Nov. 20, 2015

Final Stats

ST. THOMAS, USVI – Behind a career high 23 points from senior forward Mindaugas Kacinas, the South Carolina men’s basketball team (3-0) posted a 76-61 victory over DePaul (1-2) in the opening round of the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam in St. Thomas on Friday night. Kacinas posted his first-career 20-point outing, behind a 10-of-15 effort from the free throw line and a 6-of-13 mark from the floor. The Gamecocks played solid defensively against the Blue Demons, holding DePaul to 36.5 percent from the floor, including 21.4 percent from 3-point range.

South Carolina jumped out to a 9-3 lead on a lay-in from junior guard Sindarius Thornwell and pushed the advantage to 16-9 on a two-handed dunk from classmate Duane Notice. Both teams struggled from the free throw line early, but DePaul clawed back and tied the contest at 16 on a made 3-point bucket and a pair of jumpers in the lane from Rashaun Stimmage.

Kacinas carried the Gamecocks to halftime, scoring seven of the final 17 points, including five from the free throw line. Thornwell added four points during the final stretch and Notice beat the buzzer with a 3 from the corner to give Carolina a nine-point lead at the break, 37-28.

An off-balance tip-in and make from the foul line for Kacinas with 14:32 remaining in the contest saw the Gamecock lead grow to 15 at 49-37. The Blue Demons continued to chip away at the Carolina advantage, however, and pulled to within five on a pair of free throws from Myke Henry at the eight-minute mark.

Thornwell connected on a pair of makes from the line and senior forward Laimonas Chatkevicius and freshman guard PJ Dozier connected on consecutive lay-ups to push the Gamecock lead back to 14 with 6:22 remaining. The Blue Demons would not get closer than 13 the rest of the way, and the Gamecocks secured the 76-61 win.

GAMECHANGER

Senior forward Mindaugas Kacinas posted a career high 23 points, including 14 in the first half alone. He hit career marks from the free throw line as well with 10 makes on 15 attempts.

KEY STAT

South Carolina once again won the battle of the boards, out-rebounding the Blue Demons 43-33, including 16 offensive boards, which resulted in 19 second-chance points.

UP NEXT

South Carolina will face Hofstra on Sunday in the second round of the Paradise Jam at the UVI Sports and Fitness Center. Carolina owns an all time 5-0 record vs. Hofstra. Game time for the matchup is 9 p.m. ET, and the game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.

NOTABLE

• Senior forward Michael Carrera led the Gamecocks with four assists on the night, against just one turnover.
• Junior guard Sindarius Thornwell posted his fourth-career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in the win. He also collected two steals.
• Freshman guard PJ Dozier collected two steals vs. the Blue Demons for his team leading sixth steal of the campaign.
• South Carolina held DePaul to just 36.5 percent from the field. It marked the second time this season the Gamecocks have held their opponent under 40 percent from the floor.

QUOTABLE: HEAD COACH Frank Martin

On his team…
“They have been great. They come in every day, they work and they are trying to get better. Our freshmen didn’t help us tonight, other than PJ [Dozier] getting a couple steals and lay-ups, our freshmen didn’t help us today. They have to help us. That’s something that we talk about. They are young and they come in every day. Our leadership has been phenomenal — Sindarius [Thornwell], Mike [Carrera], Duane [Notice] — all those guys have been unbelievable in helping the freshmen.”

TWEET OF THE GAME