It wasn't madness, it wasn't magical, but it was enough to open March right, as South Carolina women's basketball defeated North Carolina A&T in its NCAA tournament opener on Friday, 63-52.
The second-seeded Gamecocks (27-6, 12-4 SEC) never trailed against No. 15 seed A&T, thanks to a 19-4 run to start the game powered by free throws from star senior forward A'ja Wilson and perfect 3-for-3 3-point shooting from freshman Bianca Jackson.
Beyond that, however, USC never turned the game into the blowout it looked like it might become early on, as the Aggies actually outscored it 41-37 over the final three quarters.