Anthony Edwards scored 36 points for Georgia, but South Carolina got a career game from Alanzo Frink and made free throws late for a 94-90 overtime win.
Frink scored a career-high 22 points to lead South Carolina. The Gamecocks also got 19 points and ten rebounds from Maik Kotsar and 16 points and ten rebounds from Keyshawn Bryant, who both made crucial plays late in the game.
Georgia stuck first in overtime, but then Kotsar scored four straight to put South Carolina in front. Georgia retook the lead, and then Kotsar made 1-2 free throws to tie the game at 85. Edwards, who was 10-10 from the line missed a pair of free throws. That flipped the flow of the game, as soon Georgia was playing from behind instead of South Carolina.
Bryant tapped in a missed three by Jermaine Couisnard, drawing the foul. He missed the free throw, but then Shavir Wheeler only made 1-2 free throws. Couisnard drew a foul and sank both free throws. Edwards was then called for a charge, and Couisnard was fouled again. He again hit both free throws to put South Carolina up 91-86.
Wheeler drew another foul, and this time made both. South Carolina couldn’t inbound the ball cleanly, and Georgia got it back, down three, with 15.6 seconds left. Wheeler made a layup, and then Couisnard made 1-2 free throws to put South Carolina up two. Wheeler was left open by a defensive breakdown and drove again, but this time Kotsar was waiting to draw the charge and effectively end the game.
“I saw him coming,” Kotsar said. “I knew I had to be on help defense. I guess I just stood there.”
“After my halftime conversation with him I don’t think he’s asking me out for dinner anytime soon,” Frank Martin said. “He responded. He came out and had a monster second half.”
Bryant added two free throws with 0.5 seconds left for the final score.
After a three by AJ Lawson tied the game at 77, Kotsar sank two free throws with 15.5 seconds left to give the Gamecocks the lead. After a timeout Edwards, who was a perfect 10-10 from the line, drew a foul and hit both free throws to retie the game with 7.5 seconds left. Jermaine Couisnard got an open look at a three, but his shot as the buzzer was short, sending the game to overtime.
The game saw multiple runs by both teams - usually whoever was behind. Georgia led by six points multiple times, but South Carolina never let it get higher. South Carolina led by as much as seven after a 17-4 run in the second half, but then Georgia came back.
South Carolina finished the game shooting 48 percent from the floor, while Georgia shot 42 percent. But those final numbers are misleading: for most of the game South Carolina was over 50 percent and Georgia under 40 percent. What kept Georgia in the game was three pointers and free throws. Georgia was 8-29 from three while South Carolina was just 3-16. And, at the end of regulation, Georgia was 23-28 from the line, while South Carolina was 14-24, even with the two by Kotsar.
But in overtime, it was Georgia that struggled from the line. South Carolina wasn’t great, but it hit 9-13 free throws, 69 percent. On the other end, the Bulldogs were just 3-6, and the two misses by Edwards ended up being a back-breaker.
“That’s the only thing he didn’t do tonight, was make those two free throws,” Tom Crean said. “He was tremendous and he did a lot of really good things.”
Frink, Kotsar, and Bryant were able to dominate the smaller Bulldogs inside. They led an offense that scored 54 points in the paint. Georgia tried to give different looks on defense, trying zone, matchup zone, and having a player cheat off his man to help inside. None of it worked.
“We don’t have the size obviously,” Crean said. “We adjusted a couple of things that we wanted to do in the post defensively, but they’re just bigger than us and they have the high-low game.”
Edwards’ 36 points came on 11-22 shooting, with 4-11 from three and 10-12 from the line. He also had seven rebounds, four assists, and four steals.
“The game plan with him was he’s going to take tough shots and he’s going to hit tough shots,” said Bryant, who along with Couisnard and Lawson, guarded Edwards. “We’ll have to deal with it as long as we’re in his face and contesting every time he takes a shot.”
“I think all our fans got to see why he’s going to be the first pick in the draft,” Martin said.
Notes:
South Carolina wore its 1970s-inspired throwbacks. The Gamecocks are 5-2 in them this season. This was the first time they have worn them on a weeknight. … Rebounds were even at 42 apiece. … South Carolina had 22 assists. Four players had four assists. … Georgia had 14 turnovers. South Carolina had 10 turnovers, but seven came in the first half. … Lawson, who entered the game as South Carolina’s best free throw shooter at 73 percent, was just 4-10 from the foul line. … Entering tonight, Frink had scored just 31 points in SEC games this season. … Crean was not thrilled with the officiating, but refused to take the bait when asked about calls. “I’m not talking about the officiating anymore. I’m not even remotely writing a check to anybody.” … Announced attendance was 11,613. … South Carolina’s next game is Saturday at Alabama.
