COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Frank Booker scored 19 points, and South Carolina built a 26-point lead before holding on to defeat No. 10 Auburn 84-75 on Saturday, ending the Gamecocks' six-game losing streak.
The Tigers (23-4, 11-3 SEC) had won seven of their past eight and were heavy favorites to keep that going at South Carolina (14-13, 5-9). Instead, the Gamecocks used a 21-1 run in the first half on the way to a 37-11 lead.
Auburn played most of the game without starting forward Anfernee McLemore, who dislocated his left ankle in a gruesome-looking injury at the end of the first half. Still, the Tigers rallied to within 64-59 on Bryce Brown's free throws with 6:58 to go.
But South Carolina scored the next seven points to restore the double-digit lead, and Auburn could get no closer than six points the rest of the way.
South Carolina beat a top-10 program for the third consecutive season and defeated its first top-10 team at home since taking out No. 1 Kentucky in January 2010.
Chris Silva had 14 points and 11 rebounds for South Carolina, his sixth double-double of the season.
Mustapha Heron led Auburn with 16 points, just four of those coming in the second half. Brown, the Tigers' leading scorer this season, was held to 10 points (six fewer than his average) on 3-of-16 shooting.
Auburn has been the surprise of the SEC season so far. Things may get harder with McLemore out.
McLemore came down hard late in the first half while on defense. He immediately began shouting and medical personnel quickly surrounded him underneath the basket. Auburn Coach Bruce Pearl and South Carolina Coach Frank Martin came out to check on the 6-foot-7 sophomore, who was diagnosed with a dislocated left ankle and taken off the court on a stretcher before being transported to a hospital for X-rays.
GEORGIA 73,
NO. 18 TENNESSEE 62
ATHENS, Ga. -- Yante Maten scored 19 points and Georgia held off No. 18 Tennessee for a victory that denied the Volunteers an opportunity to pull within a game of the SEC lead.
Derek Ogbeide had 16 points and 11 rebounds and Georgia (15-11, 6-8 SEC) won its second consecutive in a late attempt to return to NCAA Tournament consideration.
Tennessee (19-7, 9-5) remained two games behind No. 10 Auburn, the SEC leader, which lost to South Carolina 84-75. The Vols have lost two of their last three.
VANDERBILT 71, FLORIDA 68
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Jeff Roberson scored 26 points and Riley LaChance added 21 as Vanderbilt rallied to its fifth consecutive home victory with a win over Florida.
LaChance's layup gave Vanderbilt a 69-68 lead with 1:53 left as the Commodores (11-16, 5-9 SEC) rallied from an 11-point second-half deficit.
Joe Toye nailed two foul shots to finish the scoring with 11 seconds remaining. He had 13 points.
Egor Koulechov of Florida (17-10, 8-6) missed a chance to tie the score when his three-point attempt bounced off the rim twice with six seconds left.
KENTUCKY 81, ALABAMA 71
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- PJ Washington scored 16 points, Kevin Knox added 13, and Kentucky beat Alabama.
Quade Green scored 12 points, Jarred Vanderbilt scored a career-high 11 off the bench with nine rebounds, and Nick Richards added 10 points for the Wildcats (18-9, 7-7 SEC).
For Kentucky, which hadn't won since an 83-81 overtime victory over Vanderbilt on Jan. 30, fending off the Crimson Tide (17-10, 8-6) wasn't an easy task. The Wildcats have won six consecutive over Alabama.
LSU 64, MISSOURI 63
BATON ROUGE, La. -- Tremont Waters made a shot in the lane with 19 seconds remaining in the game to give LSU an SEC victory against Missouri.
Waters pulled LSU (15-11, 6-8) within one point on a short jumper with 1:08 left to play. LSU got a stop when Aaron Epps rebounded a missed jumper by Jontay Porter with 40 seconds remaining. Waters then made his game-winning shot.
Missouri (18-9, 8-6) had two opportunities to retake the lead in the final seconds. With five seconds remaining, Daryl Edwards drew a charging foul from Kassius Robertson.
However, LSU's Edwards made a poor inbounds pass and Robertson retrieved the loose ball. Robertson missed a short jumper with one second to play, and a tip by Cullen Vanleer at the buzzer hit the underside of the basket.
Mississippi State 79, Mississippi 62
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Quinndary Weatherspoon had 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead Mississippi State over Mississippi.
Nick Weatherspoon and Tyson Carter added 15 points apiece for the Bulldogs (19-8, 7-7). Xavian Stapleton had 10 points.
Breein Tyree led Ole Miss (11-16, 4-10) with 15 points, while Deandre Burnett had 13 points and Bruce Stevens 11 for the Rebels, who have lost seven consecutive games.
The Bulldogs made their first five three-point attempts en route to building an early 18-8 advantage. Ole Miss cut the lead to 21-15 at the midway point of the first half after back-to-back buckets by Stevens.
Mississippi State responded with a 10-0 run, thanks to two three-pointers by Quinndary Weatherspoon. The Bulldogs maintained a comfortable lead throughout the rest of the half and led Ole Miss 44-23 at halftime.
The Rebels have lost nine of their past 11 games. Ole Miss has been blown out twice since Andy Kennedy announced his resignation, which takes place at the end of the season.
Sports on 02/18/2018