South Carolina drops their 7th straight as comeback bid falls short against Arkansas
South Carolina had one last heave, but the comeback bid came up short.
The Gamecocks battled and clawed their way back from an 11-point deficit against Arkansas. A second-half offensive explosion from Meechie Johnson led the Gamecocks back to life.
Arkansas held all the momentum in the first half but coughed the game up. They would ultimately hold on for a 65-63 win at Colonial Life Arena to push South Carolina’s losing streak to seven games.
How it happened
South Carolina and Arkansas traded blows early on as the game went straight into the post. Josh Gray got the start again at center and was playing up to his potential.
The Razorbacks relied on their guards to gain separation from the Gamecocks midway through the first half. They went on an 8-0 run to break the game open.
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The refs were really letting the two teams play as a lot of drives to the basket were not rewarded. When Jackson finally got his foul call, he split the two free throw opportunities.
The crowd really came alive when Josh Gray made consecutive finishes at the rim to bring it back within six.
The Razorbacks used their three-point shooting to reach a nine-point lead at half. Arkansas came into the game ranked 316 nationally in three-point percentage. They used the longball to keep the momentum on their side.
The Razorbacks ultimately shot 26.7 percent from three after coming in shooting 30.81 percent on the year.
South Carolina got 12 first-half points from Gray and seven from Jackson to pace things and keep the game within arms’ reach in what was a back-and-forth first half.
Gray had a career-high 12 points and 7 boards at the half.
Second half
Things were more of the same to start the second half. Teams traded blows and Arkansas hit a three early to silence the Gamecock momentum. Gray and Brown’s play on the boards that kept the crowd in the game.
Meechie Johnson came alive in the second half, hitting two threes to keep the Arkansas lead at nine.
His shooting sparked the comeback train for the Gamecocks. Gray earned his double-double with 15 minutes left in the half.
South Carolina chipped quickly after that thanks to another deep three from Johnson to cut the lead to just six.
Johnson caught fire in the second half. Hitting yet another three-pointer to bring the Arkansas lead back down to four. He got up to 17 with the massive three.
Meechie hit yet another three to bring the game within one point with four minutes to go.
Gray hit two free-throws on the one and one to extend a 10-0 run to give the Gamecocks the lead at 59-58 with four minutes to go in the game.
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The teams traded blows yet again down the stretch as this game came down to the wire.
The Gamecocks just could not finish the game out. As time ticked down, Brown tried to hit a reverse layup to win it and missed.
South Carolina fouled and Anthony Black missed his second shot, giving the Gamecocks one more heave to win it with 2 seconds left. Gray could not convert on the prayer to end it, leaving the Gamecocks with their seventh straight SEC loss.
“That was a hard one to lose, we’re trying to make progress on some things and you see a lot of progress,” Paris said. “For the guys particularly, they don’t get the don’t get the instantaneous satisfaction of winning the game, to drive some of those points home and some of the good things that we did.”
Two observations
South Carolina’s shooting lives and dies by Meechie Johnson’s performance – When Meechie is hot, the Gamecocks are in the game. Meechie caught fire in the second half and turned the tides for the Gamecocks. He was five for six in the second half and the lone miss came with 35 seconds remaining.
Big men showed up – One thing the Gamecocks had been lacking so far is the presence from the big men. Josh Gray had a career game with 20 points and 14 rebounds. Brown finished with 10 points and seven rebounds of his own. When going up against an Arkansas team that relies on size, the two starters gave Paris all that he could ask for.
Key Stat
Arkansas had a combined 20 points off the bench to South Carolina’s four. When Lamont Paris went to the bench, there was little to no scoring for the Gamecocks. Jalen Graham proved to be the difference maker with 16 points off the bench.
Turning point
With 12 minutes left to go in the second half, Johnson hit his third three pointer which cut the Arkansas lead to just six. The crowd at Colonial life Arena erupted and was on its feat in hopes of completing a comeback.
Up next
The Gamecocks are back on the road Tuesday facing Missouri. The Tigers are talented but have struggled to find identity this year. Tip-off is scheduled for 9 p.m. on the SEC Network.
The Gamecocks have started 1-9 in SEC play for the first time since 2000.
