Jacobi Wright hit a jumper with 13 seconds left in overtime to lift visiting South Carolina to a 71-69 victory over Missouri on Saturday in Columbia, Mo.
B.J. Mack scored 21 points for the Gamecocks (14-2, 2-1 Southeastern Conference). Wright and Ta’lon Cooper each scored 11 for South Carolina and Myles Stute had 10.
Noah Carter led the Tigers (8-8, 0-3) with 23 points, but he missed a potential game-winning 3-point shot in the final seconds of overtime.
Sean East II had 15 points and 8 rebounds for Missouri and Tamar Bates scored 12.
Both teams struggled offensively through the first half. The Tigers missed their first 10 shots from 3-point range while the Gamecocks started 1-for-7 from beyond the arc.
There were five lead changes in the first 20 minutes and neither team was able to pull away.
After Missouri took a 12-11 lead, neither team led by more than two points until the Tigers used a 10-2 surge move ahead 29-23 with 3:17 left in the half. East sparked the run with an acrobatic drive to the basket and a deep 3-pointer.
The Gamecocks responded by outscoring the Tigers 9-4 for the rest of the half to cut their deficit to 33-32. Meechie Johnson hit a 3-point jumper and scored on a drive to get South Carolina moving again.
Anthony Robinson hit a 3-point jumper to extend Missouri’s lead to 48-42 in the second half, but Mack quickly answered with a 3-point shot to keep the Gamecocks within range.
After Cooper hit a 3-point shot to tie the game with 25 seconds left, East’s missed turnaround jumper at the buzzer forced overtime.
Cooper converted a conventional three-point play to put South Carolina up 67-62 with 2:24 left. The Tigers rallied to tie the game 69-69 on Carter’s 3-point jumper, but Wright decided the game with a mid-range jumper.
–Field Level Media
The Connecticut Sun are looking to keep up in the race for the No. 2 seed in the WNBA playoffs when they play the host Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday…
Denver Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray agreed to a four-year, $208 million maximum contract extension, his representation told ESPN on Saturday. The extension will begin in the 2025-26 season and…
The New York Liberty can move closer to clinching the top seed in the upcoming WNBA playoffs with a win, and/or losses by second- and third-place teams Minnesota and Connecticut,…
Nuggets, Jamal Murray agree to 4-year, $208M extension
Defensive-minded Liberty take on Aces
Dream carry momentum into ‘fight’ with Fever
Mystics look to continue playoff push vs. red-hot Lynx