Hot-shooting South Carolina takes down Mississippi State, 97-89

A hot-shooting South Carolina squad and State’s str8ggles at the foul line proved to be too much Saturday as the Bulldogs’ winning streak was snapped with a 97-89 loss at South Carolina.

The Bulldogs also suffered the loss of Jayden Epps in the first half and he did not return to action in the second half. There was no update on Epps’ condition in the postgame from head coach Chris Jans.

“They had some great individual performances,” said Jans afterwards. “I thought Elijah Strong probably had his best game. He established himself down there (in the paint) and got going early. He had his moments and had a good stat line.

“I thought going into the game that we could get some rolls on our ball screens. I thought we could get behind them. I thought (South Carolina) defended well and had a good plan.”

Quincy Ballard was 6 of 8 from the field and led State with 15 points along with a game-high 10 boards, his second double-double of the year. Epps had 13 points before getting injured and Josh Hubbard had 13 points. However, following a record-setting performance last week, Hubbard was just 4 of 20 shooting, including 2 of 12 from 3 point range.

“They were obviously very heightened and very aware of Josh and tried to limit his touches. They never let their g8ard down with him and he had a hard time getting into the flow of the game, offensively.

“You would expect that after the game he just had for them to be heightened. Unfortunately, we didn’t do a good enough job of generating better open looks for him and other players, as well.”

Ja’Borri NcGhee and Sergej Macura also finished in double digits for State with 12 and 10 points, respectively. McGhee also had a season-best seven assists, as well.

Meechie Johnson and Mike Sharavjamts led South Carolina with 21 points apiece. Johnson also had a game-high nine assists. Kobe Knox had 17 for the Gamecocks while Strong and Eli Ellis had 16 and 13 points, respectively.

South Carolina’s hot shooting continued in the second half, and the Gamecocks also made State pay at the free throw line. The Bulldogs got as close as four points, 77-73, in the second half after a Ballard free threw with 5:07 remaining. But State would get no closer the remainder of the day.

Overall, State shot 45% from the field and made just 10 of 33 from 3 point range. The Bulldogs also struggled at the foul line, 17 of 30, and had six turnovers (none in the second half). The Bulldogs outrebounded the Gamecocks, 37-32, and had 15 offensive boards while allowing just four offensive rebounds (all in the second half).

South Carolina, who snapped a seven-game losing streak, shot 55% from the field and were a sizzling 12 of 24 from 3 point territory. The Gamecocks were also solid at the free throw line, making 23 of 27, and had six turnovers along with 20 assists.

Mississippi State actually got off to a good early start in the first half and jumped to a 9-3 lead. But South Carolina got hot from the perimeter and made easy shots in the post. A 12-3 Gamecock run put gave the home team a 34-23 lead later in the half. Mississippi State managed to cut the deficit to 34-31 after an Epps 3 pointer with 3:02 left in the half before South Carolina settled in for a 36-29 halftime advantage.

State shot 42% in the first half and made just 5 of 18 beyond the 3 point arc. The Bulldogs made 4 of 8 free throws, had five turnovers and outrebounded South Carolina, 21-11, in the opening half, including 10 offensive rebounds.

“Man, you couldn’t ask for a better start,” Jans mentioned. “But when the game unfolded, it was too easy (for South Carolina). They made a shot or two and their confidence really rose.

“It was a disappointing day. That was kind of the theme we had in the postgame, just disappointed. I felt really good about this game and I felt we were going to come in here and win. Unfortunately, we didn’t.”

Up Next

Mississippi State remains on the road next time out with a trip to face No. 25 Alabama. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. and the game will be televised by ESPNU. Entering Saturday night’s game at LSU, the Tide were 19-7 overall and 9-4 in the SEC, which is tied for second in the SEC behind leader Florida.