Missouri women’s basketball falls to No. 7 South Carolina 78-62

Bri Kulas had 21 points to lead the Tigers and No. 7 South Carolina reached 20 victories for the third straight season with a 78-62 win over Missouri on Sunday.

The Gamecocks (20-2, 8-1 Southeastern Conference) won their fourth consecutive game and moved into first place as the only one-loss SEC team after No. 16 Vanderbilt defeated 17th-ranked Texas A&M earlier in the day. South Carolina and the Aggies had been tied for the top.

Missouri (14-8, 3-6) cut a 23-point halftime deficit to 73-60 in the final two minutes. But South Carolina proved too tall, too strong and too fast to overcome.

The Gamecocks 6-foot-4 forwards in Alaina Coates and Elem Ibiam combined for 23 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocks. And the strong performance all took place with the nation’s top recruit, Columbia’s A’ja Wilson watching with her family behind the bench.