Collin Murray-Boyles powers South Carolina to SEC Tournament win with record performance

South Carolina opened up the SEC Tournament with an 80-66 win over Arkansas on Thursday afternoon, advancing to the quarterfinals for a matchup against No. 4 seed Auburn. The Gamecocks can largely thank big man Collin Murray-Boyles.

The talented forward was terrific in the contest, setting an SEC Tournament school record with 11 made field goals.

The freshman was elated to be there, and it showed.

“This is my first time being here, so just thankful to have the opportunity,” Murray-Boyles said postgame on the SEC Network, speaking to sideline reporter Marty Smith. “Thankful for my teammates finding me with the ball, letting me operate down low. So I really credit them. Credit coach for letting me play, letting the team play, so it’s all good.”

Collin Murray-Boyles finished with 24 points, seven rebounds and two assists in the contest, helping pace South Carolina.

The Gamecocks won, in large part, by absolutely dominating in the paint. The rebounding battle went to South Carolina 33-26, as did the points in the paint at 52-38.

Murray-Boyles was downright unstoppable at times, but that’s part of how he molds his game.

“Everybody should feel if you’re getting hot, you should always feel like nobody can guard you, so that’s how I felt tonight,” he said.

With the win over Arkansas in the books, South Carolina moves forward to the next stage and a rematch with Auburn. The Tigers took the regular-season meeting at Auburn in a tense affair.

But Murray-Boyles noted one key factor: This one isn’t at Auburn.

“I remember what happened. Trying to get our get-back,” Collin Murray-Boyles said. “But they’re a good team so it’s going to be tough again. But they’re not in the Jungle no more, so hopefully we can come out with a victory this time.”

South Carolina and Auburn will meet at 3 p.m. ET on Friday, with a national broadcast on ESPN.