COLUMBIA, SC – Tarence Kinsey scored nine of his 20 points in a three-minute span of the second half as South Carolina took control on its way to a 77-55 win over UNC Greensboro in men's basketball action at the Colonial Center on Wednesday night.
Kinsey scored nine of South Carolina's points in a 19-7 run that pushed a 12-point game at the half out of the Spartans' reach by midway through the second half.
Bart Tooms led UNCG with 15 points. The junior from Amsterdam hit 6-of-7 from the floor, including both of his three-point attempts, and shared team-high honors with four rebounds. Sophomore Kevin Oleksiak added 14 points for the Spartans, his fifth double-figure scoring game in six contests this season.
“They have a good team,” said UNCG coach Mike Dement. “They got some easy baskets off of our turnovers. If we could've got some baskets early, it could have been different. I liked the way we got after it on the boards. We were right there on the tip-ins.”
The Spartans played shorthanded on Wednesday night as four players were suspended due to violations of team rules. Ricky Hickman and Marc Campbell will rejoin the team for practice on Thursday. Derrick Bernard and Devin Boddie will both have their status re-evaluated after the team returns to Greensboro.
South Carolina (5-1) jumped out quickly on the Spartans, taking a 21-7 lead in the first 5:30. The Gamecocks came out hot, connecting on seven of their first 10 from the field. The Spartans got hot, however, and battled back to within eight, 23-15, after Bart Tooms knocked down a baseline jumper.
South Carolina, meanwhile, cooled off considerably, missing 11 of their next 14 shots as UNCG trailed by seven with five minutes to play in the first half. A quick 9-0 run by the Gamecocks, however, opened the lead back up to 36-20.
The margin was only 12 at the half, 39-27, although the Gamecocks committed just two turnovers in the first half to UNCG's 13. South Carolina took advantage of the Spartan mistakes, converting the 13 turnovers into 25 points. UNCG, however, shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, compared to South Carolina's 41 percent.
South Carolina stretched the lead to 20 early in the second half. The Gamecocks scored 19 of the first 26 points of the second half to take a 58-34 lead with under 12 minutes to play. Kinsey scored nine of his points during that run.
UNCG (3-3) will host College of Charleston in its Southern Conference opener Saturday night at 7 pm.
SIDELINES: Despite its thin bench, UNCG did a phenomenal job on the glass in the first half on Wednesday night, grabbing a 21-10 advantage in the first half. South Carolina did a better job in the second half, evening the final totals at 32-32... Tooms was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in the first half... Kyle Hines scored just eight points, all of them in the first half. That snapped a string of 10 consecutive games in double-figures. He is five points short of 500 for his career... South Carolina converted UNCG's 22 turnovers into 37 points.
AGATE
SOUTH CAROLINA 77, UNC GREENSBORO 55
UNC GREENSBORO (3-3)
Tooms, Bart 6-7 1-2 15; Oleksiak, Kevin 4-11 4-4 14; Hines, Kyle 4-11 0-0 8; Beckford, Brian 4-8 0-1 8; McClenny, David 2-3 1-2 5; Akinosho, Matt 1-4 1-2 3; Simmons, Everson 1-4 0-1 2; Vlazny, Gregory 0-1 0-0 0; Moore, Donald 0-0 0-0 0; Everette, Dustin 0-0 0-0 0; Johnson, Dwayne 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 22-50 7-12 55.
SOUTH CAROLINA (5-1)
Kinsey, Tarence 8-13 1-1 20; Balkman, Renaldo 6-8 4-5 16; Kelley, Tre 2-6 2-2 7; Wallace, Brandon 2-3 2-2 7; Sheldon, Bryce 2-7 0-0 6; Trice, Rocky 3-8 0-0 6; Palacios, Keving 2-4 0-0 4; Tisby, Antoine 0-0 3-4 3; McDowell, Stephen 1-1 0-0 3; Day, Dwayne 1-5 1-2 3; Konate, Ousmane 1-6 0-0 2. Totals 28-61 13-16 77.
Halftime: South Carolina 39-27. 3-point goals-UNC Greensboro 4-13 (Tooms, Bart 2-2; Oleksiak, Kevin 2-6; McClenny, David 0-1; Simmons, Everson 0-2; Vlazny, Gregory 0-1; Hines, Kyle 0-1), South Carolina 8-25 (Kinsey, Tarence 3-6; Sheldon, Bryce 2-6; McDowell, Stephen 1-1; Kelley, Tre 1-4; Wallace, Brandon 1-2; Day, Dwayne 0-3; Trice, Rocky 0-3). Fouled out--UNC Greensboro-None, South Carolina-None. Rebounds-UNC Greensboro 32 (Tooms, Bart 4; Hines, Kyle 4; Oleksiak, Kevin 4), South Carolina 32 (Balkman, Renaldo 7). Assists-UNC Greensboro 12 (Oleksiak, Kevin 3; Hines, Kyle 3; Johnson, Dwayne 3), South Carolina 15 (Wallace, Brandon 6). Total fouls-UNC Greensboro 16, South Carolina 14. Att: 6,203.
- UNCG -
