South Carolina vs. Duke women’s basketball live updates: Elite 8 prediction, TV channel

Dawn Staley and the South Carolina women’s basketball team are playing No. 2 Duke in the Elite Eight of March Madness today as the No. 1 Gamecocks look to defend their national championship.

Staley has the Gamecocks on the doorstep of a fifth consecutive Final Four appearance while Duke coach Lawson is looking to get the Blue Devils there for the first time since 2006. The teams faced off in December, South Carolina taking the win, 81-70.

USA TODAY Sports is bringing you live updates, scores, highlights and analysis throughout the game. Follow along.

The Gamecocks have scored 9 straight points to take a 10-2 lead with about 5 minutes left in the opening quarter. Chloe Kitts hit an early 3 to get her first points of the contest.

• Duke: Ashlon Jackson, Delaney Thomas, Jadyn Donovan, Taina Mair, Reigan Richardson
• South Carolina: Chloe Kitts, Sania Feagin, Bree Hall, Raven Johnson, Te-Hina Paopao

Chloe Kitts is averaging a career-high 10.3 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game this season. Kitts has registered back-to-back double-doubles in the second round and Sweet 16. Her career-high is 25 points, which she dropped on Vanderbilt in the SEC tournament. — Cydney Henderson

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MiLaysia Fulwiley scored a go-ahead layup with 2:22 remaining to secure a 71-67 win over Maryland to advance to its fifth straight Elite Eight. The sophomore guard is averaging 12.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game. Fulwiley has come off the bench all season, only registering three starts in 36 games, and was named the SEC’s Sixth-Woman of the Year. She also picked up an All-SEC second team nod. Fulwiley’s career-high is 24 points, which she’s scored on two different occasions, most recently in the Gamecocks’ win over SEC foe Vanderbilt in February. She had 23 points in South Carolina’s Sweet 16 win. — Cydney Henderson

The Gamecocks and Blue Devils tipped off at 1 p.m. ET.

Freshman forward Toby Fournier leads the Blue Devils in scoring with 13.1 points per game, to go along with 5.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks. Guards Ashlon Jackson (12.4), Oluchi Okananwa (10.2) and Reigan Richardson (9.8) are key contributors. Okananwa came up big for Duke in its second-round win over UNC, posting a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds. Here is the full Duke women’s basketball roster.

The Gamecocks have depth and defense on their side, ranking first in the nation in bench points per game (41.5) and fifth in blocks per game (5.9). Here’s a look at the full South Carolina women’s basketball roster.

Here’s who made the Elite Eight.

• No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 2 Duke, Sunday, 1 p.m. on ABC
• No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 3 LSU, Sunday, 3 p.m. on ABC
• No. 1 Texas vs. No. 2 TCU, Monday, 7 p.m. on ESPN
• No. 2 UConn vs. USC, Monday, 9 p.m. on ESPN

We asked 7 players and coaches in women’s college basketball about how Dawn Staley has impacted the game and turned South Carolina into one of the iconic programs in history.

Here is the two-game schedule for today.

• No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 2 Duke, Sunday, 1 p.m. on ABC
• No. 1 UCLA vs. No. 3 LSU, Sunday, 3 p.m. on ABC

Duke’s Kara Lawson had a decorated playing career and, according to her players, still has plenty of game. When she needs it. 

“She will lace them up and show us how it really goes when it comes to executing plays,” Blue Devils senior guard Reigan Richardson said. “Once in a while, she’ll go out there and shoot with us, just to prove she’s the best shooter in the gym.” Read Wesley Branch’s full story on Kara Lawson and her Duke players.

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