Feb. 14, 2015

Final Stats | USATSI Photo Gallery

LEXINGTON, KY. – The Gamecock men’s basketball team ran into a hot-shooting Kentucky side, and the No. 1-ranked Wildcats led wire-to-wire in a 77-43 win. Sindarius Thornwell led Carolina 12-12, 3-9 SEC) in scoring with 20 points, but Kentucky (25-0, 12-0) dominated the paint on both ends of the floor to remain undefeated on the year.

An early dry spell from the field would put the Gamecocks behind, with a six-minute, 30-second stretch without a field goal. Tyrone Johnson opened the team’s scoring with a basket for a 4-2 deficit, but the team’s next make would not come until a 3-pointer from Demetrius Henry with 11:24 to play and the Wildcats up 18-3. The basket was Henry’s first-ever make from deep.

The Wildcats were strong in the paint for the opening 20 minutes, hitting 60 percent of its two-point field goal attempts (15-25). They would finish with 24 points in the paint for the first half and held Carolina to just four. The home side carried a 43-18 lead into the halftime break.

Though it would not score as efficiently as it had in the first half, Kentucky’s defense would continue to harass the Gamecocks. Though they would only turn the ball over nine times, four fewer than Kentucky, the sizable height disadvantage ensured that every shot taken would come under duress.

Thornwell would score 14 of his 20 in just 15 minutes of the second half, despite playing for much of it with four fouls. Kentucky would only outscore the Gamecocks 34-25 in the final 20 minutes, but for the afternoon, the Wildcats held a 34-16 advantage in points in the paint and shot 50 percent overall.

GAME CHANGER

After Tyrone Johnson opened the team’s scoring with 17:54 to play in the first half, a 6:30 drought from the field allowed the Wildcats to go on a 14-1 run to pull away for good. Carolina went 0-of-8 in the cold streak, while Kentucky went 7-of-11 in the same span.

KEY STAT The Wildcats held a +24 margin in total rebounds for the game, 45-21. The 45 rebounds allowed were one off a season high allowed by Carolina, and the 21 are one off a season low for the team.

NOTABLES

• Justin McKie returned after missing the previous five contests with a concussion. He played five minutes total.
• Marcus Stroman missed his second straight game as he recovers from a throat infection.
• Sindarius Thornwell recorded his ninth career 20-point game, and second of the season. He also set a new season high with nine free throws made.
• The Gamecocks are now 1-12 against the AP No. 1 team, including a 0-5 on the road. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 49-11.

UP NEXT

The Gamecocks will stay on the road for its next game, traveling to Athens to take on Georgia Tuesday night at 7 p.m. The two teams met just a few short weeks ago in Columbia, with the Gamecocks 67-50 behind four players in double digits and a defense that allowed just 11 field goals for the game. Tuesday night’s matchup will be available on the SEC Network.