The Gamecocks closed out the regular season Saturday with a 76-61 win over the Arkansas Razorbacks.
South Carolina entered Saturday’s game with its postseason hopes on the line. A win would guarantee the team the third seed in the SEC Tournament, while a loss would drop it as low as 10th.
Coming off of two straight poor offensive performances, South Carolina’s chance of winning this game appeared grim. To make matters worse, the Gamecocks leading scorer and rebounder, Michael Carrera, was ruled out of the contest with a right hip injury, although he is expected to participate in the SEC Tournament next weekend.
South Carolina started slow, trading baskets with the Razorbacks for the first nine minutes of play. From the midway point of the first half until halftime, however, junior Sindarius Thornwell took control of the game. He scored 10 of his 22 points over that stretch to push South Carolina’s lead to 12 at the intermission.
The Gamecocks outrebounded the Razorbacks 27-10 headed into halftime, with Mindaugus Kacinas, Raymond Doby and Thornwell accounting for 15.
South Carolina continued to expand its lead to start the second half, with it ballooning to 27 points by the 15:04 mark. Arkansas remained resilient, though, and cut the deficit to nine down the stretch.
Forward Moses Kingsley was largely responsible for Arkansas’ late comeback, scoring eight points in the second half. He shot just 28.6 percent from the free throw line in the second half, which ultimately spoiled Arkansas’ late surge.
The starters played the bulk of the second half for South Carolina, as Chris Silva received just three minutes of playing time.
South Carolina is one of four SEC teams to receive a double-bye for the upcoming tournament. As the No. 3 seed, South Carolina is scheduled to play at 6 p.m. on Friday.