March 2, 2005

Box Score

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Mario Moore scored 22 points and Vanderbilt erased a 10-point second-half deficit to defeat South Carolina 75-65 Wednesday night.

Freshman DeMarre Carroll scored 10 of his 12 points in the final six minutes and Corey Smith added 13 points for Vanderbilt (18-11, 8-7 Southeastern Conference), which snapped a five-game home losing streak to the Gamecocks.

Carlos Powell scored 19 points and Antoine Tisby had 17 to lead South Carolina (14-12, 6-9). Renaldo Balkman had a career-high 16 rebounds for the Gamecocks and Rocky Trice scored 10 points.

Vanderbilt trailed 55-45 with 8:30 to play, then went on a 12-0 run to take the lead on a Moore shot in the lane. Smith had tied the game on a driving layup on the previous possession.

South Carolina tied it at 57 on a Balkman dunk, but Vanderbilt answered with a 3-point play by Carroll with 2:49 left and never trailed again.

Vanderbilt closed the game on a 30-10 run. South Carolina had just three field goals in the game’s final eight minutes.

The Gamecocks held Vanderbilt, the SEC’s second-best 3-point shooting team, to 18 percent from behind the arc (4-for-22).

South Carolina jumped out to a 10-2 lead, dominating the early going by controlling 11 of the game’s first 12 rebounds. The rebounding eventually evened out over the course of the first half, as Vanderbilt took a 34-31 lead into halftime after Shan Foster hit a leaner with two seconds to play.

Vanderbilt improved to 16-2 at home this season, avenging an earlier 68-63 loss at South Carolina.