RALEIGH -- South Carolina's first ever third-round victory in the NCAA Tournament was sweet in more ways than one.
Gamecocks coach Susan Walvius, usually restrictive on her players' diets, promised to treat everyone to ice cream with a victory over the pesky Drake Bulldogs.
It was apparently all the motivation USC would need, as the team controlled the contest in the first half, and then withstood several Drake charges to win 79-65. Monday's matchup against Duke will be the first Regional final in just the Gamecocks' eighth tournament appearance.
For the Bulldogs, it was an abrupt end to a remarkable season. A weekend ago, Drake pulled one of the biggest upsets of the tournament thus far by edging No. 2 seed Baylor. But the Bulldogs were unable to repeat the same kind of magic Saturday afternoon.
Ten minutes into the game, South Carolina held a four-point edge. But a barrage of Drake turnovers ensued, allowing the Gamecocks to gain control and finish the half leading by 16.
"Their defense was all over us," Drake coach Lisa Stone said. "They took us out of what we are used to because of their long arms and athletic ability."
The second half was a slightly different story. The Bulldogs opened on fire, and eventually would sink twice as many field goals as they did in the first, good enough for 64 percent. Drake also nailed 5-for-9 from behind the arc.
With 11 minutes to go, a layup by Ja'Nae Mosley brought Drake within 10 points. For the next six minutes, the two teams traded clutch basket after clutch basket. Drake wasn't missing many shots, but defensively didn't have any answer for the more physical Gamecocks.
But then, with five minutes on the clock, center Carla Bennet scored two of her game-high 20 points to finally bring Drake's deficit to single digits. A timeout followed, and the South Carolina players walked unenthusiastically to their huddle, while the Bulldogs raced to their bench excitedly, much to the appreciation of their traveling fans.
Unfortunately, those fans had little to cheer about the rest of the game.
South Carolina emerged from the timeout with renewed vigor, putting the pesky Bulldogs at arm's length with a 10-0 run, using physical defense to keep Drake off the scoreboard until the final minute of play.
"Their lead was a bit much for us to overcome," Stone said. "When we finally cut it to 10, we went three straight trips without scoring. When we did score, they answered."
Jocelyn Penn and Shaunzinski Gortman led the way for South Carolina with 19 points apiece, but it was their defensive presence that may have clinched the game.
Penn contributed six steals and Gortman picked up three, while playing stifling defense on Drake's senior guard Stephanie Schmitz.
"We take pride in our defense," Penn said. "We've grown to love it. We let our defense motivate our offense."
That and ice cream, of course.
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