South Carolina Basketball: Gamecocks collapse, lose 16-point lead in loss to LSU

South Carolina Basketball vs. LSU Tigers
Stats, Scoring, and Observations

South Carolina basketball played poorly again on Saturday, and for the first time all season, they lost two games in a row. LSU overcame a 16-point 2nd-half deficit to win in the closing seconds.

Here are the stats from the game:

STATS

LSU

Points

Leader: Tyrell Ward with 16

Rebounds

Leader: Trae Hannibal with 12

Assists

Leader: Jordan Wright with 3

Steals

Leader: Jordan Wright and Tyrell Ward each with 2

Blocks

Leader: Jordan Wright and Jalen Reed each with 2

Team

The Tigers shot 43.1%/38.5%/64.3%, but they shot 53.6%/56.15%/100% in the 2nd half

South Carolina

Points

Leader: BJ Mack with 18

Rebounds

Leader: BJ Mack with 9

Assists

Leader: Meechie Johnson with 4

Steals

Leader: Collin Murray-Boyles with 3

Blocks

Leader: Josh Gray and Zach Davis each with 1

Team

The Gamecocks shot 41.9%/30%/83.3% for the game

BOX SCORE

OBSERVATIONS

• Starters: Ta’Lon Cooper-Meechie Johnson-Zach Davis-BJ Mack-Collin Murray-Boyles
• Shooting and scoring were difficult tasks in the 1st half for both teams.
• Ta'Lon Cooper looked sluggish.
• Stephen Clark got his first 1st half minutes in a long time and contributed 2 points and 3 rebounds.
• Former Gamecock Trae Hannibal had 8 rebounds in the 1st half. Cooper, Meechie Johnson, and Morris Ugusuk didn't score in the opening 20 minutes and were part of a backcourt that got beaten on the boards by Hannibal and Jordan Wright for 12 combined rebounds.
• LSU had two 6-0 runs in the 1st half, but the Gamecocks led because of a 17-1 run of their own.
• Carolina had a great start to the 2nd half when they went up by 16, but the shots stopped falling as LSU cut the lead to 5 on multiple occasions.
• Meechie Johnson left the game with an injury in 2nd half. He ran into an inadvertent elbow and went to the locker room a little dizzy.
• In the 2nd half, USC had no answers for Ward and Reed.
• An awful missed foul call cost South Carolina the ball in the final seconds. LSU drew a foul on the extra possession and made both free throws to win the game.
• The officiating was bad late (and, ultimately, very costly near the end of the game). However, South Carolina blew this game with poor defense, lethargic rebounding effort, and strange shot selection in the 2nd half.
• Ta'Lon Cooper, Meechie Johnson, and Myles Stute combined for 4-19 shooting. Stute also was the player who didn't foul in the closing seconds when Lamont Paris was screaming for his team to intentionally foul up by 3 late.
• Collin Murray-Boyles and BJ Mack (and even a little bit of Josh Gray and Stephen Clark) were good on the glass. High effort and good positioning helped them finish the game with 16 boards.