South Carolina basketball, led by Jermaine Couisnard, edges LSU

Behind a career game from Jermaine Couisnard, South Carolina overcame an 11-point deficit to beat LSU 77-75.

Tari Eason, who led LSU with 21 points, scored on a putback with 1:51 left to give LSU its last lead. Devin Carter sank a pair of free throws to put South Carolina back on top, and then Erik Stevenson, who scored 15 points, forced a turnover that came back to him for a dunk.

After an empty Gamecock possession, Eric Gaines was fouled on the rebound and made both free throws. South Carolina could have iced the game from the foul line, but Carter missed a pair. LSU called a timeout with 15.2 seconds left, and James Reese told Frank Martin he wanted to guard the ball.

“It came down to one stop defensively, and we take a lot of pride in our defense,” Martin said. “Give James credit. He didn’t reach, he didn’t gamble.”

Reese shut off Xavier Pinson’s drive and forced him into a rushed pass to Darius Days in the corner. Days’ three was off, and Keyshawn Bryant grabbed the rebound. He was fouled and made a free throw with 1.5 seconds left. Couisnard intercepted the inbounds pass to end the game.

LSU led by as much as 14 in the first half and had trailed for all of 12 seconds when the Tigers took a 58-47 lead with 13 minutes left in the game. Couisnard had almost single-handedly kept South Carolina in the game up to that point, having scored 23 of South Carolina’s 47 points. 

Reese hit a three from the corner, his only three of the game, and then Devin Carter made a tough three-point play. Then Erik Stevenson was fouled in transition and made both free throws. Tari Eason, who led LSU with 21 points, scored the next four, and then Couisnard hit back-to-back threes to cut the deficit to one. Brandon Murray made a pair of free throws and then Devin Carter hit a straightaway three to tie the game. 

South Carolina finally took the lead on, of all things, an errant pass from Keyshawn Bryant to Stevenson that ended up in Ta’Quan Woodley’s hands for a breakaway dunk. The teams traded the lead before the final two minutes.

“This team has incredible resolve, incredible fight,” Martin said. “They’re fun to be around. So what if I’ve aged 27 years in the last six days.”

Couisnard finished with 33 points on 12-18 shooting, a career-high. He was playing in front of his sister and mother, which gave him some extra motivation. 

“It was amazing,” he said. “I didn’t know my mom was coming until this morning. It was amazing to be able to put on a show for her.”

“That was a hell of a game,” said Stevenson. “That was a hell of a performance.”

Despite the late free throw woes, South Carolina hit 17-22 from the line, while LSU was just 13-22. LSU was able to play the game at its pace, which led to 20 Gamecock turnovers and 28 points off. LSU also was plus-seven rebounding, and had a 14-3 advantage in second-chance points. But South Carolina and LSU were even at nine turnovers in the second half, and when South Carolina could get off shots, it hit 51.0% and 6-15 from three in the second half. LSU was just 44.4% shooting and 6-20 from three.

South Carolina basketball notes:

The 1971 ACC Championship and 1997 SEC Championship teams were honored at halftime. Former Gamecocks who passed away in the last year were also recognized. … Chris Silva and PJ Dozier from the 2017 Final Four team were recognized during a timeout. Martin wore his Final Four pullover “to remind everybody that we’ve been pretty good.” … Josh Gray, who has been sidelined with a fractured left wrist, played all of 1.5 seconds. He defended the inbounds pass on LSU’s final possession. … Bryant only had three points, but he had a team-high eight rebounds. … Announced attendance was 11,292. … South Carolina’s next game is Wednesday against Mississippi State.

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