USC hit an even fifty percent of its shots and drilled a school-record 18-3 point field goals to blow past George Washington 89-67 at Colonial Life Arena on Friday night. Meechie Johnson led four Gamecocks in double figures with 24 points, as twelve players saw action, with nine of them scoring. The win improved Carolina to 7-0 on the season, as they now turn their focus to an in-state showdown with Clemson next Wednesday at Littlejohn Coliseum.
The first half saw the Gamecocks put on a shooting clinic, especially from 3-point range. USC blistered the nets to the tune of 52% shooting from the field (16-of-31), while connecting on a robust 8-of-16 attempts from beyond the arc to lead 42-32 at halftime.
Once again, Johnson led the way for the Gamecocks in the opening half. After pouring in 15 first-half points en route to a career-high 29 on Tuesday against Notre Dame, Johnson scored 10 against the Revolutionaries (6-2) with a pair of threes. Ta’Lon Cooper added eight points, with B.J. Mack scoring seven, as USC built as much as a 12-point first-half advantage.
In the second half, the Gamecocks kept their foot on the gas, outscoring GW 47-35 and adding to their three-point total with ten more from long range in the final twenty minutes. Part of USC’s efficiency on offense was due to its stinginess with the basketball. Carolina turned the ball over just three times while forcing ten from GW, of which the Gamecocks scored ten points off turnovers.
“Great defensive performance, really great defensive performance,” head coach Lamont Paris said in his postgame radio interview. The proof was evident in one stat line: the performance of GW star James Bishop IV.
In last year’s 79-55 rout by George Washington, Bishop scored 24 points with five three-pointers. Against the Gamecocks on Friday, Bishop shot it fourteen times just to get fourteen points. As a team, the Revolutionaries were averaging 85 points per game entering play, but USC held them to just 67.
Carolina will enjoy the weekend before traveling to Clemson on Wednesday night for an 8 p.m. tipoff on the ACC Network.