South Carolina vs. Notre Dame in Paris score: Gameco*cks, Kamilla Cardoso rout Fighting Irish in top-10 clash (2024)

Cardoso dominated the paint in a statement win for No. 6 South Carolina

The No. 6 South Carolina Gameco*cks opened their season with a dominant 100-71 win over No. 10 Notre Dame. This was the first college basketball game played on Parisian soil, and players from both teams put on quite the show.

Kamilla Cardoso is already embracing her role as the leader for an inexperienced South Carolina team. She finished the day with a double-double of 20 points and 15 rebounds, and she was a huge part of why the Gameco*cks had a 70-22 advantage in the paint.

However, today's win was truly a team effort. As a whole, the Gameco*cks shot over 54% from the field and five players reached double figures. Their bench also outscored Notre Dame's bench 41-12.

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley had high expectations for freshman Milaysia Fulwiley, describing her as a "generational talent" to CBS Sports. Fulwiley definitely lived up to the hype with multiple highlights during her first college game. She finished the game with 17 points, six assists and six steals, but her excellence transcended the stat sheet. Even NBA legend Magic Johnson was talking about heron social media.

"Togetherness is one of the main words we've been using all practice," Fulwiley told ESPN after the game. "We just play with each other, we love each other. We've been putting in the work since summer, so I think it was pretty easy for us once we got on the court."

Notre Dame had some key players missing today, namely Olivia Miles, as the star guard has not yet fully recovered from a knee injury she suffered during the last game of the 2022-23 regular season. ACC All-Freshman honoree KK Bransford was also out because of an injury.

The game started off competitive as both teams kept it close in the first quarter in a fast-paced battle. Notre Dame was shooting 50% from the field early on, but once the South Carolina defense turned up the heat, the Fighting Irish's offense collapsed and they finished the game with a 32.9% field goal percentage.

Junior guard Sonia Citron, Notre Dame's leading scorer from a season ago, did not get a chance to shine as much as she usually does. However, Notre Dame freshman Hannah Hidalgo introduced herself to the world with 31 points in her college debut, along with four rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Next up, the Gameco*cks will be hosting No. 14 Maryland on Nov. 12 for their home opener. Notre Dame will get a chance to reset their confidence on Nov. 12, as they'll return to the court for a road game against the NJIT Highlanders.