout
By CHRIS DEARING - Special to The State http://www.thestate.com/gamecocks/story/248758.html
Ilona Burgrova was hoping this type of performance would finally come. She admitted she has struggled so far this season and needed a breakout game to get her confidence going.
Burgrova had reached double figures only once in the first seven games and was having trouble finding her way with USC’s revamped backcourt.
But it all came together in the Gamecocks 72-26 victory against Charleston Southern at the Colonial Center on Tuesday night.
The 6-foot-6 senior tied her career-high with 17 points to go along with nine rebounds as USC improved to 6-2, its best record since the 2003-04 team opened 7-1 en route to its most recent NCAA tournament appearance.
“I’ve been unable to finish,” Burgrova said. “This was a break though hopefully. I have to thank our guards. They realize when they are open and when we are open and they were able to feed us the ball (on the inside). I’m glad I was able to get some points finally, but I have to thank them for getting me the ball.”
Burgrova was 8-for-9 from the field.
According to South Carolina coach Susan Walvius, over thinking her shots has hurt the Czech Republic native. She came in shooting 45 percent even though the majority of her shots come from inside the paint.
“Ilona is so analytical,” Walvius said. “She is so hard on herself and that probably causes her some. She replays every possession. She over analyzes herself and missing little chippy shots.
Walvius also wanted to see the inside game be more productive, and she got exactly what she was looking for. Burgrova combined with Demetress Adams and Lakesha Tolliver to score 34 points and pull down 31 rebounds. The Gamecocks held a 38-10 advantage on points in the paint.
And the defensive effort was something Walvius said had been lacking in the first few games. But the Gamecocks held Charleston Southern to 16.7 percent from the field, the second lowest total ever. The record is 14 percent by Bethune-Cookman two years ago.
“This was a better defensive effort by our team,” Walvius said. “Our defense created a lot of offense for us. We put a lot of pressure on the ball and denied passing lanes. For the most part, it was our best overall effort of the year.”
South Carolina held the Buccaneers to 14.8 percent from the field in the opening twenty minutes to sprint to a 35-12 halftime lead. Charleston Southern was 4-for-27 and it slightly improved in the second half as the Bucs shot 18.2 percent.
USC held Charleston Southern (3-5) without a field goal for the first 5:17 of the game and then topped that performance by not letting them score for the first 5:41 of the second half.
“All of the top teams, the defense creates a lot of offense,” Walvius said. “I think we need to set the tone with out defense. We did a good job of that tonight.”
Jump shots. Lakesha Tolliver became the schools all-time record holder for blocks. The senior from Dreher blocked five shots to give her 151 for her career, breaking the mark of 148 by Michelle Murray. ... The Gamecocks had three players in double figures led by freshman Jordan Jones career-high 19 points.