GREENVILLE – MiLaysia Fulwiley had never been here before, but she let it fly like she wasn’t playing in her first SEC Tournament championship on Sunday.
The South Carolina women’s basketball freshman couldn’t miss in the third quarter, going a perfect 4-for-4 to match her 10 first-half points. Fulwiley drained 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions for the No. 1 Gamecocks, and then followed it with a signature Fulwiley layup in transition over LSU’s Hailey Van Lith only 40 seconds later.
Fulwiley stopped to hit the “too small” gesture directed at Van Lith as she made her way back down the court.
Fulwiley had scored a game-high 20 points on 8-for-10 shooting by the end of the third quarter, and her performance was crucial to keep South Carolina in the lead 59-53 going into the fourth quarter at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
Fulwiley hit her career-high 22 points off two free throws, which were a result of an intentional foul by LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson that started a fight with two minutes left in the game. She hit two more free throws to seal the game with 13.2 seconds left, giving South Carolina a 79-70 lead.
Fulwiley finished with 24 points and was named to the SEC All-Tournament team and was also awarded SEC Tournament MVP.
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LSU eventually scored two more points to make the final score 79-72. South Carolina won its second straight SEC Tournament championship after completing its second straight undefeated regular season.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: South Carolina freshman MiLaysia Fulwiley named SEC Tournament MVP
