The biggest is ahead. Although Boston broke its double-double streak, its 19 points led South Carolina No. 1 in the standings to face No. 10 in the Creighton Series 80-50 to win a place in the Final Four for second consecutive season. This appearance in the Final Four is one that Boston worked on since the Gamecocks’ semifinal defeat to Stanford last year when they missed a buzzer shot that would take them to the national title game. South Carolina coach Dawn Staley and the rest of the team spoke openly about how much they all wanted to return to the Final Four to get another chance to win a championship. Mainly Boston. Now they have it. As the final seconds began to run off the clock on Sunday, Boston raised its hands in the air, danced a little, and screamed, “Let’s go!” Following the handshake line after the match, the players ran to dance and celebrate with the South Carolina band, and Boston soon joined them after giving her post-match interview with ESPN. Although Boston did not have a double-double for the first time in 27 consecutive games, its presence in the paint caused major problems for the much smaller Bluejays. To try to slow down the Gamecocks, Creighton knew he had to try to make life as uncomfortable as possible for Boston and the post players inside, while relying on her ability to make three-pointers. Easier said than done against the top candidate player of the year. South Carolina finished with 42 points in color, the 13th time it had 40 or more this season – most at the SEC. Eight of Boston’s nine goal-scoring attempts came from within. Not only that, South Carolina used its height advantage to beat Creighton 43-23 – limiting the Bluejays to just four second chance points. Meanwhile, South Carolina’s suffocating defense closed Creighton’s 5-out games and reduced their efforts by 3 points. Creighton took part in Sunday’s game with an average of 10 three-pointers per game. But Creighton scored a 7-of-21 against the Gamecocks and as South Carolina continued to increase its lead, the Bluejays seemed powerless to stop it. Certainly, the journey that Creighton took to get to this point was historic. The Bluejays upset three teams with the highest seed on the road for their first Elite Eight appearance and became just the fourth double-digit seed to reach the Elite Eight. But the game got away early. Boston made it look easy in the first half, with 12 of their 14 points in the first half being impeccable. South Carolina finished the first half with a total of 30 points in color, most in one half at the NCAA Tournament this year. South Carolina went half-time with a 46-25 lead and never looked back. The Gamecocks will then play the winner of Monday night’s Elite Eight match between Louisville and Michigan in Minneapolis on Friday, with the possibility of a rematch against Stanford looming – only this time, in the national championship game.
