CLEVELAND – Kamilla Cardoso took over early, but it was a third-quarter scoring explosion that pushed South Carolina women's basketball past NC State 78-59 in the Final Four on Friday in Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and into the NCAA national championship.

South Carolina will play No. 1 seeded Iowa in the national championship game on Sunday (3 p.m. ET, ABC) in a rematch of last season's Final Four.

It was the Cardoso show for the No. 1 seeded Gamecocks (37-0) in the first half, as she helped carry the offense until it woke up after halftime. South Carolina's senior center finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds.

After heading to the locker room with a right leg injury just before halftime, the rest of South Carolina's offense took over. It outscored No. 3 seeded NC State 29-6 in the third quarter to help bury the Wolfpack (31-7)

South Carolina's first half took a turn with under two minutes remaining when Cardoso went down under the basket and was limping for several plays on the court. As soon as she checked out, she went directly into South Carolina's locker room.

At the time of the injury, Cardoso had 16 points and seven rebounds on 7-for-9 shooting.

South Carolina played at a fast pace in the first quarter, which led to several unforced turnovers and uncontrolled play. The Gamecocks gave the ball away five times, but left the quarter tied 16-16 after stealing it from the Wolfpack six times.

Kamilla Cardoso's injury changes first-half storyline

The 6-foot-7 Cardoso dominated the first half and was the main scoring option for South Carolina against NC State, who didn't have an answer for Cardoso's size and strength. She made each of her first six shots and had seven baskets before any of her teammates had two.

Cardoso came back from the break with added support on her right knee.

South Carolina had strong minutes from its other posts. Junior forward Sania Feagin was the only other South Carolina player with multiple points at halftime and finished with six points, while sophomore forward Ashlyn Watkins had 20 rebounds.

3-point ball comes alive in the second half

The first half was sluggish for South Carolina. The third quarter was anything but.

The Gamecocks nearly outscored their first-half total in the third quarter alone, sinking five 3-pointers to expand a lead from one point to 24. They spread out the scoring among seven players, including six each from Cardoso and senior guard Te-Hina Paopao. Watkins had eight rebounds in the quarter alone.

The Gamecocks kept rolling in the fourth quarter with plenty of padding in the lead. Cardoso didn't play to rest her knee, and while the Wolfpack cut into the deficit slightly, South Carolina easily closed out the win.

Evan Gerike covers South Carolina women's basketball for the Greenville News. Email him at egerike@citizentimes.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanGerike.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: South Carolina women blow by NC State in Final Four for NCAA title spot