Wyoming comes back in second half to beat South Carolina

LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) — Justin James scored 20 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and dished out five assists as Wyoming came back in the second half to beat South Carolina 73-64 Wednesday night.

James scored 15 of his points in the second half to help Wyoming (3-6) overcome a 37-33 halftime deficit. The Cowboys opened the second half with a 17-4 run and extended their lead to as many as 12 points. The Gamecocks could get no closer than two possessions the rest of the game.

Jake Hendricks contributed 16 points, and TJ Taylor 11 for Wyoming, which made 10 of 20 3-pointers on the night.

South Carolina (4-4) was led by A.J. Lawson’s 15 points and nine rebounds. Chris Silva had 11 points and eight rebounds. The Gamecocks converted just 3 of 20 of their 3-point attempts.

KEY STATS
> South Carolina was just 9-for-31 (29 percent) from the floor in the second half, with 11 of the team’s 16 turnovers coming in the final 20 minutes of the game.  
 
NOTABLES
> Freshman guard A.J. Lawson scored in double figures for the sixth time in the team’s first eight games, leading the Gamecocks with 15 points. He was a rebound shy of his first career double-double.  
> Senior Chris Silva finished with 11 points, eight rebounds, three blocks and three steals – which tied a career high.
> Wyoming shot nearly 50 percent in the second half with five 3s and 13 makes at the foul line.  
> Tonight’s game was Carolina’s first true road contest of the 2018-19 season.

UP NEXT
The Gamecocks now head to Ann Arbor, Mich., on Thursday to prepare for Saturday’s noon matchup at No. 5/5 Michigan. The contest will be broadcast on FS1 with Justin Kutcher (pxp) and Len Elmore (analyst) on the call.