Zia Cooke led South Carolina women’s basketball to a comeback 68-51 win Monday with a career night against Georgia.
The Gamecocks trailed at halftime, but Cooke – who went 3-for-11 in the first half – took over in the second. She finished with a career-high 31 points and was the only South Carolina player to reach double digits.
“She took great shots. She didn’t force anything,” Staley said. “I just wanted her to continue to shoot the ball. Don’t second guess. Don’t jab. If you feel it, go ahead and shoot it.”
While Cooke started the game 0-for-5 from beyond the arc, she didn’t get discouraged. She hit four of her next seven 3-point shots.
At one point in the fourth quarter, when she nailed yet another 3-pointer to give the Gamecocks their largest lead of the game, she turned around and celebrated before the ball even hit the net.
“Coach kept telling me to keep shooting my shot, so I listened to her,” Cooke said. “It just felt good.
“I actually practiced doing that because I watched Steph Curry do it a lot. Sometimes in the gym I just play around and do that, and it felt as good (tonight).”
