In Sunday night's victory against Southern Miss, redshirt senior guard Meechie Johnson was pivotal to South Carolina's comeback. The Gamecocks defeated the Golden Eagles 83-79 in overtime after trailing by double digits late in the second half. Driven almost single-handedly by Johnson's prolific scoring, the Gamecocks remain unbeaten.
Getting it going early, Johnson scored five points in less than three minutes as the Gamecocks began the game on an 11-2 run.
Johnson contributed in more ways than scoring, with three rebounds and three assists, while finishing with a career high of 33 points for the night.
As the first half went on, Johnson continued to find success offensively but picked up three fouls, which kept him out of the last six minutes of the half.
During his absence, the Gamecocks saw their 16-point lead diminished to only four going into halftime. Also in that span, the team shot 2-12 from the field and 2-10 from three-point range.
For much of the second half, the Gamecocks' offense, including Johnson, could not find any consistency, especially from beyond the arc.
Southern Miss defensively loaded the interior and forced South Carolina's offense to come from the outside. This led to the Gamecocks shooting a school record of 43 three-point attempts in the game.
“We are one of the best three-point shooting teams. We've just got to find the open shots and make good shots to be great shots,” senior guard Mike Sharavjamts said.
Late in the second half, Southern Miss took an 11-point lead with less than four minutes remaining, making South Carolina's hopes of winning look bleak.
Johnson, however, was not deterred. He scored 12 points during that stretch and tied the game at 70-70 from the free throw line to force overtime.
“Me as a leader, I just have to keep everyone's spirits up,” Johnson said. “That's who we are, that’s South Carolina, and we fight until the end.”
Willing the team in the second half, Johnson battled fatigue, playing the most minutes of anyone on the team despite battling foul trouble. In his sixth year of college basketball, Johnson showed the resolve of a senior, regardless of the score.
When the Gamecocks needed him the most, he answered the call. In overtime, the game plan did not change; Paris kept the ball in Johnson's hands and allowed him to force the issue.
His best play, however, may have come with 30 seconds left in overtime on the possession after giving the Gamecocks a one-point lead. Johnson drove to the basket, drew a double team, and found a wide-open Myles Stute, who buried a pivotal 3-pointer.
En route to the victory, Johnson knocked down two more free throws to give the Gamecocks a six-point lead.
"(Johnson) knows I have an extremely high amount of belief in him," head coach Lamont Paris said. “That’s not the first time Meechie has done something similar to that in a scenario where we had to have it.”
In his return to Columbia, Johnson is averaging 23.5 points per game along with four rebounds and three and a half assists. Against Southern Miss, Johnson hit a career high of seven 3-pointers.
What’s next?
The Gamecocks are set for another home matchup against Presbyterian College on Nov. 12. The game will tip off at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on SECN+.