Without leading scorer and rebounder Michael Carrera, the South Carolina men’s basketball team expected a dogfight in Friday’s quarterfinal matchup with Georgia, who had beaten the Gamecocks twice in the regular season. Despite leading by as much as 11 and holding an advantage for over 35 minutes of game time, Carrera’s absence would prove to be too much to bear, as the Gamecocks fell 65-64 to abruptly end their stay in the SEC Tournament in Nashville.
Junior guard Sindarius Thornwell was exceptional for the majority of the game, coming up with 23 points on 9-17 shooting while adding five rebounds. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, Thornwell would commit the mental mistake that gave Georgia its decisive lead in the game’s waning seconds.
After J.J. Frazier tied the game with a floater with 26 seconds to play in the game, it appeared South Carolina would have the final shot, with the apparent worst outcome for the Gamecocks being overtime. However, Thornwell lost the ball while attempting to get free for a potential game-winning shot, and he was tangled up with Frazier. Thornwell was then called for a foul with 2.1 seconds left, and because Georgia was in the double bonus, Frazier was granted two free throws, despite the foul being called 60 feet from the basket.
“I didn’t know the situation,” Thornwell said. “I thought we were down when I turned the ball over, so it was like a reaction to go for the ball."
Frazier would go on to make the first free throw, before missing the second, as he was told to do by coach Mark Fox. Senior forward Mindaugas Kacinas pulled down the rebound for the Gamecocks, but his long pass was intercepted, though South Carolina likely wouldn’t have been able to get a shot off.
Freshman guard PJ Dozier had a tough night, playing just seven minutes due to foul trouble. After picking up two fouls in the first two minutes, Dozier sat out for the remainder of the first half. He was then whistled for a foul four seconds into the second half, prompting head coach Frank Martin to pull his five-star recruit for another long stretch.
“Fouling has been his problem all year,” Martin said. “It’s frustrating because by the end of the year, you’d like for him to be in a better place from that standpoint.”
Dozier’s struggles forced sophomore guard Marcus Stroman into action, and the backup did a solid job, facilitating the offense for 26 minutes to the tune of seven points, five rebounds and three assists.
Senior forward Laimonas Chatkevicius had a strong day in the paint, particularly in the second half, finishing the game with 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds. His performance made up for a lackluster game from junior guard Duane Notice, who made just two of his 13 shots, shooting 1-7 from beyond the arc. Despite playing 38 minutes, the SEC Sixth Man of the Year finished with just seven points, which wasn’t enough to fill the void left by Carrera’s absence.
The Gamecocks are now forced to sit and wait for the selection committee to set the bracket for the NCAA Tournament, as their postseason fate will be determined on Sunday. With a 24-8 record, most experts expect the team to be in the field with an at-large bid, but due to a weak non-conference schedule, South Carolina fans have reason to be a bit on edge as they await the unveiling of the bracket.