ALABAMA 90, NO. 19 SOUTH CAROLINA 86, 4 OT
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Riley Norris scored six of his 11 points in the fourth and final overtime, including the go-ahead free throws with 56 seconds left, and Alabama finally put away No. 19 South Carolina 90-86 on Tuesday night, overcoming a career night by Gamecocks star Sindarius Thornwell.
Thornwell finished with career highs of 44 points and 21 rebounds. He made 25 free throws, surpassing LSU great "Pistol" Pete Maravich's mark of 21 in a SEC game. But it was not enough for South Carolina (19-5, 9-2).
Alabama (14-9, 7-4) had a 17-point lead in the first half and a 12-point edge with less than 5 minutes to go, watching the Gamecocks rally back to force the extra periods.
Avery Johnson Jr. and Ar'Mond Davis had career highs of 23 points and 19 points for Alabama, which beat a ranked SEC opponent on the road for the first time since winning at No. 4 Mississippi State, 77-73, on Feb. 21, 2004.
Both teams had several chances to win.
Johnson's long three-pointer with 3 seconds left in regulation bounded away and time ran out during the scramble. South Carolina had its chance to move in front moments earlier, but Thornwell could not finish a three-point play, missing the free throw after his tying basket.
Davis' jumper from the left side at the end of the first overtime hit the rim and bounded away to bring another extra period.
After Johnson's three-pointer put Alabama ahead 74-72, Thornwell tied it up once more to force a third overtime. Johnson tried to drive to the basket in the final seconds, but had the ball knocked away.
Alabama got another chance to win at the end of third overtime. This time, Corban Collins' three-point attempt from just right of the key wouldn't go.
The Gamecocks finished with the fewest first-half points this year -- 16 -- not reaching their previous low of 21 in a home victory over Florida last month. South Carolina missed its last 17 shots of the half and did not have a basket for the final 10:23 of the opening half.
The Crimson Tide celebrated like they had won a championship when the final buzzer sounded. Alabama put themselves in the mix for one of the league's top seeds come SEC Tournament time.
In other games involving SEC men’s teams Tuesday, Wenyen Gabriel scored a career-high 23 points, Malik Monk also had 23 and No. 15 Kentucky withstood a late LSU rally for a 92-85 victory. The Wildcats (19-5, 9-2 SEC) won for just the second time in five games and had to withstand the Tigers’ late rally that got them within 91-85 with 14 seconds remaining. Monk’s free throw with 8 seconds left sealed the victory. Antonio Blakeney had a season-high 31 points and Brandon Sampson added 17 for the Tigers (9-14, 1-10), who have lost 10 consecutive for the first time since 2011. ... Chris Chiozza scored 15 points and No. 17 Florida recovered after blowing a 16-point lead to beat Georgia 72-60. Kasey Hill had 12 points for Florida (19-5, 9-2 SEC), which has won five in a row. Yante Maten led Georgia (13-11, 4-7) with 19 points. The Bulldogs suffered their third consecutive loss, each to a ranked opponent. The Gators’ winning streak includes Saturday’s impressive 88-66 victory over No. 8 Kentucky. Florida has made runaway victories look routine in their winning streak, and they appeared ready to pull away from the Bulldogs early. After Georgia led 5-0, Florida took the lead with a 13-2 run. Consecutive three-pointers by Devin Robinson and Justin Leon helped Florida stretch the advantage to 30-14. ... Bryce Brown scored 18 points and Mustapha Heron added 17 to help Auburn hold off a Mississippi State comeback attempt and win 98-92. The Tigers (16-8, 5-6 SEC) raced to a 20-point halftime lead behind a barrage of eight threes, then held on for dear life when those outside shots quit falling. Mississippi State (14-9, 5-6) trailed 48-28 at halftime. The Bulldogs trimmed a 21-point deficit down to 91-86 with 51 seconds left to put a scare into Auburn. Quinndary Weatherspoon led the Bulldogs with 25 points and nine rebounds.
In other games involving top 25 men’s teams Tuesday, Josh Hart scored 25 points and No. 2 Villanova held off a late Georgetown run in a 75-64 victory. With Hart on a second-half scoreless skid, the Hoyas (13-12, 4-8 Big East) sliced a 17-point deficit to two and had the Wildcats reeling. L.J. Peak buried a 3 and Rodney Pryor hit a jumper to key a 17-4 run that pulled the Hoyas to 60-58 with 3:49 left. The Hoyas just couldn’t stop Hart in the clutch. The Wildcats (23-2, 10-2) held on and won the 79th game in the series between the rivals. ... Lamar Stevens scored 16 of his 25 points in the second half and Penn State beat No. 21 Maryland 70-64. Tony Carr added 14 points and Mike Watkins had 10 for the Nittany Lions (13-12, 5-7 Big Ten) who snapped a two-game skid and beat their fourth top 25 opponent since last February. Justin Jackson and Kevin Huerter scored 12 points each and Melo Trimble added 11 for the Terrapins (20-4, 8-3) who lost their second in a row. The Nittany Lions played stingy defense early and led for all but 1:48 and by 14 points with 9:59 remaining. … Andrew Chrabascz scored 13 of his 21 points in the second half, Avery Woodson scored 17 points in his first start in more than three weeks and No. 22 Butler held off Marquette for a 68-65 victory. The Bulldogs (19-5, 8-4 Big East) snapped a two-game losing streak after tweaking their starting lineup, with regulars Tyler Lewis and Kelan Martin coming off the bench. Markus Howard had 19 points for Marquette (15-9, 6-6).
Sports on 02/08/2017