USC Loses Big At Arkansas, 75-55

FAYETTEVILLE, ARK. (USC SID) — An undermanned Gamecocks (11-10, 2-7 SEC) squad went toe-to-toe with Arkansas (17-5, 6-3) Tuesday night at Bud Walton Arena, ultimately falling 75-55. Injuries left the team with just nine healthy players, but the team fought through the adversity to take an early lead before fading in the second half to the fast-paced Hogs. Both teams found their offense sputtering at times to start the half, with the Razorback opening with a 6-0 start after four missed field goals and four turnovers on its first six possessions for Carolina. The Gamecocks would answer back, though, as Arkansas would miss its next ten shots and went without a field goal for almost six minutes. Carolina went on a 10-0 run in that span to take their first lead of the night, with four apiece coming from Marcus Stroman and Mindaugas Kacinas. They would lead by as much as six points before the Hogs went on an extended run of their own. Starting down 16-10, the home side outscored Carolina 18-3 in a span of five minutes to climb ahead 28-19. It would carry a 35-28 lead into the halftime break. The first 20 minutes saw poor offensive numbers on both ends, with Arkansas hitting on 35 percent from the field and Carolina 32 percent. The biggest factor for the halftime deficit would be turnovers, with the Razorbacks owning a plus-nine margin in the category and outscoring the Gamecocks 13-0 in points off turnovers. Foul trouble would cut into the already thin lineup, as Tyrone Johnson picked up three fouls within the first 90 seconds of action and sat with four fouls for most of the half. Stroman stepped up strong in the senior’s absence, putting together his best game of the conference season with ten points, six assists and four rebounds. Sindarius Thornwell and Laimonas Chatkevicius also had to negotiate around three early fouls, and Thornwell had just 11 minutes of action before checking in with 16 minutes to play. He would be strong in his return to action, as he led the team with 10 points in the second half alone, but the Gamecocks made just two field goals in the final 11 minutes of the game and scored two points in the final six minutes as the Razorbacks cruised to the win.