Christmas did not come early for the South Carolina Gamecocks, as their losing streak stretched to four games and they dropped their third straight contest to heated rival Clemson in a 78-68 loss on Saturday in Columbia.
Things actually started out pretty well for the Gamecocks, as they jumped out to an early lead and weathered a Clemson response to keep the game tied at 25. But then the Tigers really heated up, thanks largely to veteran guard Marcquise Reed, who led all scorers with 20 points. Spurred by Reed, the Tigers made a ridiculous 14 of their last 19 field goals to close the first half on a 16-7 run, shooting at a 62 percent clip.