BROOKLYN, N.Y. – No. 9 Iowa State (10-2) lost to South Carolina (9-3), 64-60 Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.
ISU shot just 35.1 percent from the field and made only 1-of-18 shots from 3-point range in the loss. Despite their poor shooting, the Cyclones were down 63-60 after Naz Long hit ISU’s only 3-pointer of the game with 0:47 seconds left. After SC was called for an offensive foul, ISU had a chance to tie with 0:12 seconds left, but Long turned it over.
Sindarius Thornwell, who had 13 points, iced the game with a free-throw.
Jameel McKay and Dustin Hogue led the Cyclones with 15 points each.
South Carolina was the aggressor at the beginning, holding a pair of double digit leads while taking control of the contest. ISU managed to cut the lead to three points (20-17) when McKay came off the bench to spark the team.
The Gamecocks soon went back ahead 32-20 with six minutes left in the half. The Cyclones then started to chip away at the lead. Georges Niang scored his first hoop of the half followed by a Hogue run-out dunk and a long jumper from Bryce Dejean-Jones. ISU finished the half on a 15-4 run to go into the half down, 36-35.
McKay had 11 first-half points. ISU was just 9-of-18 at the charity stripe and 0-of-10 from 3-point range in the opening period. ISU forced 13 turnovers, however, to offset its poor shooting.
Poor shooting continued to plague the Cyclones at the beginning of the second half, as the Gamecocks led 47-42 with 12 minutes left to play. ISU then finally took its first lead with a McKay dunk and back-to-back hoops by Niang to make it 48-47 ISU with 8:25 remaining.
A 7-0 run by South Carolina stopped the ISU momentum, moving ahead 56-51 with 4:31 left in the game.
ISU came into the game hitting 74.0 percent from the free-throw, but made just 19-of-33 (57.6 percent) shots at the charity stripe.
