GREENVILLE, S.C. — The script has become routine for South Carolina in this year’s N.C.A.A. women’s basketball tournament. In the first half, South Carolina, the reigning champion, often looks surprisingly vulnerable, perhaps on the verge of its first loss this season, perhaps primed to be on the wrong side of a monumental upset in a March that has been filled with them.
But in the second half, the Gamecocks wear teams down, and remind everyone why they are the top seed and an odds-on favorite to repeat as champions.
The Gamecocks followed that path again on Monday night in front of a raucous crowd as they beat second-seeded Maryland, 86-75, to advance to their third straight Final Four.