Feb. 5, 2011

Final Stats | AP Photo Gallery

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Four Gamecocks hit double figures, but sharp shooting from beyond the arc led No. 24 Vanderbilt to a 78-60 victory Saturday at Memorial Gym.

Earning his second consecutive start, Ramon Galloway led the Gamecocks with 16 points and four steals before fouling out. Bruce Ellington added 13 points and big men Malik Cooke and Sam Muldrow chipped in 12 and 11 a piece, but Vanderbilt used an 11-for-20 (.550) effort from beyond the arc to help put the game away.

Both team remain in the SEC East race with identical 4-4 SEC records. The Commodores improve to 16-6 overall while the Gamecocks fall to 13-8.

Lakeem Jackson added seven assists in his second game back after injury.

The teams swapped the lead five times with four ties in the opening half. Ellington hit a jumper, and Galloway scored on a layup to pull the Gamecocks within 25-23. But Festus Ezeli scored underneath, and freshman Rod Odom hit a 3 just before the buzzer for the biggest lead of the half for either team as Vanderbilt entered the break with a 30-23 advantage.

South Carolina returns home Wednesday when the team hosts Florida at 8 p.m. The Gamecocks defeated the East-leading Gators 72-69 in Gainesville last month.

The Associated Press contributed to this report