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Sindarius Thornwell had the best scoring night of his career at South Carolina, but it was not enough to get the No. 24 Gamecocks (15-4, 5-1) out of Rupp Arena with a win. No. 5 Kentucky defeated USC 85-69 and now has sole possession of first place in the SEC.
The Wildcats (17-2, 7-0) had the No. 2 scoring offense in the country, averaging 93.3 points per game. They got out to a quick start and through eight minutes of play had a 23-6 lead. Offensive fouls and turnovers pushed the Gamecocks down in the first 10 minutes of the game. Despite them being able to get back up and close the first half deficit to three points, UK’s offense took over again and did so in spurts in the second half to ultimately pull away against a USC offense Thornwell had no help from.
Sindarius Thornwell (Photo: USA TODAY Sports)
Two MVPs
SINDARIUS THORNWELL – With PJ Dozier unable to assist in scoring, the senior put the team on his back midway through the first half and was a major influence in helping the Gamecocks come back from the 23-6 deficit. He had 20 points at halftime, and finished with a career-high 34 points. He was 14-of-15 from the free throw line, and hit 9-of-23 shots from the field. He added six rebounds and played 37 minutes. Thornwell entered the game 10th on the all-time scoring list and rose two spots to No. 8.
TEMARCUS BLANTON – With the Gamecocks battling foul trouble, Blanton was called on in the second half to play defense and knock down some outside shots. He hit two three-pointers in one of USC’s main second half runs. He finished with 12 points (5-of-6) in nine minutes played.
Four Quotes
“Early in the game we were just on our heels. The first eight minutes of the game, they are too good offensively to come back so far from behind because eventually they are going to make another run.” – USC head coach Frank Martin
“He’s our guy. When we lost those three games without him, he’s our guy. He is the guy on our basketball team. He’s the guy that can post, he’s the guy that can shoot, we play him at the one, two, three and the four. He’s the guy that brings the toughness, the demeanor, he’s the personality of our team. I'm real proud of him. He’s having a heck of a senior year.” – Martin on Sindarius Thornwell
“It don’t mean anything with a loss. My job is to keep my team fighting as much as we can and do as much as I can to make sure the guys still believe we have a chance in any game, any situation.” – Thornwell on career night
“That killed us, especially playing against one of the best teams in the country. When you put yourself in that big of a whole and your fighting back, I think seven was the closest and you gave it your all and you got seven more points to fight for and they’re not going to give it to you easy. We wasted all of that energy fighting back. We can’t put ourselves in that situation.” – Thornwell on slow start
Seven Buzzer-Beaters
-- The second-leading scorer for each team was not a major factor in the game. Gamecocks sophomore PJ Dozier did not play due to back spasms. Wildcats freshman De'Aaron Fox scored six points in eight minutes played before rolling his ankle. He never re-entered the game in the first half and was in street clothes and on crutches in the second half.
-- The Gamecocks already needed a bump in offensive production from seniors Duane Notice and Justin McKie against a Top Five team. The Dozier abscense increased that need for scoring, but the two could not muster up much offense. They had a combined six points on 3-of-14 shooting and did not make a three-pointer (combined 0-for-8).
-- Foul trouble already started mounting 10 seconds into the ball game. Chris Silva was called for a foul on a rotation he was late to. He played just five minutes of the first half after picking up his second personal. Rakym Felder got the start for Dozier had sat for 15 minutes as well with two fouls. Hassani Gravett hit some shots that made it seem like he would be Thornwell’s wing, but he had three fouls at half. No Gamecocks fouled out, but four finished with four fouls.
-- Martin was critical of his starting frontcourt after the game, calling their performances “feast or famine.” Maik Kotsar and Silva combined for seven points, five rebounds and eight personal fouls in 25 minutes played.
“We should be used to him and Maik being in foul trouble. It’s all they do. It’s no in between with those guys," Martin said.
-- Kentucky hit 58 percent of its shots, now the seventh straight game in which the team has shot 50 percent or better. South Carolina shot 41 percent from the field and 14 of the team’s 24 made field goals were from Thornwell and Blanton. The Wildcats made 40 percent of their three-point shots, not something South Carolina is used to. The Gamecocks ranked No. 1 in the nation in opponent three-point field goal percentage (26 percent).
-- The league’s leading scorer, UK freshman guard Malik Monk, hit four of UK’s eight three-pointers and finished with 27 points. He was the Wildcats’ main backcourt threat Fox had six points and the other starting guard, Isaiah Briscoe was held scoreless in 29 minutes played.
