Gamecocks Fall Short in Overtime Battle with LSU, Slip to .500 on the Season
For South Carolina men’s basketball, Saturday’s overtime loss to LSU wasn’t just another mark in the loss column - it was a gut punch in a game that felt there for the taking. The 92-87 defeat at Colonial Life Arena dropped the Gamecocks to 11-11 on the season and left head coach Lamont Paris sitting at an even 60-60 in his USC tenure.
This one stung because the opportunity was there. South Carolina had the ball, down two in overtime, with a chance to take control.
Instead, a series of late-game miscues allowed LSU to pull away and even the season series at 1-1. For a team battling to climb out of the SEC’s lower tier, this was a game they needed - and they knew it.
“We didn’t make the plays”
After the game, Paris didn’t sugarcoat it. Both teams came in desperate for a win, and while South Carolina fought hard, it was the execution down the stretch that proved costly.
“Tough game. Felt bad for the guys - grueling,” Paris said.
“Two teams fought really hard and both really wanted and needed to win. We just weren’t able to do it at the end.”
South Carolina did manage a strong close to the first half, trimming the deficit and building momentum heading into the break. But in the second half and overtime, the Gamecocks couldn’t string together the kind of winning plays that separate tight games in conference play.
“If you look at the real waning moments of the game, we didn’t make some plays,” Paris said. “Combine that with some missed free throws, and oftentimes, that’s the difference in these close games.”
A shift in offensive approach
One of the more notable changes in this game was South Carolina’s approach on offense. Known for averaging over 26 three-point attempts per game, the Gamecocks made a concerted effort to attack inside - both to exploit mismatches and to draw contact.
They finished with 24 attempts from beyond the arc, but early in the game, they were far more selective. At one point, with eight minutes left in the first half, they had only taken four threes.
Paris explained the strategy: “We’ve been up and down in terms of our ability to take advantage of a switch and keep a smaller guy on our back. It’s not the easiest thing. They’re quick, and they have an advantage that way.”
He added that the plan coming out of halftime was to keep feeding the ball inside against switches - a common tactic in the SEC - but execution was inconsistent.
“If you do it exactly the way that you want, and he gets it in there and gets fouled or gets a bucket, you’re like, ‘That’s right, that’s exactly what we’re doing the whole rest of the half,’” Paris said. “We had varying success in terms of finishing, but we did draw some fouls in there. Ultimately, we got it inside some - probably not enough.”
Defensive breakdown at the worst time
The final dagger came in overtime, when LSU hit a wide-open corner three that put the game out of reach. It was a defensive breakdown at the worst possible time, and Paris didn’t shy away from explaining what went wrong.
“All this stuff is coming at guys. Some of these guys have never been in this situation,” he said.
“There’s a lot of information coming at them in a highly intense scenario, but the wrong guy came and double-teamed the ball. We gambled, and then the trap was split.”
Once that happened, the defense collapsed toward the ball, leaving the perimeter exposed. LSU made the extra pass and buried the open look.
“They sprayed it out to the perimeter for a 3, so it was down four instead of down three or less,” Paris said.
Looking ahead
At 11-11, South Carolina finds itself at a crossroads. The effort is there.
The fight is there. But in a league as competitive as the SEC, it’s the little things - a missed rotation, a missed free throw, a mistimed gamble - that can be the difference between climbing the standings or staying stuck near the bottom.
For Paris and his squad, the challenge now is to turn these close losses into learning moments - and quickly. Because in this conference, the margin for error is razor thin.