Gamecocks win Paradise Jam

At St. Thomas, U.S.V.I., South Carolina won the Paradise Jam 83-75 over Tulsa and improved to 5-0 for the first time since it last reached the NCAA tournament. Sindarius Thornwell was named Most Valuable Player.

Thornwell scored 16 in USC’s first tournament win since Frank Martin’s first season, when the Gamecocks won the Hoops for Hope Classic. USC is 5-0 for the first time since 2003-04, when it started 8-0 and got to the NCAA tournament.

USC spurted ahead of Tulsa (4-1) with five players in double figures. Center Laimonas Chatkevicius scored a team-high 17 points.

USC never trailed in notching the victory, and when Chatkevicius scored on a hook shot to go up 10, the Golden Hurricane cut the lead to eight. Michael Carrera restored a comfortable lead with two free throws with under a minute to play, and USC cruised to the win.

Mindaugus Kacinas was also named to the all-tournament team.

The Gamecocks host Lipscomb at 2 p.m. on Friday.

TULSA (4-1)

Smith 3-5 0-1 7, Harrison 4-11 12-16 20, Woodard 5-11 6-8 18, Brown 0-0 0-0 0, Wright 3-8 2-3 8, Taplin 0-1 0-0 0, Ray 0-2 0-0 0, Birt 3-6 0-0 7, Curtis 4-8 2-2 11, Swannegan 2-2 0-1 4. Totals 24-54 22-31 75.

SOUTH CAROLINA (5-0)

Thornwell 4-10 6-6 16, Chatkevicius 6-10 4-4 17, Dozier 3-6 0-0 8, Carrera 6-10 3-4 16, Kacinas 4-6 2-4 11, Stroman 1-1 0-0 2, Notice 2-7 7-10 11, McKie 0-0 0-0 0, Cobb 1-2 0-0 2, Silva 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 27-54 22-28 83.

Halftime_South Carolina 38-29. 3-Point Goals_Tulsa 5-16 (Woodard 2-5, Smith 1-1, Birt 1-3, Curtis 1-3, Ray 0-1, Harrison 0-1, Wright 0-2), South Carolina 7-14 (Thornwell 2-4, Dozier 2-4, Chatkevicius 1-1, Carrera 1-2, Kacinas 1-2, Notice 0-1). Fouled Out_Curtis, Swannegan. Rebounds_Tulsa 31 (Wright 7), South Carolina 34 (Carrera 9). Assists_Tulsa 9 (Harrison 3), South Carolina 12 (Dozier 4). Total Fouls_Tulsa 25, South Carolina 25. A_2,002.

This story was originally published November 23, 2015 at 11:24 PM with the headline "Gamecocks win Paradise Jam."