South Carolina beats LSU for women's SEC championship after near-brawl, ejections

Top-ranked South Carolina beat No. 5 LSU 79-72 to win Dawn Staley’s eighth SEC championship in 10 years on Sunday at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. It was a tense matchup against Kim Mulkey and the defending national champions.

The Gamecocks remain undefeated and improved to 32-0 after a near-brawl interrupted the fourth quarter for 20 minutes.

LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson attempted to stop MiLaysia Fulwiley’s late steal. South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso came in retaliation and pushed Johnson to the ground. Johnson's teammate Hailey Van Lith rushed up and confronted Cardoso and there was more scuffling. Multiple players from both sides were ejected. Cardoso will miss the first round of the NCAA tournament for fighting.

Fulwiley led all scorers with 24 points. Aneesah Morrow led the Tigers with 19 points. Angel Reese had 15 points and 13 rebounds despite struggling with an ankle injury. She arrived at the game wearing a walking boot.

The Gamecocks led by as many as 13 points in the third quarter, but the Tigers clawed their way back to bring the game within one. Fulwiley made back-to-back three-point shots to take back momentum for South Carolina.

Despite being outrebounded early — 22 to 12 in the first half — South Carolina finished 16-of-19 in free throws.

Both teams now await Selection Sunday.

MARCH MADNESS:Women's college basketball conference tournament scores, schedule

Kamilla Cardoso apologizes after the game for her role in scuffle

Hours after the game, Kamilla Cardoso took to social media to apologize for her role in the scuffle.

She wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: "I would like to extend my sincerest apologies for my actions during today’s game. My behavior was not representative of who I am as a person or the South Carolina program, and I deeply regret any discomfort or inconvenience it may have caused. I take full responsibility for my actions and assure you that I am committed to conducting myself with the utmost respect and sportsmanship in the future."

OPINION:Cardoso embarrasses South Carolina but sting will be fleeting

LSU coach Kim Mulkey defends guard Flau'jae Johnson, admonishes South Carolina's Kamilla Cardoso

LSU coach Kim Mulkey said Flau'jae Johnson made a smart play when she intentionally fouled MiLaysia Fulwiley in the closing minutes – a move that led to a near-brawl and multiple ejections. Mulkey said Fulwiley would have had an uncontested layup that would have expanded the Gamecocks' lead in the close game.

Mulkey added that she understood emotions getting high at such a critical juncture of the game, but she was unhappy that South Carolina center Kamilla Cardoso went after the smaller Johnson.

"It's ugly, it's not good, no one wants to be a part of that," Mulkey said. "But I'll tell you this, I wish [Cardoso] would've pushed (6-foot-3) Angel Reese. If you're 6-8 (6-7), don't push somebody that little. That was uncalled for in my opinion. Let those two girls who were jawing, let them go at it."

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said Johnson apologized to her directly after the game. "I respect her. She's a good person," Staley said.

South Carolina's Kamilla Cardoso will miss first round of NCAA tournament following ejection

After being ejected for a fighting penalty toward the end of the SEC championship game, South Carolina's leading scorer Kamilla Cardoso will miss the Gamecocks' first game in the NCAA tournament, scheduled to start Friday, March 22.

Cardoso, a projected lottery pick in this spring's WNBA draft, averages 14.2 points and 9.6 rebounds for No. 1 South Carolina, which will receive the overall No. 1 seed in the tournament. While South Carolina is sure to miss her — the 6-foot-7 center impacts every possession defensively — the Gamecocks have some experience playing without her.

Earlier this year, Cardoso missed two games while playing with the Brazilian national team in the Olympic qualifying tournament in early February. South Carolina cruised to two wins without her, beating Missouri 83-45 and UConn 83-65. She also missed the Gamecocks' 72-44 win over Alabama on Feb. 22 and their 103-55 blowout win at Kentucky on Feb. 25. She sat out both those games with minor injuries and soreness.

Which South Carolina, LSU players were ejected from SEC championship game?

Six players were ejected from the SEC championship game between South Carolina and LSU after a scuffle broke out in the fourth quarter.

South Carolina star Kamilla Cardoso was ejected for fighting and will miss the first round of the NCAA tournament. She shoved LSU star Flau'jae Johnson to the ground during the incident.

The players who were ejected and missed the last two minutes of the game:

• LSU guard Janae Kent 
• LSU center Aalyah Del Rosario
• South Carolina center Kamilla Cardoso (will miss first round of NCAA tournament)
• South Carolina guard Tessa Johnson
• South Carolina forward Chloe Kitts
• South Carolina center Sakima Walker

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley apologizes for near-brawl after winning SEC Tournament

After winning her eighth SEC tournament title, South Carolina coach Dawn Staley seemed subdued.“I just want to apologize to the basketball community,” Staley told ESPN sideline reporter Brooke Weisbrod. “When you’re playing championship games like this and things get heated, (there are) no bad intentions. Their emotions got so far ahead of them that sometimes these things happen.

“I want to apologize for us playing a part in that. That’s not who we are, that’s not what we’re about. I’m happy for the players that were able to finish the game and get us another championship.”

