After consecutive losses that went down to the final minute, the men’s basketball team spared everyone the drama Saturday afternoon in Norman, OK, falling behind by as many as 21 points in an 82-62 defeat. USC was again hampered by its inability to hold onto the ball, committing 12 turnovers in the first half and 16 for the game.
The Sooners turned those 16 turnovers into 19 points. When the Gamecocks did keep possession, they didn’t shoot it particularly well, making 41% from the field and an abysmal 52% at the foul line. USC stayed within striking distance for much of the game and actually held a four-point lead with 16 minutes to play. But OU turned what was a tight game into a runaway with a 15-0 run over a crucial four-minute span. Morris Ugusuk (15 points) led the Gamecocks in scoring for the second straight game while Collin Murray-Boyles scored 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds before fouling out. South Carolina (10-8, 0-5) will again try for its first league victory when Florida pays a visit to Colonial Life Arena at 7 p.m., Wednesday.
Earlier in the week, the Gamecocks committed 25 turnovers in a 66-63 loss at Vanderbilt. All five Gamecocks starters committed at least three turnovers. Jacobi Wright, Zachary Davis and Nick Pringle each registered more turnovers than field goals.
Despite the comedy of errors, the Gamecocks had their chances down the stretch, and the game was tied in the final seconds. Taking possession with less than ten seconds on the clock, the Commodores twisted the knife, scoring on a putback from Devin McGlockton with just 0.6 seconds remaining. McGlockton was fouled on the play, and his free throw provided the final margin.
The women’s team has made a lot of history under Dawn Staley, and Thursday Staley made her own history when she became the highest paid women’s college basketball coach of all time. The USC Board of Trustees extended Staley’s contract through April 15th of 2030, and set her immediate salary at $4 million per season. She also received a $500 thousand signing bonus. Staley’s salary will increase each season topping off at $5.25 million in the final year of the contract. There also is a clause in the contract that will allow her to leave for a WNBA or NBA job without owing the University a cent.
On the court, the Gamecocks continued to win impressively over ranked teams. Thursday night in Tuscaloosa, Joyce Edwards scored 21 points to lead No. 2 South Carolina past No. 19 Alabama 76-58. The Gamecocks extended their SEC winning streak to 52 games including 42 straight on the road. The Gamecocks led by just five with 7:11 to play but outscored the Crimson Tide 18-5 the rest of the way. Alabama made just one of their last ten shots. Chloe Kitts had 10 points and 13 rebounds, Milay Fulwiley scored 16 points and Te-Hina Paopao added 11 for the Gamecocks who are 17-1 overall and 5-0 in the SEC.
Last Sunday in Columbia, 5th ranked Texas wanted to use its size to beat USC inside. All the Longhorns did was repeatedly beat themselves with missed layups (24 by an unofficial count from the shot chart). The Gamecocks had a more balanced outside-inside attack and ran away to a 67-50 win in front of a sold-out crowd. Early on you could tell the Longhorns were brick masons in the paint. They were 4-26 from the floor in the first quarter as the Gamecocks, who only had eight field goal attempts, led 18-9. USC won the second quarter 21-13 as they made 10-13 shots from the floor to build a comfortable 39-22 lead. Texas never got closer than 13 points in the second half. Paopao and Kitts had 11 points each to lead the scoring. The Gamecocks increased their home winning streak to 67 games with their 41st straight SEC home victory. And it was their 14th straight win at home over a ranked team.
The Gamecocks will attempt to extend all of those home and SEC winning streaks Sunday afternoon against 13th ranked Oklahoma.
Thursday night in Columbia, the 15th ranked men’s tennis team fell to 5th ranked Virginia 5-2. The Gamecocks dropped the doubles point while collecting two singles wins from Connor Thomson and Lucas da Silva. The Gamecocks are 2-1 and will play Tuesday at North Florida.
-On Wednesday, the Football Writers Association of America announced that USC quarterback LaNorris Sellers was selected as the National Freshman Offensive Player of the Year. Sellers was named to the third-team All-SEC squad and was recognized as the SEC Freshman of the Year by the league’s coaches. He completed 64.9 percent of his passes (172-for-265) for 2,274 yards and 17 touchdowns. His 655 yards rushing on 155 carries (a 4.2 average) was the third-best total among SEC quarterbacks, and his seven rushing touchdowns tied for second among that group. Sellers was a two-time winner of the SEC Offensive Player of the Week award and a two-time recipient of the league’s Freshman of the Week honors.
Sellers joined teammates DE Dylan Stewart and OT Josiah Thompson on the FWAA Freshman All-America team.
Offensive lineman Vershon Lee will take part in the 10th annual Trillion Tropical Bowl, which will be held on Sunday in Orlando. Lee will suit up for the American team in the Tropical Bowl, led by head coach Todd Littlejohn.
The track and field team concluded the 2025 Corky Classic on Saturday afternoon, competing in a total of eight events on the day. The men’s and women’s 4×400-meter relays shined for South Carolina in the closing day, each running season bests and the fourth best mark in the NCAA this season. The women’s relay of Zaya Akins, Cynteria James, Imani Rivas and JaMeesia Ford took home a runner-up finish with a time of 3:32.29. The men’s relay closed the competition with a fourth-place finish as Josiah Wrice, Devan Crumpton, Anthony Greenhow and Jasauna Dennis crossed the line at 3:07.02.
Ford paced the Gamecocks in the opening day on Friday setting a new world-leading time in the women’s 400-meters at 51.20 to win the event. It’s the second-best time in Gamecock indoor history. In addition, Ford’s time ranks first in the NCAA this season.
Channing Ferguson secured the title in the men’s long jump with an effort of 7.47m (24-6.25) for the win, recording the seventh best jump in program history and ranking 16th in the NCAA.
USC will hold the Ray Tanner Field at Founders Park dedication ceremony on February 15th. The ceremony will take place on the field prior to first pitch of the Gamecocks’ contest against Sacred Heart, which starts at 2 p.m. The first 2,500 fans in attendance will receive a commemorative Ray Tanner trading card.
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