KNOXVILLE — Kamilla Cardoso had 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead the top-ranked South Carolina women's basketball team past upset-minded Tennessee on Thursday night, 66-55.
Cardoso, a 6-foot-7 senior who had missed the Gamecocks' two previous games while playing for Brazil in an Olympic qualifying tournament, also had three blocks, three assists and a steal in her 29 minutes on the court. A first-year starter for South Carolina who backed up Aliyah Boston the past two seasons after beginning her collegiate career at Syracuse, Cardoso prepped at Chattanooga's Hamilton Heights Christian Academy.
Ashlyn Watkins added 14 points, 10 rebounds and four steals for South Carolina (24-0, 11-0 Southeastern Conference), and Raven Johnson had 15 rebounds as the Gamecocks finished with a 49-42 advantage on the glass.
"Getting Kamilla the ball was so important," Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley said of Cardoso, who scored 11 points in the second half. "We don't win the game without Kamilla tonight."
Rickea Jackson scored 19 points while playing a game-high 38 minutes to pace Tennessee (15-9, 8-4), Sara Puckett added 15 points and Jasmine Powell had 12. Powell had eight rebounds and Jackson grabbed seven.
Staley said Jackson "showed why she's going to be a top WNBA draft pick. We had to put an extra body on her."
The Lady Vols were outscored 18-7 in the fourth quarter.
Tennessee coach Kellie Harper noted Jackson has "been in big games before. I think she just ran out of gas. She's a talent."
Tennessee led by three points at halftime, and the game was tied at 48 after three quarters. South Carolina started the fourth quarter with a 9-1 run to get a bit of breathing room, and Bree Hall had five points in that outburst.
"We weren't as aggressive as we needed to be in the fourth quarter," Harper said. "It got away from us on the offensive boards."
"We knew we had to get stops," Watkins said of the start of the fourth quarter. "They're a physical team. We had to find a way to get more rebounds and play better defense."
The Lady Vols struggled from long distance, shooting just 2-of-17 (12%) on 3-point attempts in the game.
South Carolina had a nightmare of a first half, committing nine turnovers and shooting 33% (10-of-30).
"Offensively, we couldn't get anything going," Staley said of the first 20 minutes. "They were locked in. They rattled us. It was hard to get good looks."
Tennessee led 28-25 at halftime behind 13 points from Jackson, even as the Lady Vols shot 31% (13-of-42) from the floor and 11% (1-of-9) from 3-point range. Defense made the difference.
"We felt like we were very prepared and locked in," Puckett said of the first half. "It was just another game for us."
If the Lady Vols are going to maintain their streak of never missing an NCAA tournament, February will need to be a special month. Before Thursday night's loss to the Gamecocks, Tennessee ranked No. 44 in the NCAA Evaluation Tool, which is used in the selection process.
The Lady Vols were projected as a No. 11 seed in the 68-team field, and still ahead in the regular season are tough games at in-state rival Vanderbilt on Sunday, home against No. 13 LSU and Texas A&M — which beat Tennessee earlier this season in College Station – and a visit to South Carolina to wrap up the schedule before heading to the SEC tournament.