Asked how she would address the near-fight that broke out and caused a 20-minute delay, Staley said, “We’re going to talk about it. We’ve always talked about it. Never leave the bench. Never get too high with the highs or low with the lows. It’s hard when you’re playing. I played this game a long time and I can’t tell you I was a saint at all times. Your emotions get the best of you. It’s unfortunate that the players that got ejected can’t be a part of the (postgame) celebration.”

Angel Reese: LSU is in a good place, not scared of No. 1 South Carolina

LSU star Angel Reese said the defending NCAA champions are not scared of South Carolina, despite Sunday's loss in the SEC championship game. Reese, who had 15 points and 13 rebounds despite struggling with an ankle injury, said the Tigers are in a good place right now and added, "Anyone who sees us should be scared." — Cory Diaz, USA TODAY Network

End Q4: South Carolina 79, LSU 72

The fourth quarter was 20 minutes longer than usual due to a fight that broke out after Flau’jae Johnson attempted to stop MiLaysia Fulwiley’s late steal. Players from both teams were ejected.

In the end, South Carolina prevailed to beat LSU 79-72. The Tigers got within one point after a nine-point run capped off by a layup from Angel Reese and a pair of free throws from Johnson. But the Gamecocks closed out the game with four free throws. They finished 16-of-19 from from athe charity stripe.

Head coach Dawn Staley apologized to "the basketball community" for the fight.

"That's not who we are," she said on the ESPN broadcast after the game.

Fight almost breaks out between South Carolina and LSU in closing minutes

The battle of the SEC championship heated up in the fourth quarter when South Carolina's MiLaysia Fulwiley grabbed a steal and started dribbling downcourt. LSU's Flau'jae Johnson grabbed her from behind to stop her and then shoved Amani Bartlett. South Carolina star Kamilla Cardoso came in retaliation and pushed Johnson to the ground. Johnson's teammate Hailey Van Lith rushed up and confronted Cardoso and there was more scuffling.

The LSU bench cleared and a South Carolina coach held players back before a near-brawl started in front of the scorer's table.

A fan hopped over the scorer's table and was quickly followed by a police officer. The fan, who the ESPN broadcast identified as Johnson's brother, was escorted off the court. Johnson's mother was shown speaking with a police officer.

There was an 11-minute break in play at 2:08 with the Gamecocks up 73-66 as officials sorted through the incident.

Johnson was given an intentional foul and Cardoso was disqualified for fighting. All the players that left the bench were also ejected from the game.

End Q3: South Carolina 59, LSU 53

South Carolina is holding onto its lead going into the fourth quarter, up 59-53 over LSU.

The Gamecocks went up by as many as 13 points before the Tigers' Angel Reese made a physical layup. Then, Aalyah Del Rosario made a long jumper, and all her LSU teammates were pumping their fists in reference to Kim Mulkey’s comments that the center needed to play like a Mack Truck.

But MiLaysia Fulwiley made back-to-back three-point shots to take back momentum for South Carolina.

At the end of the period, LSU's Aneesah Morrow brought the game within four, and the Tigers had a chance to score again, but after multiple offensive rebounds and a steal from Flau'jae Johnson, they couldn't get a bucket.

South Carolina's Fulwiley leads all scorers with 20 points while Morrow has 19 for LSU.

End Q2: South Carolina 36, LSU 32 with Angel Reese on bench after intentional foul

The Gamecocks march into halftime up 36-32 despite a bit of a scoring drought in the second quarter.

Midway through the period, Angel Reese threw an elbow against Kamilla Cardoso, which was upgraded to an intentional foul. It was Reese's second foul of the game and she went to the bench after the play. She was shown shaking her head before South Carolina's Te-Hina Paopao made both free throws.

Reese has four points and seven rebounds. Aneesah Morrow continues to lead the Tigers with 11 points.

Flau’jae Johnson scored her first points for LSU in the second quarter, including a long jumper that she was fouled on and made a three-point play with her free throw.

Dawn Staley's squad went more than four minutes between field goals, but MiLaysia Fulwiley made a layup with two minutes left in the half and closed out the quarter with a three-point bucket. She leads South Carolina with 10 points. Paopao has seven.

LSU is outrebounding South Carolina 22 to 12 in the first half.

End Q1: South Carolina 18, LSU 15

South Carolina has taken an early lead in the SEC championship, ending the first quarter up 18-15.

The undefeated Gamecocks ended the period on an 11-2 run after the Tigers went up 13-7.

Angel Reese has four points for LSU. She showed up to the game in a walking boot. Aneesah Morrow is leading the Tigers with six points.

For South Carolina, MiLaysia Fulwiley is the leading scorer with five points off the bench.

Angel Reese arrives at SEC championship in walking boot

Angel Reese, LSU's leading scorer averaging 19.1 points per game, arrived at the SEC Tournament championship game wearing a walking boot on her right foot.

Despite the boot, Reese was on the floor for pre-game warmups and in the starting lineup to play No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday afternoon.

Saturday Reese had 21 points and 17 rebounds to power LSU, ranked No. 5 in the nation, to a 75-67 win over Mississippi to reach the SEC Tournament title game. Reese twisted her ankle against Auburn in the quarterfinals and played on a sore ankle again Saturday. "My ankle is as big as a tennis ball right now,” she said.

LSU suffered another major injury blow Saturday when guard Last-Tear Poa came off the court on a stretcher after hitting her heard on the floor. The team said Saturday night Poa had a concussion.