Georgia Men Sweep Gamecocks 73-56

Feb 22, 2014; Columbia, SC, USA; Georgia Bulldogs guard Kenny Gaines (12) makes a three pointer against the South Carolina Gamecocks in the second half at The Colonial Life Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports

The Georgia Mens’ basketball team resumed its drive for a top four finish in the SEC with a 73-56 win over South Carolina on Saturday afternoon at the Colonial Life Arena.

It was a typical Georgia win as the Bulldogs outrebounded South Carolina 40-38 and shot more free throws than South Carolina, going 19 of 29 while South Carolina made 19 of 24. Georgia is now 15-3 when winning the rebounding battle.

The win was the Buldogs 15th of the season and completes a season sweep of the Gamecocks. The Bulldogs will have the opportunity to complete a season sweep over each of its last four opponents.

“We got off to a quick start in the second half,” said head coach Mark Fox “Defense was really the key for us today. At halftime, we talked about getting back to what we’re good at and that’s doing things like digging down in the trenches and grinding it out. South Carolina has been playing well so it took us a great defensive effort to get the win today.

“We have put ourselves in a position to still have some things to play for. Since Thanksgiving, we’ve been pretty solid. We’ve been getting better and better. I we think we can still improve but we have a lot of guys chipping in right now and I’m thankful for that.”

Feb 22, 2014; Columbia, SC, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks guard Sindarius Thornwell (0) is fouled by Georgia Bulldogs guard Juwan Parker (3) in the first half at The Colonial Life Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports

Kenny Gaines led all scorers with a career-high 27 points. Marcus Thornton also picked up his third career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds to go with 3 blocks.

In the first half, South Carolina led by as many as seven points, going on a 10-0 run in the opening minutes to give the Gamecocks a 13-6 lead. The Bulldogs fought back, putting together a 12-2 run to take a 23-19 lead with seven minutes remaining in the half. There were three more lead changes before the teams entered the halftime break tied 34-34. Georgia opened the second half with a 16-1 run to pull away from the Gamecocks. Georgia shot nearly 50% from the field in the second half to South Carolina’s 16%.

Sindarius Thornwell and Brenton Williams paced the Gamecocks with 18 and 16 points, respectively.

The Bulldogs return home to face Missouri (19-7, 7-6) on Tuesday at 9:00 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPNU. For ticket information, go to Georgiadogs.com.