Streaks are made to be broken and on Thursday night, the University of Tennessee used a big second half to snap No. 2 South Carolina’s 31-game winning streak against Southeastern Conference opponents.
The No. 21 Lady Vols overcame a double-digit deficit to rally past the Gamecocks, 75-67, at Thompson-Boling Arena.
The victory was a signature win for Tennessee second-year head coach Kellie Harper. It was the Lady Vols first win over a top-5 opponent since 2017.
UT had battled adversity over the last several days as they were stranded in Texas due to inclement weather. The Lady Vols (13-5, 7-3 SEC) had suffered consecutive losses to Kentucky and Texas A&M.
Early on, it seemed Tennessee’s woes would continue against South Carolina (17-3, 10-1) as the Lady Vols fell behind 37-25 by halftime after the two teams slugged through an even first quarter. After the opening frame, the contest was deadlocked 16-16.
UT would fall behind by as many as 16 points in the game, but the Lady Vols would outscore South Carolina 50-25 over the final 20 minutes.
After being held scoreless in the first half, Tennessee’s Rennia Davis scored 24 points after the break.
Rae Burrell had 19 points and Jordan Horston had 12.
The Lady Vols also stepped up its defense after halftime, holding South Carolina to 30 points after in the second half and outscored the Gamecocks 22-13 in the final frame.