Meechie Johnson leaves game vs. LSU late with injury

South Carolina guard Meechie Johnson was taken to the locker room after suffering an injury late in Saturday’s game against LSU. Johnson appeared to get elbowed in the head while running into a screen on defense and went down to the floor for several moments.

The Gamecocks guard was able to walk off under his own power but immediately headed to the locker room rather than the bench. There were around four minutes remaining in the contest at the time of his exit, so it seemed unlikely that he would return.

Johnson had yet to score a point but had four assists when he left the game. South Carolina would go on to lose 64-63 as LSU nailed a pair of late free throws and Jacobi Wright‘s 3-pointer at the buzzer fell short.

South Carolina will hope the injury to Meechie Johnson isn’t too serious as he has started all 25 of his appearances so far this season. Johnson leads the Gamecocks with 14.4 points per game along with 4.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. Saturday’s game marked just the second time this year that Johnson was held scoreless.

Gamecocks coach Lamont Paris provided an update on the guard postgame, saying that he doesn’t have much information at the time. Paris added that Johnson will be evaluated to see if he needs to enter concussion protocol.

Thankfully, South Carolina has a week off until its next matchup against Ole Miss, which should give Johnson plenty of time to recover.

South Carolina falls to LSU as Jordan Wright catches fire late

Jordan Wright caught fire in the final minute Saturday to lead LSU to a 64-63 upset of No. 11 South Carolina. The Tigers wing scored seven points to close out the game down the stretch, including hitting the game-winning free throws with five seconds remaining.

Wright finished the contest with 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals. Tyrell Ward led the team with 16 points, while Trae Hannibal was a force on the glass with 12 rebounds.

Speaking postgame on the SEC Network, Wright addressed his hot stretch to secure the win.

“That’s what I was called in here to do,” he said. “Coach (Matt McMahon) brought me in to make those type of plays. Just be that guy for us as a veteran guy. As a guy who’s been in this league for five years, it’s time I need to step up.

“Credit to the team, Tyrell really made some big shots. J-Reed carried us there and made some big shots to get some momentum going with his post play and the way he attacked the glass. Credit to Trae Hannibal. I think he had 14 or 15 rebounds. So everybody played their part and I was called in for my time to finish the game for us today.”