Chloe Kitts reveals final moments gave her cold feet when Dawn Staley left the fate of Duke game in her hands

Chloe Kitts delivered for Dawn Staley when the latter needed her the most in South Carolina's Elite Eight clash with Duke at Legacy Arena at BJCC on Sunday, sealing the Gamecocks' 54-50 victory with two late free throws. She opened up about the final moments of that epic encounter in the press conference after the win.

A reporter asked Kitts what was going through her head and where her nerves were when she headed to the free-throw line with 5.7 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter and South Carolina holding a 52-50 lead. Kitts revealed that she panicked when Staley assigned her the free-throw duties, asking teammate Te-Hina Paopao to get the inbound pass instead.

"Coach drew up a play and then she said the ball is going to get to me," Kitts said (Timestamp 4:37). "So I walked out there and I was like ‘Pao can you get the ball? Can you get the ball?’ And Pao’s like ‘Girl what? Go get the ball.’"

"So then I got the ball and then I went to the line. I was just taking a deep breath and then I told myself that my coach wanted me to have the ball at the end of the game because she knows I can make my free throws. I told myself that I’m really good at basketball and I made both of them."

Chloe Kitts' motivational speech worked wonders for her as she sank both of her free throws to give the Gamecocks a four-point lead. Duke failed to score in the ensuing possession and South Carolina secured its fifth consecutive Final Four appearance.

Chloe Kitts and Sania Feagin step up for South Carolina in Elite Eight win over Duke

Two players scored in double figures for the South Carolina Gamecocks, who reached the Final Four for the seventh time in program history. Chloe Kitts led with 14 points. She shot 3-for-8 from the field, including 1-for-1 from beyond the arc.

South Carolina forward Chloe Kitts waves to fans after she cuts the net after the Gamecocks defeated the Duke Blue Devils in their Elite Eight clash at Legacy Arena. Photo: Imagn

Kitts made a living at the charity stripe, going 7-for-10 from the free-throw line. She missed two free throws in the closing stages of the third quarter but redeemed herself with her two made attempts in the final seconds of regulation.

Sania Feagin also stepped up for Dawn Staley, scoring 12 points on 6-for-11 shooting. She stuffed the stat sheet against the Duke Blue Devils, recording eight rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks.