UNC Asheville stuns Gamecocks

UNC Asheville 61, South Carolina 58

COLUMBIA — South Carolina forward Dominique Archie said Friday that it was too near to the conference season for the Gamecocks to have a tune-up.

But it wasn't too late for USC to have a flop.

After flirting with non-conference doom in recent weeks, South Carolina went headlong into disaster Saturday evening by blowing a seven-point lead in the final minutes against UNC Asheville inside the Colonial Center.

USC's Devan Downey launched a long 3-pointer at the buzzer that could have tied the game, but it came up short and so did the stunned Gamecocks in a 61-58 loss to the senior-laden, gritty group of Bulldogs.

"That's one that we let get away," South Carolina coach Dave Odom said. "It's mind-boggling. That game should have been in the bank."

Odom also said the final four minutes were "something out of a horror movie."

USC freshman post Mike Holmes' athletic tip-in put the Gamecocks (8-6) up 58-51 with 3:56 to play.

South Carolina didn't score again.

The Bulldogs (11-3) scored the game's final 10 points in the last 2:58, with 7-7 giant Kenny George's easy dunk with 26.8 seconds to go serving as the game-winning bucket.

After going up seven, USC appeared to relax and wait for its lead to carry the team to the finish. Meanwhile, Asheville continued to play at a quick and energetic pace.

"I don't know what to say," said Downey, who paced USC with 18 points and six assists. "We didn't make the plays down the stretch and they wanted it more than we did."

Added Odom: "They did their jobs. We didn't do ours, me included. It's a hugely disappointing game."

A K.J. Garland transition lay-in and another easy basket by George, who had a team-high 16 points, cut the Gamecocks' lead to three.

After a failed USC possession, Bulldogs guard Bryan Smithson scored to slice the USC lead to 58-57.

The Gamecocks set up their half-court offense but Holmes couldn't handle a pass from Archie and the ball skittered out of bounds. The turnover gave the ball to the Bulldogs with 61 seconds to play.

They eventually worked the ball in to George, who used his height advantage to easily flush the ball home.

George proved to be more than a size anomaly, one that drew laughter from fans when he first entered the game and awe by evening's end.

"When Kenny George is on defense, we're a defensive team," Bulldogs coach Eddie Biedenbach said. "When Kenny George was on offense, we're an offensive team."

Saturday was the lowlight of what was a widely sputtering five-game, 3-2 homestand for USC.

The Gamecocks, who start SEC play Wednesday at undefeated and 15th-ranked Vanderbilt, opened it by blowing a 20-point lead against Baylor, needed substantial come-from-behind efforts against Charleston and UC-Irvine and then looked pitiful in a victory against Radford.

Odom was irate after the 27-point win against the Highlanders, disgusted with the play of the team's big men.

Odom preached the need for better defense, especially near the basket, but it was the Gamecocks' offense that betrayed the team much of the night Saturday.

South Carolina shot just 38.7 percent (24-for-62) in the game and 28.6 percent (6-for-21) from beyond the 3-point arc.

Odom was so exasperated in the first half that he went with seldom-used guard Branden Conrad, a walk-on, for the final nine minutes until the half.

South Carolina was clearly affected by UNC Asheville's use of George in the paint. He altered how the Gamecocks ran their offense and made shots more difficult by extending his hand skyward, higher than the rims.

George, who had 13 rebounds, scored with much ease on dunks over Gamecocks posts — one as tall as 6-9 — that he made look dwarfish.

"They've learned to play around him," Odom said. "He's never a negative. He's always a positive."

USC held the Bulldogs below their season average of 80.7 points a game, which ranked 32nd in the country coming in. They'd previously played tough with both Virginia Tech and Tennessee on the road before striking through with the victory at USC.

Reach Travis Haney at thaney@postandcourier.com.