COLUMBIA, S.C. — Aliyah Boston had 18 points and 15 rebounds as No. 1 South Carolina improved to 8-0 against ranked opponents this season with a 74-54 victory over No. 21 Kentucky on Sunday.
Boston, the 6-foot-5 junior All-American, was nearly unstoppable around the basket – she had 10 points and eight boards by halftime – and matched the school mark with her ninth straight game with double-figure points and rebounds.
Boston added five blocks and helped on defense against Kentucky star scorer Rhyne Howard, who made the game’s first bucket but went on to finish 2-of-14 shooting for a season-low-tying nine points. Howard came in second in the Southeastern Conference in scoring, averaging 19.7 points.
Zia Cooke had a game-high 19 points as the Gamecocks (15-1, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) won their fifth straight over Kentucky (8-4, 1-1) and third in a row since their lone loss, 70-69 in overtime at Missouri in Dec. 30.
South Carolina finishes up a quick two-game home pit stop with a game against Texas A&M on Thursday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. The matchup with the Aggies (10-4, 0-2 SEC) will air on the SEC Network. Currently, A&M is ranked 25th in the country but have dropped both of its conference games to start the new year, losing at LSU and at Tennessee. It is opening its home SEC schedule Sunday at 3 p.m. ET against Florida.