Watch: South Carolina's Raven Johnson hits clutch three vs. Indiana
South Carolina guard Raven Johnson focused on improving her three-point shooting this offseason. The hard work paid off in a tightly contested matchup against Indiana in the Sweet 16.
The Gamecocks were up 74-72 with 53 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter when Johnson drilled a clutch three-pointer. South Carolina held on 79-75 despite an impressive comeback attempt from the Hoosiers. Indiana trailed 49-32 at halftime but caught fire in the second half, going 7-of-16 from three.
Last season, Johnson shot 24.1 percent from three, and South Carolina ranked 173rd in three-point percentage (31 percent). To help the team improve, head coach Dawn Staley hired assistant coach Winston Gandy away from Duke.
"We wanted to be a better three-point shooting team because we knew we needed to take it to another level to win a national championship," Johnson told ESPN's Jerry Bembry. "After practice, coach Winston won't let us leave until we get up 100 shots."
Johnson's shooting a career-high 32.1 percent from three this season. The Gamecocks need her to nail more big shots to make it to the Final Four in Cleveland. No. 1 seed South Carolina faces No. 3 seed Oregon State in the Elite Eight on Sunday.
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