Trends Of The Game: South Carolina Vs. #6 Kentucky

South Carolina's men's basketball team pulled off a colossal upset on Tuesday night, and there were a bevy of reasons why it happened.

The South Carolina Gamecocks went into Tuesday night's matchup against the No. 6 Kentucky Wildcats looking to put not just the SEC, but the rest of the sport on notice. They wound up doing that and a whole lot more, knocking off the Cats by a final score of 79-62.

What were the trends that led to massive win?

Tenacious Team Defense

Gamecock head coach Lamont Paris admitted himself on Monday afternoon when he spoke to the media that the expectation of holding the Wildcats to something like 55 points "probably wasn't realistic." Whether it was true coach speak or a motivational tactic, only Lamont probably knows, but there's no doubt that his team took the challenge of facing this vaunted Kentucky offense head on.

South Carolina held Kentucky to their lowest first half point total of the season (25), forcing the Wildcats into pure isolation basketball and for the most part, not allowing easy shots. Collin Murray-Boyles and Ta'Lon Cooper, in particular, were "locked in" as the kids would say both on-ball and off-ball, making their matchups have to take tough shots while using their length to their full advantage.

Picking Up Your Stars

In the first 24 minutes and 11 seconds of the game, Meechie Johnson and BJ Mack, the two known stars for the Gamecocks, shot 4-18 or 22.2 percent. Despite the in-game shooting slump both Johnson and Mack endured, their teammates rose to the occasion. Ta'Lon Cooper was a menace on both ends of the floor, making the right decisions in terms of when to be aggressive and when to hit the brakes. Jacobi Wright hit four three-pointers and Josh Gray gave South Carolina productive minutes, matching up well with Kentucky's 7'2 center. Zvonimir Ivišič.

Josh Gray dunking the ball vs. Kentucky (23rd Jan., 2024) / Jeff Blake | USA Today Network

The Crowd Noise

South Carolina's athletic department announced before the game that over 5,000 student tickets were sold and that the game was a sellout as a whole. The energy that the Gamecock faithful brought were a constant throughout the game, never allowing Wildcat fans or "Big Blue Nation" to get heavily involved in the game's affairs.

South Carolina's fanbase is unique because, no matter the sport, whether it's football or water polo, the fans are going to support you if you give them reason to. Fans of the men's basketball program have been searching for that reason for the past couple seasons, and I think it's fair to say they now have one.

You Might Also Like:

• Lamont Paris Talks Gamecocks' Impending Showdown Vs. No. 6 Kentucky, Zvonimir Ivišić
• INTERVIEW: 2026 Guard Isaac Ellis Talks Playing With Older Brother Eli
• South Carolina Bounces Back With Great Team Performance In 77-64 Win Over Arkansas

Join the community:

• Follow Andrew Lyon on Twitter: @ALyon_SC
• Follow Joseph Griffin on Twitter: @JosephGriffinJG
• Follow Arvon Bacon on Twitter: @baconnetworkllc
• Follow Locked On Gamecocks on Youtube or wherever you get your podcasts

You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the top right-hand corner of the page. Also, be sure to follow us on X at @GamecocksDigest and our page on Facebook!