No. 17 South Carolina works overtime to get past Mississippi State

Field Level Media|published: Sun 10th March, 03:34 2024

Mar 9, 2024; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks forward Josh Gray (33) shoots as Mississippi State Bulldogs forward D.J. Jeffries (0) defends during the first half at Humphrey Coliseum. credits: Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports

B.J. Mack scored seven of his 25 points in overtime and No. 17 South Carolina held off Mississippi State 93-89 on Saturday afternoon in Starkville, Miss.

Collin Murray-Boyles scored 19, Meechie Johnson had 16 and Zachary Davis added 13 for the Gamecocks (25-6, 13-5 Southeastern Conference).

Josh Hubbard scored 28, Cameron Matthews had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Dashawn Davis scored 16 and Tolu Smith III added 14 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Bulldogs (19-12, 8-10).

Johnson made a 3-pointer on the first possession of overtime to give the Gamecocks the lead. Mack later made a 3-pointer for an 87-83 lead with 2:19 left.

Smith scored on a putback and made one of two free throws to trim the lead to one point. Mack made a jumper for an 89-86 lead with 31 seconds remaining.

Hubbard was fouled shooting a 3-pointer with 11 seconds left and made the first two free throws but missed the third.

Mack made two free throws for a 91-88 lead and the Gamecocks fouled D.J. Jeffries before he could attempt a 3-pointer. He made one of two free throws before Johnson made two to complete the scoring with 5 seconds left.

Hubbard's 3-pointer started the second-half scoring and gave the Bulldogs their first lead, 40-38.

Johnson scored five points during a 6-0 run that gave the Gamecocks a four-point lead. The lead grew to 52-45 when Johnson made two free throws.

Jeffries' three-point play completed a 7-0 run that pulled MSU even at 52, but South Carolina scored the next five points.

The Bulldogs crept within two points three times before the Gamecocks scored five straight for a 66-59 lead.

Smith scored five straight points, but Murray-Bowles answered with consecutive field goals to increase the lead to 70-64.

Davis and Hubbard made consecutive 3-pointers to produce the first of four ties in the final 3:13, the last of which came when Davis made two free throws with 1.4 seconds left.

The Bulldogs scored the final four points of the first half, leaving South Carolina with a 38-37 halftime lead.

—Field Level Media

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