Aaliyah Chavez had herself a night Thursday when the 5'10" freshman led Oklahoma to a surprise upset win over the heavily favored South Carolina Gamecocks. The No. 16 Sooners ended a three-game losing streak by toppling South Carolina 94-82 in overtime at home in Norman, Oklahoma.
Chavez, who was recruited by the school along with several others last year, had 26 points, 8 assists, and 4 rebounds on 5 for 10 shooting from the three. She was a relentless force for the Sooners, and demonstrated every single bit of why so many programs wanted to bring her on in the first place. The former No. 1 high school player in the country is part of the future of women's basketball, and last night's game showed exactly why.
South Carolina seemed likely to win last night's game
The Gamecocks were leading the game 43-36 at the half, and entered the match as the favorites. The loss is their first in SEC play. The Sooners made it clear when the third quarter started that they had regrouped and were ready to make a literal run for it (the team scored the first 8 points of the third and took the lead after Chavez hit a three).
The next few minutes were tight, and the teams traded the lead back and forth until Payton Verhulst hit a stepback three that gave Oklahoma a lead they didn't relinquish the rest of the quarter. Oklahoma managed to get up by six points four times throughout the fourth, but the team was forced to contend with a run by the Gamecocks led by Raven Johnson. The game was tied up with 18.4 seconds left on the clock and the teams went into overtime.
The Sooners dominated most of overtime, and the win is only the second time in program history that Oklahoma has beaten a top-2 ranked team.
Aaliyah Chavez led the game for Oklahoma
Chavez, was signed with Oklahoma in March 2025, dug deep and managed to steer the ship for her teammates to make the win happen. She only hit three points in the first half but roared to life in the second. That effort was met by Raegan Beers, who had a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds, and Sahara Williams, who had her own double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Chavez, who grew up in Lubbock, Texas, was heavily recruited by programs that included Texas, LSU, South Carolina, UCLA, and Texas Tech.