-- South Carolina will next play on Tuesday, Jan. 24 at home against Auburn. The tip is at 6:30 p.m. on the SEC Network.
The Wildcats (17-2, 7-0) had the No. 2 scoring offense in the country, averaging 93.3 points per game. They got out to a quick start and through eight minutes of play had a 23-6 lead. Offensive fouls and turnovers pushed the Gamecocks down in the first 10 minutes of the game. Despite them being able to get back up and close the first half deficit to three points, UK’s offense took over again and did so in spurts in the second half to ultimately pull away against a USC offense Thornwell had no help from.
Sindarius Thornwell (Photo: USA TODAY Sports)
Two MVPs
SINDARIUS THORNWELL – With PJ Dozier unable to assist in scoring, the senior put the team on his back midway through the first half and was a major influence in helping the Gamecocks come back from the 23-6 deficit. He had 20 points at halftime, and finished with a career-high 34 points. He was 14-of-15 from the free throw line, and hit 9-of-23 shots from the field. He added six rebounds and played 37 minutes. Thornwell entered the game 10th on the all-time scoring list and rose two spots to No. 8.
TEMARCUS BLANTON – With the Gamecocks battling foul trouble, Blanton was called on in the second half to play defense and knock down some outside shots. He hit two three-pointers in one of USC’s main second half runs. He finished with 12 points (5-of-6) in nine minutes played.
Four Quotes
“Early in the game we were just on our heels. The first eight minutes of the game, they are too good offensively to come back so far from behind because eventually they are going to make another run.” – USC head coach Frank Martin
“He’s our guy. When we lost those three games without him, he’s our guy. He is the guy on our basketball team. He’s the guy that can post, he’s the guy that can shoot, we play him at the one, two, three and the four. He’s the guy that brings the toughness, the demeanor, he’s the personality of our team. I'm real proud of him. He’s having a heck of a senior year.” – Martin on Sindarius Thornwell
“It don’t mean anything with a loss. My job is to keep my team fighting as much as we can and do as much as I can to make sure the guys still believe we have a chance in any game, any situation.” – Thornwell on career night
“That killed us, especially playing against one of the best teams in the country. When you put yourself in that big of a whole and your fighting back, I think seven was the closest and you gave it your all and you got seven more points to fight for and they’re not going to give it to you easy. We wasted all of that energy fighting back. We can’t put ourselves in that situation.” – Thornwell on slow start
Seven Buzzer-Beaters
-- The second-leading scorer for each team was not a major factor in the game. Gamecocks sophomore PJ Dozier did not play due to back spasms. Wildcats freshman De'Aaron Fox scored six points in eight minutes played before rolling his ankle. He never re-entered the game in the first half and was in street clothes and on crutches in the second half.
-- The Gamecocks already needed a bump in offensive production from seniors Duane Notice and Justin McKie against a Top Five team. The Dozier abscense increased that need for scoring, but the two could not muster up much offense. They had a combined six points on 3-of-14 shooting and did not make a three-pointer (combined 0-for-8).
-- Foul trouble already started mounting 10 seconds into the ball game. Chris Silva was called for a foul on a rotation he was late to. He played just five minutes of the first half after picking up his second personal. Rakym Felder got the start for Dozier had sat for 15 minutes as well with two fouls. Hassani Gravett hit some shots that made it seem like he would be Thornwell’s wing, but he had three fouls at half. No Gamecocks fouled out, but four finished with four fouls.
-- Martin was critical of his starting frontcourt after the game, calling their performances “feast or famine.” Maik Kotsar and Silva combined for seven points, five rebounds and eight personal fouls in 25 minutes played.
“We should be used to him and Maik being in foul trouble. It’s all they do. It’s no in between with those guys," Martin said.
-- Kentucky hit 58 percent of its shots, now the seventh straight game in which the team has shot 50 percent or better. South Carolina shot 41 percent from the field and 14 of the team’s 24 made field goals were from Thornwell and Blanton. The Wildcats made 40 percent of their three-point shots, not something South Carolina is used to. The Gamecocks ranked No. 1 in the nation in opponent three-point field goal percentage (26 percent).
-- The league’s leading scorer, UK freshman guard Malik Monk, hit four of UK’s eight three-pointers and finished with 27 points. He was the Wildcats’ main backcourt threat Fox had six points and the other starting guard, Isaiah Briscoe was held scoreless in 29 minutes played.
-- South Carolina will next play on Tuesday, Jan. 24 at home against Auburn. The tip is at 6:30 p.m. on the SEC Network.
