COLUMBIA, S.C. — Silas Demary Jr. scored 15 points, Justin Hill scored all nine of his points in the second half and Georgia beat South Carolina 74-69 on Tuesday night.
Hill missed a contested layup with 1:03 remaining and the ball went out of bounds. The call was overturned after a video review, giving possession back to Georgia. Hill used a crossover dribble to create separation and sank a jumper from the free-throw line for a 70-64 lead.
The Gamecocks’ Meechie Johnson answered at the other end with a long 3-pointer from the wing to make it 70-67 with 33.1 left. But the Bulldogs’ RJ Melendez sealed it by making two free throws with 17 seconds left for his first points of the second half.
Melendez finished with 12 points for Georgia (13-4, 3-1 SEC). Jabri Abdur-Rahim added 11 points.
Johnson led South Carolina (14-3, 3-1) with 19 points and B.J. Mack added 16. South Carolina was undone by going just 17 of 32 from the free-throw line.
Johnson made a 3-pointer with 4:50 remaining in the first half to give him 12 of South Carolina’s opening 27 points. The Gamecocks led 34-33 at halftime.
South Carolina took a 48-39 lead with 14:05 remaining in the second half. But the Gamecocks didn’t make another field goal until Johnson’s 3-pointer with 4:57 remaining to get within 58-56.
Georgia took its first lead of the second half — 51-50 with 9:14 remaining — during South Carolina’s field-goal drought of over nine minutes.
The Bulldogs play at No. 8 Kentucky on Saturday.
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