ATHENS, Ga. — Eight overtime points from Kario Oquendo boosted Georgia past South Carolina, 81-78, Saturday night before a sold-out crowd at Stegeman Coliseum.
Mardrez McBride led the Bulldogs’ scoring effort with a season-high 17 points. Frank Anselem posted a career-high 12 points, while Oquendo tallied 15. Terry Roberts dished out nine assists, and Jusaun Holt grabbed a team-leading six boards.
"A huge conference win for us,” Georgia head coach Mike White said. “I thought our crowd was incredible, a huge factor for us, allowing us to get some stops, helping us get some stops defensively in the full court and half court. We played really hard, got to continue to improve of course. South Carolina getting 13 threes was pretty significant to have to overcome. I thought we had some guys that haven't at times played really big roles for us in my opinion, but were a big a factor in this one than anyone else. Namely, Frank Anselem, Jusaun Holt and I though Mardrez McBride played his best game as a Bulldog. Those guys were terrific, the crowd was terrific, great college game, South Carolina was terrific, and we had a chance to send it into overtime, we are very fortunate."
South Carolina (8-13, 1-7 SEC) quickly took the lead and kept Georgia (14-7, 4-4 SEC) at a distance in the early going until a tip-in layup from Jabri Abdur-Rahim gave the Bulldogs a 13-12 lead off a 5-0 scoring run. Both teams traded points before the Gamecocks built a nine-point lead, 29-20, off a pair of 3-pointers.
Led by Abdur-Rahim, the Bulldogs attacked the paint and used a 7-0 run to get within two points with under three minutes remaining in the half. Back-to-back McBride triples knotted the score at 35 with 30 seconds remaining in the half, but the Gamecocks answered back with a dunk to close the first half and take a two-point lead into the locker room.
After tying the game early in the second half, sharp outside shooting from Carolina helped it build the lead back to eight. Back-to-back dunks and a layup from Roberts fueled an 8-3 run for the Bulldogs, but they continued to trail, 58-48, with 10 minutes remaining in the game.
A strong defensive effort from Georgia forced two Gamecock turnovers and allowed McBride to make a five-point play and close the gap to two points. Two free throw makes from Holt wrapped up a 10-0 run that tied the game at 62 with five minutes left.
A layup from Holt and Anselem edged Georgia ahead, 70-69, with two minutes remaining. Tied at 71, Holt was sent to the free throw line and gave the Bulldogs a 73-71 advantage. South Carolina answered with a layup and nearly stole the win on a final-second steal, but a lost ball sent the game to overtime.
Six uncontested points from Oquendo built a four-point lead, 80-76, with two minutes remaining in overtime. The Gamecocks added two free throws to put them within two with five seconds remaining, but a final three fell short to close the game.
Georgia returns to the road this Wednesday, Feb. 1 to face Auburn at 7 p.m. on SEC Network. Earlier this season, the Bulldogs upset the No. 22 Tigers, 76-64, at Stegeman Coliseum.
