Rewind: South Carolina 94, LSU 83

Sindarius Thornwell scored 24 points as South Carolina dropped LSU into a three-way tie for first place in the Southeastern Conference with a 94-83 victory Wednesday night at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia.

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Antonio Blakeney had his second consecutive huge scoring game as he topped the Tigers with 22 points. Blakeney scored 31 points last Saturday in the victory against Mississippi State. Blakeney was 8-of-14 from the field, including 4-of-6 on 3-pointers. The four 3-point baskets matched Blakeney’s season-high. Blakeney kept LSU in the game in the first half by making three 3-point shots. On two occasions in the second half, Blakeney made field goals to make it a one-possession game.

TURNING POINT

The Tigers had the momentum and tied the score on two occasions midway through the second half. Craig Victor sank four straight foul shots – the last two of which knotted the score at 60-60 with 9:05 to play. However, freshman P.J. Dozier tallied five points on back-to-back possessions to put South Carolina in front for good. First, Dozier converted a three-point play to break the tie. Second, Dozier made a layup after a Ben Simmons turnover to give the Gamecocks a 65-60 advantage with 8:37 left in the game.

DECIDING STRETCH

Just inside the seven-minute mark of the second game, a Tim Quarterman field goal left LSU behind by three points at 69-66. However, South Carolina took control of the game over the next 90 seconds. Raymond Doby started an 8-2 Gamecocks run with a three-point play. After a field goal by Michael Carrera, Dozier converted a three-point play to put South Carolina on top 77-68 with 5:30 remaining in the game. The only LSU points in that stretch came on a field goal by Simmons. The Tigers came no closer than four points the rest of the game – the last time being at 85-81 with 57 seconds to play.

KEY TEAM STATISTICS

LSU made 48 percent of its field goal attempts (29-of-61), including 43 percent on 3-pointers (9-of-21). South Carolina also shot 48 percent from the field (30-of62), including 37 percent on 3-pointers (7-of-19). . .The Tigers’ poor foul shooting was a key factor in their defeat. LSU made only 57 percent of its free throw attempts (16-of-28). Meanwhile, the Gamecocks made 75 percent of their foul shots (27-of-36). . .South Carolina outrebounded the Tigers 36-33. However, LSU had a 19-7 advantage in second-chance points. . .The Tigers had 16 assists and 12 turnovers. The Gamecocks also had 16 assists with nine turnovers. South Carolina outscored LSU 16-8 in points off turnovers. . .The Gamecocks had a huge edge in bench points at 31-14.

NOTES

LSU’s starting lineup consisted of Quarterman at point guard, Blakeney and Keith Hornsby on the wings and Simmons and Victor in the post. Blakeney made his first start since the Florida game one month ago. . .Simmons had to sit out the last eight minutes of the first half after picking up a second foul. He finished with 20 points – all but five in the second half. Simmons was 8-of-12 from the field, but just 4-of-9 at the foul line. He accounted for six rebounds and six assists. . .Hornsby chipped in with 14 points. He was 5-of-11 from the field, including 3-of-7 on 3-pointers. He also contributed five rebounds – his most in a SEC game this season – and three assists. . .Quarterman had another tough shooting night as he ended with just seven points. Quarterman missed all five of his 3-point shots. In his last three games, Quarterman is just 8-of-21 from the field. He had six rebounds and three assists with three turnovers before fouling out. . .Victor had his least productive game of the season with six points and five rebounds in 25 minutes before fouling out. Victor’s six points equaled his season low – the first time coming at Florida. He missed three of his four field goal attempts. . .The Tigers backups provided little help. Jalyn Patterson made two 3-pointers for six points. He played just five minutes. Josh Gray, who was 2-of-6 from the field, had four points. Both Elbert Robinson and Brian Bridgewater scored two points. . .LSU had just two leads in the game – 5-4 after a Hornsby 3-pointer and 20-18 after a Patterson 3-pointer. The Tigers trailed South Carolina 39-35 at the half. . .The Gamecocks outscored LSU 9-2 in the final 45 seconds. . .Thornwell made 11 of 14 foul shots. He also had six rebounds and five assists. Carrera had 16 points, while Duane Notice came off the bench and scored 15 points. . .The Tigers have lost road SEC games against Florida, Texas A&M and South Carolina. LSU has defeated Vanderbilt, Alabama and Auburn away from the PMAC. . .The Tigers had won their last three games against the Gamecocks in Columbia. . .LSU is 15-9 overall, 8-3 in the SEC. South Carolina is 21-3 overall, also 8-3 in the conference. LSU, Kentucky and South Carolina are tied for first place with Florida and Texas A&M one game behind. . .The paid attendance was 16,009.

UP NEXT

LSU will play host to Texas A&M at the PMAC on Saturday. The Aggies (18-6, 7-4) lost to Alabama 63-62 in Tuscaloosa on Wednesday night. Tipoff for the LSU-Texas A&M game is set for noon Central. The game will be broadcast on CBS.