South Carolina Pulls Away From Presbyterian

South Carolina overcame a midgame surge from the Presbyterian Blue Hose to secure their fifth win of the season on Sunday night.

Head coach Lamont Paris' squad came off an eight-day break to defeat an in-state foe in the Presbyterian Blue Hose, winning by a score of 68-57.

How did the game play out for the Gamecocks?

An Early Game Of Runs

South Carolina led for most of the first half due to the great shots they were both finding and creating in the first fifteen minutes of the game. At the start of the game, Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk and GG Jackson got things going in the paint, as Carolina both hit tough shots and created some open lanes to the basket through their set plays.

The Gamecocks would then extend their scoring success out behind the three-point line, as four different Gamecocks would hit shots behind the arc. Jackson, in particular, looked extremely confident every time the basketball was in his hands and was able to score in a variety of ways while at the same time not forcing unnecessary shots.

The Blue Hose, after going down thirteen points with around five minutes left in the first half, would storm back, going on an 11-0 run to cut the lead down to two, doing so mostly through drives to the basket. Jackson made an acrobatic layup in the final minute to give South Carolina a four-point halftime advantage and himself fourteen first-half points.

A Second Half Slugfest

The Gamecocks would carry their sloppy play from the end of the first half over into the second half, as they wouldn't score a single point in the first four minutes of the period. 

Their scoring struggles would be compounded by their inability to consistently rebound the basketball on either end of the floor, which wasn't helped by the fact that both Bosmans-Verdonk and Josh Gray had found themselves in foul trouble around midway through the half.

Then with nine and a half minutes to go in the game and the Gamecocks carrying a one-point lead, Hayden Brown would drive right baseline and rise over a Blue Hose defender for a posterizing dunk, which threw the fans in Colonial Life Arena into a frenzy. 

Brown would follow this up on the next possession with a wide-open make from behind the arc off the drive and kick pass from Meechie Johnson, which swung momentum heavily into South Carolina's favor and stuck with them for the rest of the matchup.

The Gamecocks will play again on Wednesday night when they go on the road to take on the UAB Blazers.

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