"Chloe works her butt off...Tessa was just lights out": Dawn Staley gives South Carolina stars their flowers after impressive Mississippi State win

Dawn Staley's South Carolina Gamecocks are rolling, with 14 wins in 15 games this season. The defending national champions used a strong second half to put away Mississippi State 95-68 on Sunday afternoon.

Tessa Johnson, a sophomore guard, was the star of the show, exploding for a career-high 22 points off the bench, including four 3-pointers. Junior forward Chloe Kitts also had a solid outing, recording her fourth double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Dawn Staley heaped praise on her two standout performers.

"Chloe was due. Tessa was due as well," the coach said (2:49). "It’s just good to see players ... after just a long time in between where they had these kind of performances, but truly happy for them."

"Chloe’s been trying, Chloe works her butt off. And sometimes she doesn’t reap the benefits of her hard work through stats. She got them today. "And then Tessa was just lights out. Tessa was locked, ready and loaded to shoot the ball when she was open. Her focus goes to another level when we’re down. And she seems to hit big shots when we’re down."

Dawn Staley reflects on loss of Ashlyn Watkins to injury

The Gamecocks suffered a blow in the game when junior forward Ashlyn Watkins went down with an apparent leg injury. Early in the second quarter, Watkins drove to the basket and landed awkwardly, immediately clutching her knee.

Watkins had to be helped off the floor and did not return to the contest. Addressing the media after the game, Coach Dawn Staley did not have an immediate update on the severity of Watkins' injury and stated that she did not need to go to the hospital.

South Carolina was without its star player and trailed by nine points with more than half the game remaining. However, the Gamecocks responded well, led by the contributions of Chloe Kitts and Tessa Johnson. (Start at 1:00)

"I think psychologically, for our players, they took it to another level. We didn’t say anything, and we try not to. We try to just keep things moving," Dawn Staley said postgame.

"Obviously, we feel for Ashlyn, her injury, and her not being able to finish the game. But the teammates had her back, and they did take it to another level on both ends of the floor."

The No. 2 Gamecocks went on to outscore the Bulldogs 53-34 in the second half, cruising to a 27-point victory. They will face Texas A&M at home on Thursday.