Black over Blue! South Carolina stuns No. 6 Kentucky for signature SEC basketball win
Five thousand students, a blackout game and a sold-out Colonial Life Arena had its eyes peeled on the basketball court. The South Carolina men’s basketball team welcomed No. 6 Kentucky into its home Tuesday night.
Head coach Lamont Paris looked calm as he coached the Gamecocks. Everyone around him, however, wasn’t calm at all.
Because USC was inches away from its first ranked win of the season — and first ranked win for Paris as the Gamecocks’ head coach. When it happened, and USC held on for a 79-62 win, Gamecocks fans stormed the court to celebrate the all-important conference win.
South Carolina sits at 16-3 on the season (4-2 SEC). Paris is now the second USC men’s basketball head coach to start 2-0 against the Wildcats in his career, where he joins Darrin Horn. It’s also the highest home ranked win since defeating then-No. 1 Kentucky 68-62 on Jan. 26, 2010.
And just like other SEC wins Paris has picked up this season, he sat down with reporters after the game and said with his usual temperament: “Wow, that was fun.”
Big-time defense
South Carolina held the No. 1 scoring offense to 25 points in the first half.
Let that sink in for a moment.
The Gamecocks, who’ve allowed fewer than 65 points per game this season, were heavily reliant on their defensive pressure against the Wildcats (14-4, 4-2). Paris used multiple different tactics to slow down Kentucky, including a brand-new combination of players — BJ Mack, Ta’Lon Cooper, Morris Ugusuk, Zach Davis and Collin Murray-Boyles.
The lineup provided a very defensive-focused group against Kentucky’s offense, even though USC was undersized. Kentucky finished the first half with a three-minute scoring drought, going 0-for-5 for field goals.
Murray-Boyles alone played well enough in the affair for his first game against a ranked opponent. The true freshman had six rebounds, three assists and four points. Every USC big who played contributed on offense in some capacity.
Kentucky’s offense has been powered by moving the ball quickly. South Carolina slowed them down. There wasn’t much the Wildcats could do once the Gamecocks were in a groove. Kentucky finished the game with seven assists, a low for the group that averages 18.9 per contest.
“They mucked up the game that way,” Kentucky head coach John Calipari said. “They did a good job.”
Well shot, Gamecocks
It’s been said again and again: Basketball is all about scoring runs.
South Carolina ended the first half with a 6-0 run to have an eight-point lead, and Kentucky was plagued by suffering through it all. The Wildcats shot just 40% from the field, including 31% from the 3-point line.
Meanwhile, USC was 46% from long range and shot 48% from the field overall.
South Carolina was on top of every turnover (winning the battle 9-8), won the rebound battle (36-33) and had 20 assists against Kentucky. On a night were everyone needed to click in a garnet and black uniform, that’s exactly what happened.
“I think it starts internally with their confidence as players,” Paris said, “and then their confidence within one another, and then their confidence in our plan.”
There wasn’t an overwhelming run in the second half, though Kentucky was able to go on a 6-0 run with five minutes left to play. At that point, South Carolina expanded its lead well into the double-digits, and the Gamecocks were just tacking more and more points on the board.
Contributing across the board
There wasn’t one Gamecock who played a monster game. There wasn’t one Gamecock who didn’t contribute. Paris said on Monday it would take a collective effort, and he was right.
Every basket USC made, Colonial Life Arena went crazy. Every single person was invested. It made the outcome that much sweeter come the final buzzer.
“The crowd was amazing,” USC guard Jacobi Wright said. “I think they really helped us push through our runs that we got. They gave us a great boost of energy.”
Wright and Cooper led South Carolina’s scoring, both reaching double figures early in the second half. Mack and Meechie Johnson trailed right behind the leading pair, with Murray-Boyles and Davis helping as well.
Wright and Cooper eventually pulled away, with Cooper finishing the game with a career-high 20 points. Kentucky’s Rob Dillingham and Antonio Reeves led the Wildcats with 16 and 15 points, respectively.
Other notable stats
- The court-storming at Colonial Life Arena is expected to draw a $100,000 fine for South Carolina. It’s technically the school’s first offense under revamped conference rules.
- USC’s 20 assists were the third time this season the Gamecocks have had 20 or more in a game. USC had 21 against Mississippi State and 20 against Arkansas.
- The last time Cooper scored 20 points was on Dec. 18, 2019. It’s his second 20-point game of his career.
Next four games
- Saturday vs. Missouri, 1 p.m. (SEC Network)
- Jan. 30 at No. 5 Tennessee, 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network)
- Feb. 3 at Georgia, 1 p.m. (SEC Network)
- Feb. 6 vs. Ole Miss, 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network)
This story was originally published January 23, 2024 at 8:58 PM.
