After suffering a humbling defeat to the top-ranked Tennessee Volunteers, the South Carolina Gamecocks got just the bounceback win they needed with an 86-80 victory over rival Georgia on Saturday afternoon.
South Carolina never trailed in the road win, leading wire-to-wire behind strong performances from veteran Chris Silva and freshman A.J. Lawson, who both scored 19 points. The Gamecocks enjoyed a robust offensive showing with 57 percent shooting from the field, at one point leading 22-8 in the first half as their defense stifled the Bulldogs. While South Carolina took just a 45-40 lead into the locker room at halftime, it had led by as many as 15 points and looked to be almost in cruise control.