Cooke, Boston lead No. 4 South Carolina past Arkansas 91-82

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Zia Cooke had 21 points, Aliyah Boston added 19 points and a career-high 25 rebounds and fourth-ranked South Carolina cleared another significant hurdle in its quest for a Southeastern Conference championship by topping No. 21 Arkansas 91-82 on Thursday night.

Mikiah Herbert Harrison and Tyasha Harris added 13 points for South Carolina.

The Gamecocks (15-1, 3-0 SEC) used a stingy defense to slow down Razorbacks star guard Chelsea Dungee, one of the SEC’s best scorers.

Dungee racked up 63 points in two games last season against South Carolina but was held in check for most of the game. She began the night 0 for 11 from the field with three airballs. She came in averaging nearly 20 points per game but didn’t score her first field goal until the third quarter and finished with 14 points.

Just as they did in a 99-72 rout of then-No. 13 Kentucky, the Gamecocks came out strong, bolting to a 31-15 lead after the first quarter.

Alexis Tolefree had 22 points and Amber Ramirez added 20 for Arkansas (13-3, 1-2).

BIG PICTURE

Arkansas: The Razorbacks, who parlayed last year’s strong postseason run into a 12-1 start this year, remain searching for a signature win. They’ve lost to California, Texas A&M and South Carolina and don’t have a real resume-booster, although if they finish in the SEC’s top six, they should reach the NCAA tournament.

South Carolina: Coach Dawn Staley said she “refused to drink the Kool-Aid” after the Kentucky win, but she may be at least sipping from the cup. Her team is young but tremendously talented and has beaten five of its six Top 25 opponents this year.

UP NEXT

Arkansas hosts Missouri on Sunday. The Tigers are suffering through a miserable 4-12 season but did beat LSU last week.

South Carolina travels to Vanderbilt Sunday afternoon. The Commodores, winners of only seven games a year ago, are experiencing a resurgence with 12 wins this year.