·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – . scored 15 points,  scored all nine of his points in the second half and Georgia beat ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ 74-69 on Tuesday night.

Hill missed a contested layup with 1:03 remaining and it went out of bounds. The call was overturned after a video review, giving the ball back to Georgia. Hill used a crossover dribble to create separation and he sank a jumper from the free-throw line for a 70-64 lead.

 answered at the other end with a long 3-pointer from the wing to make it 70-67 with 33.1 left.  sealed it by making two free throws with 17 seconds left for his first points of the second half.

Melendez finished with 12 points for Georgia (13-4, 3-1 SEC).  added 11 points.

Johnson led ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ (14-3, 3-1) with 19 points and  added 16. ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ was undone by going 17 of 32 from the free-throw line.

Johnson made a 3-pointer with 4:50 remaining in the first half to give him 12 of ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ’s opening 27 points. The Gamecocks led 34-33 at halftime.

·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ took a 48-39 lead with 14:05 remaining in the second half. But the Gamecocks didn’t make another field goal until Johnson’s 3-pointer with 4:57 remaining to get within 58-56.

Georgia took its first lead of the second half — 51-50 with 9:14 remaining — during ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ’s field-goal drought of over nine minutes.

Georgia continues its road trip at No. 8 Kentucky on Saturday. ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ plays at Arkansas on Saturday.

KEY STAT

• UGA utilized a 13-1 run over 4:20 in the second half turning a five-point deficit into a seven-point lead.
• Georgia converted 25-of-32 free throw attempts at the charity stripe including 20-of-24 in the second half. The Gamecocks were just 47.6 percent (10-of-21) in the final 20 minutes.

NOTABLES

• Junior guard Meechie Johnson returned to double-figures with 19 points on an efficient 6-of-11 from the floor including four triples. It is Johnson’s 10^th game this year leading the Gamecocks in points and his 14^th scoring in double digits.
• Graduate forward B.J. Mack recorded double-digit points for the second consecutive game, scoring 16 points and adding five rebounds.
• Freshman forward Collin Murray-Boyles led ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ on the glass with six rebounds. Murray-Boyles made his second consecutive start and added eight points along with two assists in 22 minutes of action.
• The Gamecock defense allowed just 23.1 percent (3-for-13) from the 3-point line. Carolina entered tonight’s matchup first in the SEC in scoring defense allowing just 64.1 points per game.
• ·¬ÇÑÊÓƵ recorded a season-high eight blocked shots, four coming from Murray-Boyles. The Gamecocks’ previous high of six came against George Washington back on Dec. 1.
• Myles Stute left the game with 10:57 to go in the second half and did not return with a left shoulder injury. A flagrant one, hook and hold was assessed on the play he was injured as he was attempting to get position to rebound a free throw.
• The loss tonight snaps a 10-game home win streak by the Gamecocks that dates back to last season. It’s the team’s first loss at CLA in 2023-24.

UP NEXT

Carolina (14-3, 2-2 SEC) hits the road for a tough test at Bud Walton Arena against Arkansas (10-7, 1-3 SEC) on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. (ET) on SEC Network with Dave Neal (pxp) and Joe Kleine (analyst) on the call.

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