Balanced Effort Guides Gamecocks Past Bulldogs, 95-70

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Myles Stute and Mike Sharavjamts both scored 15 points to propel South Carolina to a 95-70 victory over South Carolina State on Monday.

Stute made 4 of 7 shots with three 3-pointers, adding seven rebounds for the Gamecocks (8-4), who improve to 7-1 at home. Sharavjamts sank 5 of 6 shots and all five of his free throws as South Carolina made 31 of 36 at the foul line.

Reserves Grant Polk and Elijah Strong both had 13 points and Kobe Knox scored 11 and handed out five assists for South Carolina.

Jayden Johnson had 23 points on 10-for-15 shooting with two 3-pointers and six assists for the Bulldogs (1-13), now 0-11 on the road after notching their first victory last time out. Noah Treadwell made five 3-pointers and scored 17, while James Morrow added 13 points before fouling out.

Stute sank a 3-pointer to give South Carolina a 30-19 lead — its largest of the first half — with 7:20 remaining. Johnson hit a jumper to cut it to 36-31 four minutes later, but Polk hit two 3-pointers to ignite a 10-2 run and the Gamecocks led 46-33 at halftime.

The Bulldogs got no closer than 11 after the break.

KEY STATS

• The Gamecocks, who entered today’s game ranked in the top-30 in the country in team free throw percentage, shot well again at the charity stripe going 31-of-36 (86.1%). Nine different players hit a foul shot with seven sinking all of their attempts at the line. It’s the second time in the Lamont Paris era at Carolina that the team has made 30 or more foul shots (made 34 in a home win vs. Texas last season on Feb. 22, 2025).
• The bench played a vital role in today’s victory with 48 points. South Carolina improves to 3-0 on the season when scoring 40 or more bench points.
• The Gamecocks shot 59.2% (29-of-49 FGs) from the floor, the highest shooting clip in four seasons under Paris. Carolina is 14-1 (3-0 this season) now under Paris when shooting above 50.0% from the floor.

NOTABLES

• Graduate guard Myles Stute had a season-high 15 points. He also pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Stute was 4-of-7 from the floor and 3-of-5 from behind the arc.
• Senior guard Mike Sharavjamts had 15 points to increase his team-leading games in double-figures number to nine. He’s having the best season of his career to date averaging 12.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while shooting a career-best 54.9% from the floor.
• Redshirt senior guard Kobe Knox had 11 points and matched redshirt senior guard Meechie Johnson with a team-high five assists. It’s Knox’s seventh career game (third this season) with five or more helpers. He’s scored in double-figures now in three-straight games for Carolina. Knox led the team with an impressive +/- of +29 in today’s victory.
• Johnson recorded his second-straight game with a team-high three steals. It’s the fifth time in his career with three or more takeaways.
• Junior forward Elijah Strong and freshman Grant Polk each chipped in 13 points apiece off the bench. The 13 points for Polk were a new career-high as he was 3-for-6 from behind the arc. The sharpshooter is a team-leading 44.4% (20-of-45 3FGs) from behind the arc.
• The 95 points scored today were the most in the Lamont Paris era at South Carolina. The Gamecocks improve to 18-1 under Paris when scoring 80 or more points. In his nine seasons as a head coach, his teams are 50-5 (.909 win percentage) when scoring 80 or more.
• Through 12 games, Carolina ranks No. 13 in the nation via KenPom in team free throw percentage (78.6%) and No. 17 in 2-point field goal percentage (61.0%).

UP NEXT
South Carolina will be off for Christmas before returning to action on Dec. 30 for the non-conference finale against Albany (4-10). Tip is set for 6 p.m. (ET) on SEC Network with Lowell Galindo (pxp) and Richard Hendrix (analyst) on the call for the linear broadcast.

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