Nightmare at Neville Arena: Tigers Fall to No. 1 South Carolina

Johnnie Harris' squad suffered a sound defeat at the hands of Dawn Staley and the top-ranked Gamecocks of South Carolina on Thursday night.

Eric Starling/Auburn Daily

In the world of women's college basketball, as in most sports arenas, there lies a handful of perennial powerhouses — teams that are expected to compete for a national championship on a year-in-year out basis. Head coach Johnnie Harris and the Auburn women's basketball program ran into the latest of women's hoops dynasties on Thursday night when Dawn Staley and the top-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks came to town, delivering the Tigers a 83-48 beatdown.

On a night in which Auburn desperately needed to have its best set on the floor, junior guard Aicha Coulibaly and center Precious Johnson were forced to watch the contest from the bench after being ruled out due to injury — a common barrier for the orange and blue in 2023.

Their absences were felt in the early going; despite going toe-to-toe with their opponent in the opening minutes, the Tigers were outclassed by the Gamecocks on the offensive end of the floor, going down by double figures early and finding little success in limiting Aliyah Boston and company.

Auburn trailed 19-7 at the conclusion of the first period courtesy of an 18.8 percent effort from the floor to South Carolina's 38.9 percent. Matters did not get better for the home squad.

USC won the battle of the second quarter, outscoring the Tigers 23-14 and forcing coach J's squad into taking low-percentage shots late in the shot clock. 

The only offensive bright spots for the home squad in the first 20 minutes? Guards Sydney Shaw and Sania Wells; the pair combined for 11 points in an opening half in which Auburn was doubled up on the scoreboard.

Auburn trailed 42-21 at the halftime intermission.

Despite the recent stretch of contests in which the Tigers mounted numerous late-game double-digit comebacks, Auburn simply did not have another one in the cards on Thursday. The group hit its offensive stride in the third quarter, essentially trading baskets with its opponent yet again; however, the previously created deficit ultimately proved insurmountable.

Regardless of the scoreboard, Shaw continued to go to work on the offensive end, knocking down yet another triple, getting the ball to the rim and effectively demanding the Gamecock defense to close out on any given possession down to the final buzzer.

Coach J and company are now tasked with healing up, getting back in the gym and preparing for a shot at redemption on Sunday afternoon when the group travels to Tuscaloosa, Ala. for the second installment of the women's hoops Iron Bowl. Tipoff between the Tigers and the Tide is set for 4 p.m. CT on SEC Network and the Auburn Sports Network.