South Carolina extends home hex over No
Jan 23, 2024, 10:24 PM ET COLUMBIA, S.C.– Ta’Lon Cooper scored 20 points and Jacobi Wright had 14 with 4 3-pointers as South Carolina continued its home dominance of No. 6 Kentucky with a 79-62 success Tuesday night.The Gamecocks(
16-3, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) beat their highest-ranked challenger in the house given that taking down No. 1 Kentucky 68-62 14 years earlier. Because game, South Carolina got rid of future NBA All-Stars John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins for the victory.In this one,
the Gamecocks held the nation’s top-scoring group that averaged more than 91 indicate its least expensive output of the season.It’s their
second-largest win versus Kentucky in series history, routing only an 18-point victory in 2009, according to ESPN Statistics & Information research study. It likewise marks their first back-to-back wins over Kentucky given that winning three straight against the Wildcats from 2009 to ’10.
South Carolina players “have a great deal of belief, a lot of belief in themselves,” coach Lamont Paris said.Editor’s Picks
They likewise have the very best defense in the SEC, which kept the high-scoring offense of Kentucky (14-4, 4-2) in check much of the contest.
“We drove it and we weren’t physical enough to hold our ground,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said.Fans easily burst through the thin yellow ropes to rush the court and celebrate the most recent high point in a surprising season. It must cost South Carolina a$100,000 fine from the SEC under league policy, but nobody was concerned about that at the moment.”It’s never ever taken place “before, Gamecocks senior forward Josh Gray said.” That was a fantastic experience.”It’s the third straight loss at South Carolina for the Wildcats
(14-4, 4-2 )and fourth in their previous 7 conferences in the series.It sure didn’t appear like the Wildcats would struggle in this one.
Kentucky struck 5 straight shots en route to a 21-16 lead midway through the opening period.But South Carolina and its SEC-leading defense kicked in after that to close the duration on a 17-4 run.The Wildcats missed 9 of their last 10 shots of the duration and were held to their lowest-scoring half of the season.Antonio Reeves, Kentucky’s leading scorer at 19.6 points a game, shook off a 1-for-7 first half with seven points early after halftime, and the Wildcats were within 40-38 with 15:04 to play.But the Gamecocks removed once again on a 22-6 go to open an 18-point lead with less than 8 minutes left.Kentucky might not get within single digits the rest of the way.The sold-out crowd– Colonial Life
Arena seats 18,000– was motivated to use black. The fans, including football coach Shane Beamer, shouted and yelled as
time ticked down on the victory.Information from The Associated Press was utilized in this story.