FAYETTEVILLE — South Carolina became the latest SEC basketball team to snap a multi-year losing streak to Arkansas on Saturday.
The Gamecocks never trailed and won 77-64 at Bud Walton Arena. The Razorbacks lost by double digits for the fourth time since SEC play began Jan. 6, including twice at home.
"We've had two home games where we're not exhibiting the energy that we need to," said Arkansas coach Eric Musselman, whose team lost 83-51 to Auburn two weeks earlier at home.
"We played against a good team that played with more energy and more connectedness and more toughness than we played with."
South Carolina (15-3, 3-2 SEC) defeated Arkansas for the first time since January 2020 and snapped a three-game losing streak in the series.
Arkansas (10-8, 1-4) also lost to Georgia and Florida for the first time since the 2019-20 season during a poor start to SEC play.
The Gamecocks scored the game’s first five points and were never seriously challenged. South Carolina built a 39-27 halftime lead as it shot 12 of 28 from the floor, including 5 of 12 from three-point range, and 10 of 13 at the free-throw line in the first half.
"It was a great team effort by our guys in terms of everybody contributed," South Carolina coach Lamont Paris said. "Guys came in for three or four minutes even and really did some good stuff, had some good energy they brought to the team."
More from WholeHogSports: 'College GameDay' coming to Fayetteville
Arkansas struggled to defend off the dribble, which allowed the Gamecocks several looks at or near the rim. South Carolina forward B.J. Mack had 12 first-half points as part of his game-high 18.
"I've been struggling a little bit in these past couple of games, so it felt good to be able to get out to a fast start," said Mack, who entered the game averaging 13.6 points.
The Razorbacks trailed by as many as 19 points in the second half.
Tramon Mark made back-to-back three-pointers to pull Arkansas within 49-42 with 12:54 to play. South Carolina responded with a 13-1 run that put the game out of reach and sent many of the home fans to the exits.
Ta’Lon Cooper made a pair of three-pointers during the Gamecocks’ game-defining run. His first three came out of a South Carolina timeout to end a 6-0 stretch by Arkansas, and his second three forced the Razorbacks to call timeout with 10:29 remaining, trailing 60-43.
Arkansas did not get closer than 13 points the rest of the way.
Zachary Davis scored 12 points and Cooper and Collin Murray-Boyles added 11 apiece for the Gamecocks.
Mark scored 18 points to lead the Razorbacks after a slow start. He had two points at halftime.
Musselman credited Cooper with holding Mark in check early.
"I thought he probably defended individually as well as anybody that that we've faced," Musselman said.
No other Arkansas player scored in double figures. El Ellis scored 9 points and Davonte Davis and Jeremiah Davenport added 8 points apiece.
The Gamecocks out-rebounded the Razorbacks 39-27, but Arkansas had a 14-5 advantage in second-chance points as both teams recorded 8 offensive boards.
Arkansas shot 23 of 62 and 5 of 18 from three-point range. The Razorbacks were 13 of 16 at the line.
South Carolina finished 28 of 54 overall, 9 of 18 from three-point range and 12 of 17 at the line.
"I thought we did a good job of staying in front of the ball in one-on-one scenarios," Paris said. "I thought we shared the ball incredibly well with 20 assists on 28 made baskets."
Why South Carolina Won
The Gamecocks beat Arkansas off the bounce several times and repeatedly got to the rim for quality looks. South Carolina scored 34 points on layups and dunks, and created multiple more scoring opportunities by drawing fouls near the basket.
Why Arkansas Lost
As has been the case multiple times in SEC play, the Razorbacks mixed poor defensive play with a bad offensive performance.
Under fifth-year coach Eric Musselman, Arkansas has often been able to offset scoring struggles with elite defense, but that hasn’t been the case this year, which has led to some ugly final scores. The Razorbacks’ four SEC losses have been by an average of 19.3 points.
Player of the Game
B.J. Mack, the 6-8 transfer from Wofford, helped South Carolina to a strong start and finished with 18 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists in 24 minutes.
Mack shot 6 of 10 and 3 of 4 from three-point range, and was 3 of 5 at the free-throw line.
Mark Off Before Half
Four days after scoring a career-high 35 points and hitting the game-winning shot with 1.1 seconds remaining in a 78-77 victory over Texas A&M, Arkansas guard Tramon Mark did not start strong.
Mark scored 2 points on 1-of-5 shooting in 15 minutes before halftime. He had back-to-back threes during a stretch in the second half to briefly give the Razorbacks hope.
Mark finished with a team-high 18 points on 6-of-13 shooting. He was 2 of 3 from three-point range and 4 of 4 at the line.
Arkansas was outscored by 11 in his 32 minutes on the floor.
Battle Sighting
Arkansas guard Khalif Battle, a star off the bench early in the season, checked in with 11:37 remaining in the first half.
It was Battle’s first game action since he played two minutes at Florida last Saturday. He did not play during the Razorbacks’ victory over Texas A&M.
Battle hit a three-pointer during his five minutes on the floor. He did not play after halftime.
Arkansas played 12 players before halftime and 13 overall. Coach Eric Musselman indicated earlier in the week he intended to shorten the bench to a rotation of seven or eight players.
Stute Out
South Carolina was missing guard Myles Stute, who injured his left shoulder during a game against Georgia earlier in the week.
Stute, a transfer from Vanderbilt, is averaging 9.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.
It was the second consecutive game Arkansas played a shorthanded opponent. Texas A&M was without senior forward Henry Coleman, who averages 11.9 points and 8 rebounds, on Tuesday.
Up Next
Arkansas is scheduled to play at 22nd-ranked Ole Miss on Wednesday at 8 p.m.
South Carolina is scheduled to host eighth-ranked Kentucky on Tuesday.