Jackson II Powers Gamecocks Over Upstate

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – Freshman Gregory “GG” Jackson II scored 22 points, Hayden Brown added 15 points, and South Carolina snapped a three-game losing streak with a 68-53 victory over USC Upstate on Friday.

Jackson, averaging 16.5 ppg coming in, bettered his previous high of 20 set in a 32-point loss to Colorado State last week.

Jacobi Wright scored 10 points for South Carolina (3-3) and Brown had a team-high nine rebounds.

There were 11 lead changes in the first half and Upstate led 31-28 at the break. The Gamecocks took the lead for good with a 10-2 run to open the second half. The Spartans were unable to string together consecutive baskets at any point in the second half while the Gamecocks gradually increased their lead. The largest margin was 17 points with about 1 1/2 minutes to go.

Ahmir Langlais had 14 points and seven rebounds off the bench for the Spartans (2-4) and Jordan Gainey added 13 points.

South Carolina committed only eight turnovers.

South Carolina was coming off consecutive losses to Colorado State, Davidson and Furman at the Charleston Classic.

South Carolina will play out of state for the first time this season when the Gamecocks travel to Washington, D.C., to play George Washington on Wednesday.

KEY STAT

• The Gamecocks shot a sizzling 58.1 percent (18-for-31) in the second half.

NOTABLES

• Freshman guard Zachary Davis made his first career start in Garnet & Black scoring seven points and grabbing four rebounds.
• Gregory “GG” Jackson II led all scorers with a career-high 22 points on (8-for-14) shooting. He’s scored in double figures in every game as a Gamecock.
• Grad transfer Hayden Brown led the team with nine rebounds. He also had 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting.
• Seven players scored for Carolina including three in double figures: Jackson II (22), Brown (15), and Wright (10).
• Junior transfer Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk led the team with four assists.
• The Gamecock defense allowed just 17 percent shooting (2-for-12) from 3-point territory against the Spartans.
• Carolina was shorthanded with no Chico Carter Jr. and Meechie Johnson. Both players are day-to-day with ankle injuries.

UP NEXT

• The Gamecocks (3-3) head to the Nation’s capital, Washington D.C., for a pair of games at George Washington (3-2) on Nov. 30 and at Georgetown (3-3) on Dec. 3. The team will stay in D.C. from Tuesday to Saturday. The Gamecocks’ first game against the Colonials tips off at 9 p.m. (ET) on CBS Sports Network. Carolina will conclude its road trip with a noon matchup against the Hoyas on FS1 Saturday.

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