South Carolina Gamecocks Earn Major Bounce Back Win Over Vanderbilt

The South Carolina Gamecocks earned a major bounce back win over the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Jan 15, 2026; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks guard Tessa Johnson (5) celebrates a three point basket against the Texas Longhorns in the first half at Colonial Life Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images | Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

The South Carolina Gamecocks earned a major bounce back win over the Vanderbilt Commodores.

The South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team suffered its first conference loss of the season last week against the Oklahoma Sooners. On Sunday, they had an opportunity to get the momentum back in their favor and they did so in a big way.

The Lady Gamecocks defeated the Commodores by a final score of 103-74. The Commodores were the No. 5-ranked team in the country coming into Sunday's game, so a massive win for South Carolina. The win over Vanderbilt marked the 19th consecutive victory for the Gamecocks over the Commodores, with all 19 coming during the Dawn Staley era.

South Carolina became the first team to score 100+ points vs. an AP top-5 team since 2023 (102-85, LSU vs. Iowa), and the 29-point margin of victory marked the largest over a top-5 team in the poll era.

Lady Gamecocks Earn Massive Bounce-Back Win Over Vanderbilt

Jan 15, 2026; Columbia, South Carolina, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks guard Tessa Johnson (5) celebrates a play with guard Ta'niya Latson (00) against the Texas Longhorns in the second half at Colonial Life Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images | Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

Tessa Johnson was impressive for the Gamecocks as she finished with 20 points, tow rebounds, two assists and a steal. She also shot 4-7 from behind the arc. Ta'Niya Latson was the leading scorer for South Carolina. She had 21 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals on the night. The Gamecocks shot 10-17 from the three point line on Sunday.

Madina Okot had a near double-double, netting 17 points after going 8-for-9 from the floor and grabbing a team-high seven boards and a career-high tying five steals. Joyce Edwards finished with 16 points, while also grabbing a team-high seven boards and dishing out six assists to lead the team in both categories for the third time this season.

Mikayla Blakes led the way for the Commodores. She finished the game with 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

This was a much needed win for the Gamecocks after how they started the week. Bouncing back that quickly from an upset is not easy to do and beating a top five team by nearly 30 points is a massive achievement as well.

The Lady Gamecocks will now head onto the road this week for two more conference games. First up they have the Auburn Tigers on Thursday. Then on Sunday they will play the Texas A&M Aggies. The game against Auburn is set for 9:00 PM ET and will be broadcasted on SEC Network. Sunday's game is set for 8:00 PM ET and will be broadcasted on ESPN2.