South Carolina battles back to beat East Carolina at home. Three things we learned

The Gamecocks got the victory in a less-than-stellar showing, but hey, Saturdays in non-conference season have their charm. Nothing says final exams-season energy like a weekend nail-biter.

The South Carolina men’s basketball team had to fight from behind for a 75-68 win over East Carolina on Saturday at Colonial Life Arena.

“We just couldn’t get it together in the first half on either side of the ball,” USC head coach Lamont Paris said.

ECU (7-3) led the majority of the first half, going ahead by as many as 11 in the period. But USC woke up late in the half to stay in contention.

The second half belonged to the Gamecocks, riding a dominant 16-0 run to wrestle control and escape with a hard-fought victory. They moved the ball well in the period (12 assists on 17 shots).

Jamarii Thomas shined with 22 points and seven assists — both Gamecock highs for the senior transfer. Sophomore Collin Murray-Boyles had 20 points, eight rebounds and a block.

South Carolina (6-3) has won three straight games. Paris’ squad will turn its attention to hosting USC Upstate on Saturday, Dec. 14.

Here are three observations from USC’s win over East Carolina:

Offensive struggles at first ... then lights out

South Carolina’s offense sputtered early against ECU, relying almost entirely on Murray-Boyles as the rest of the team struggled to find any rhythm before the first timeout.

Possession after possession, the offense stagnated: minimal movement, forced passes and bricked 3-pointers.

Things hit rock bottom as USC — other than Murray-Boyles — missed its first 13 shots.

Later in the half, things got going when Thomas drained two 3-pointers to inject life into the team as part of a four-minute stretch where he scored 10 points. He finished with five 3-pointers, tying his career-high from the Norfolk State game.

A second half to remember

Assistant coach Tanner Bronson delivered a halftime speech that lit a fire under the South Carolina players for the second half.

“I should let him start doing the pregame speech,” Paris joked.

The issues within the Gamecocks’ offense were too deep to be fixed in just a timeout, Paris said. They needed to completely switch their game plan on that side of the floor.

The result? The Gamecocks made 17 of 25 shots (68%), including eight 3-pointers after the break.

Even so, defense served as damage control as they figured the offense out. When shots started falling, everything finally started coming together for South Carolina.

Murray-Boyles makes it happen

Murray-Boyles stayed red-hot, carrying USC’s offense in the first half. Scoring USC’s first four buckets, he shot a perfect 5 for 5 by halftime, racking up 10 points and five rebounds.

At times, he looked like the only Gamecock fully locked in, dominating the paint and scoring at will. He punctuated his effort with a ferocious standing dunk that brought some much-needed energy.

“He was making strong moves to the basket,” Paris said. “I think guys were finding him in some really advantageous situations.

“He’s a young guy. He’s still growing as a player. It’s exciting to see his growth. But he’s got phenomenal natural touch.”

Murray-Boyles’ perfect 10-for-10 shooting on Saturday set a program record, making him the first Gamecock ever to hit double-digit field goals in a game without a miss.

Next four games

• Dec. 14 vs. USC Upstate, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

• Dec. 17 vs. Clemson, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

• Dec. 22 vs. Radford, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

• Dec 30 vs. Presbyterian, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)