For the second game in a row, the South Carolina Gamecocks again failed to climb out of a hole, this time unable to complete their comeback bid against Alabama in a disappointing 68-62 loss on Tuesday in Columbia.
USC, which has made a habit of getting off to a rough start and then turning it around just in the nick of time, followed its usual pattern in the first half. The Gamecocks missed 14 straight field goals during one particularly brutal stretch, and it was only Alabama’s similar scoring difficulties that kept the game within reach at a manageable 31-25 halftime deficit.