MINNEAPOLIS — At the end of the third quarter, as the clock ticked down, Aliyah Boston took matters into her own hands.
Her No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks had a six-point lead over the Louisville Cardinals—enough to offer a bit of separation, perhaps, but certainly not enough to feel comfortable. With eight seconds left in the quarter, South Carolina guard Destanni Henderson tried a jumper from the corner, hoping to push the lead to nine. She missed. And then Boston did what she has so often this season. She grabbed the rebound in traffic, rising above the tangle of arms under the basket in one crisp motion.