South Carolina used a massive seven-minute, 24-0 run in the second half run to reverse a dismal first half and beat Georgia 83-66.
Almost everything that could go wrong for South Carolina did go wrong in the first half. The Gamecocks couldn’t hit a shot (3-17 from three), they couldn’t stop fouling (the Bulldogs were 21-22 from the foul line), almost every key play was on the bench with two fouls, they couldn’t get the ball in the paint on offense and couldn’t keep it out of the paint on defense.
Georgia led by as much as 12 in the first half and 11 in the second half, and was up 60-53 with a little over ten minutes to play. But that final ten minutes was all Gamecocks.
The Gamecocks made a point to get the ball inside - their next 11 points were layups of free throws off layup attempts. Keyshawn Bryant drew a foul, hitting a free throw, then converted a three-point play in transition. Jermaine Couisnard made a pair of layups, and then Bryant had another three-point play to make it a 64-60 Gamecock lead. With the Bulldog defense pulled in, the outside shots were open. Bryant drove and kicked to a wide-open Couisnard for three and then Wildens Leveque posted and kicked to Bryant for three. Bryant added another jumper, and Stevenson made a three and a layup to cap the 24-0 run.
South Carolina shot 15-29 in the second half, going 10-17 from two and 5-12 from three, the reverse of the first half. South Carolina was 12-16 from the line in the second, while Georgia was only 4-8.
Stevenson led South Carolina with 20 points, but it was a redemption game for a pair of veterans. Bryant finished with a season-high 19 points, including another highlight-reel dunk, and nearly doubled the 20 total points he had scored in SEC play. Couisnard, who was benched against Arkansas and did not play, had 15 points, three steals, and three assists with just one turnover. It was the first time Couisnard hit double figures since scoring 13 against Rider almost two months ago.
It was a much-needed win and confidence builder for South Carolina (11-7, 2-4), which had lost three straight. Up next is another winnable game against Vanderbilt, followed by trips to surprising Texas A&M and Mississippi State, and the Gamecocks could make themselves a player in the SEC race.
Notes:
Devin Carter got his second consecutive start. He had seven points but only played 10 minutes and left the game early in the second half with an apparent left hamstring injury. … AJ Wilson also returned to the lineup and had three points and two rebounds in 10 minutes. … Georgia made its first 21 free throw attempts. It made just four of the last nine. … South Carolina turned the ball over 11 times. Georgia had 18 turnovers. … Announced attendance was 10,478. … South Carolina’s next game is Wednesday against Vanderbilt.
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