South Carolina men drop fifth straight to start SEC play at Oklahoma. 3 observations

Hope gave way to heartbreak once again for the Gamecocks.

For the fifth time in as many tries, South Carolina men’s basketball couldn’t shake its Southeastern Conference blues, falling 82-62 to Oklahoma on the road Saturday.

The Sooners controlled the tempo early, leading for over 32 minutes and never trailing in the first half. But the Gamecocks showed resilience, clawing back to force four lead changes and seven ties in the second half.

But Oklahoma snatched momentum back with an 11-2 run over a four-minute stretch in the second half. Shortly thereafter, OU went on a 15-0 run to extend the lead to 20 with 3:30 left, sealing the game.

“We turned the ball over some, but we did enough things to be right where we needed to be with them playing their best guys,” head coach Lamont Paris said. “So there’s a little frustration with that. We have to figure out a way as coaches to sustain that.”

Sophomores Morris Ugusuk and Collin Murray-Boyles led the way again for USC. Ugusuk had 15 points, while Murray-Boyles notched a double-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high five steals. Senior Jacobi Wright had 10 points and five assists.

The Gamecocks shot just 41% from the field, although they made nine 3-pointers — their most in five SEC games. USC also struggled from the free-throw line, shooting 11 of 21.

With Oklahoma joining the SEC this year, this was only the sixth meeting between these programs — and the first since 1992 — with OU now holding a 5-1 series lead.

South Carolina (10-8, 0-5 SEC) will return to Colonial Life Arena next week to host a pair of top-25 teams, beginning with No. 5 Florida on Wednesday. Here are three observations from the loss to Oklahoma (14-4, 1-4 SEC):

Turnovers take their toll again

Sloppy play continues to haunt South Carolina. Coming off a season-worst 25-turnover performance against Vanderbilt, the Gamecocks gave the ball away 12 times in Saturday’s first half alone.

Oklahoma didn’t fare much better, coughing it up 11 times before halftime. Both teams looked shaky from the jump, turning over the ball on their opening possessions. But once OU settled down, USC’s struggles were magnified.

Murray-Boyles provided a spark defensively with a career-high five steals, ripping the ball from Sooners with a tenacity that kept the Gamecocks afloat early. Still, Oklahoma capitalized on USC’s sloppiness, scoring 19 points off turnovers before the break, compared to just three for the Gamecocks.

USC’s defensive pressure was enough to keep it close, but against a team shooting 52% in the first half, mistakes proved costly.

South Carolina finished with 16 turnovers.

Shuffling the deck

The injury bug continues to bite South Carolina, forcing Paris to juggle rotations. Add Nick Pringle and Murray-Boyles having foul trouble to the mix, and the Gamecocks had to lean on bench contributions early.

“Fouls hurt those guys again, so we have to address that and see what it is that’s putting us in harm’s way for those two guys in particular,” Paris said. “They have to play, and they have to play well for us. That’s where we are, we’re shorthanded.”

Pringle picked up two fouls early and logged just seven first-half minutes. In his absence, Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk stepped up again with nine minutes of relief before halftime. Murray-Boyles fouled out with five minutes left.

Murray-Boyles (22 minutes) and Pringle (18) sat more than Paris would have liked. With Myles Stute and Jamarii Thomas out, the Gamecocks are down four starters during those stretches.

Paris was hoping to capitalize on his best two rebounders against a OU team that ranks last in the SEC in rebounding margin. OU outrebounded USC 33-27.

Offensively, it was an all-hands-on-deck effort. Murray-Boyles, the usual go-to scorer, took just two shots in the first half and entered the locker room with three points. Stepping into the spotlight were Ugusuk, who tallied six points, including a buzzer-beating half-court heave, and Arden Conyers, who also added six before halftime.

Overall, Paris said he wanted to try different combinations to get some players more experience. The most novel beneficiary of this was redshirt freshman Austin Herro, who played a few minutes toward the end of the first half — his first non-garbage-time minutes of the season.

The SEC struggle is real

With both teams winless in SEC play entering Saturday, one squad was destined to break through. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, that team was Oklahoma.

Now sitting at 0-5 in the conference, South Carolina is one of two SEC teams still searching for its first league win. The Gamecocks have opportunities ahead, but time is running out if they hope to sneak into the NCAA tournament conversation.

The road doesn’t get easier, starting with a home showdown against No. 5 Florida on Wednesday. If there’s a time to shock the SEC and turn things around, this might be it.

Next four games

• Wednesday: vs Florida, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

• Jan. 25: vs Mississippi State, 1 p.m. (SEC Network)

• Jan. 28: at Georgia, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

• Feb. 1: vs Texas A&M, 8:30 p.m. (SEC Network)