Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Mark Humphrey / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS USC’s Bryce Sheldon reacts at the end of a 49-47 loss to Florida in the championship game of the 2006 SEC tournament Sunday. Sheldon scored 12 points in a semifinal win against Kentucky on Saturday. The Gamecocks were vying for an NCAA Tournament bid. GK • COnTinUGD PROmi go to the NCAA tournament. “We worked so hard to get this far,” said Balkman, who finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. “It’s about toughness and having heart. We were confident that we would come back and we did. Everybody in this room believed we were going to win.” Florida’s winning points came after USC guard Rocky Trice tied the game at 47-47 on a drive into the lane with 42.5 seconds left. Florida called a 30 second timeout, but the Gamecocks pressured the ball, forcing UF forward Corey Brewer to take a contested jumper. However, Noah was in position for the rebound and easily laid it in. “I thought, defensively, we did everything we could possibly do,” said USC head coach Dave Odom. “Unfortunately, Noah’s size, arm length, and sense for the game won out. He was there when the shot was missed, and we weren’t.” The game began with an early 10-2 Florida lead, behind five quick points from UF forward Corey Brewer. With the score 15 4 with 11:07 to go in the first period, it appeared that USC would repeat their horrible performance in the 1998 SEC tournament final, where they lost by 32 points to Kentucky. Poor shooting plagued the Gamecocks throughout the first half, and at the midpoint, USC had only six points on 3-of-18 shooting. And yet, the Gators were not able to strike the killing blow. Florida’s guards, Taurean Green and Lee Humphrey, came into the contest shooting a combined 15-of-29 from beyond the arc, but for the game they only had three 3-pointers. “The thing that held us in it was our defense,” Odom said. “Defensively, I thought we played with great purpose, great togetherness and great intent.” The Gamecocks kept on fighting, despite their inability to hit shots. On one possession, USC pulled down four offensive rebounds before Balkman powered up a tough inside basket with 4:31 to go. USC guard Bryce Sheldon followed with a 3-pointer and the Gamecocks seemed to regain their shooting touch. After missing his. first eight shots, USC guard Kelley finally hit a 3 pointer to make the score 21-14 with 3:11 left. The Gators did not back down, and forward Joakim Noah quickly responded with four points down low. Coming into the second -half down 25-18, the Gamecocks again struggled early, turning the ball over on the first possession. Four minutes in the half, Kinsey drilled a 3-pointer, making the score 27-23. At the 10-minute mark, Florida was able to push their lead to 38-27 on a Green 3-pointer. Again, it seemed like the Gators were going to blow the game wide open, but Carolina fired back with back-to-back 3-pointers from Kinsey and Kelley. “At that*point, I think the mettle of our team really rose to the top,” Odom said. “We started making shots. We started rebounding the ball. We made a run at it.” With seven minutes to go, Kelley stole the ball and sprinted down court to close .the gap to 40-37. He again kept the Gamecocks close at the 4:20 mark, hitting a 3- pointer to keep the gap at five, 47-42. Kelley, who scored 12 points despite shooting 4- of-17, joined Balkman on the All-Tournament team. Green was named tournainent MVP, and Brewer, who had 16 points and seven rebounds, was also a part of the All Tournament squad. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu TOURmcm • CORTinilED FROfTI 12 the Gamecocks were able to get a lead and hold onto it. USC survived a quick Tennessee start and took the 16-14 lead with 9:44 to go in the first half. Carolina snatched the lead for good late in the first period and stretched it to 17 late in the game. UT mounted a final rally and whittled the difference down to six with 11 seconds left. But, it was too little, too late. With an attacking defense and easy transition buckets, USC out Tennesseed the Vols. “We had a fast-paced game on offense,” USC guard Tre’ Kelley said. “Our guys finished layups and it was good for us.” Carolina earned 28 points off of 21 Tennessee turnovers and scored eight more fast break points than the Vols. USC guards Rocky Trice and Tarence Kinsey smothered All-SEC guard Chris Lofton, preventing him from scoring until 10:32 was left in the game. Kelley paced the Gamecocks with 25 points and eight assists, and USC forward Renaldo Balkman added 16 points and seven rebounds. Kentucky 68 Alabama 61 Facing the unusual situation of being the lower seed in a tournament game, Kentucky had to come from behind multiple times to beat Alabama. The Tide managed to build a 10-point lead with 6:13 left in the first period, but the Wildcats stormed back. The Tide again pushed their lead to 11 with six minutes left, but the ‘Cats responded with an even bigger 21-3 run to finish the game. LSU92 Vanderbilt 73 The Commodores could not handle Glen “Big Baby” Davis, and the Tigers cruised to an easy victory. Vandy tried to hang with the Bayou Bengals by hitting 11 3-pointers, but Davis had 28 points and 13 rebounds. Three other Tigers scored double figures, and their lead reached 25 late in the first half. Florida 74 Arkansas 71 Florida was able to hold off a late Arkansas surge and sent the Hogs packing. The Gators were up 12 points with 1:46 left, but the Razorbacks closed the gap to 3 with 14 seconds to go. UF guard Lee Humphrey, who scored a game-high 25 points, sealed the deal on the win with two free throws. DAY 3 — Semifinals use 65 Kentucky 61 Carolina did the unfathomable and knocked Kentucky out of the semifinals, where UK had previously been 34-1 all time. The Wildcats came out firing and opened up a 17 10 margin 10 minutes in. However, two Sheldon 3 pointers and a 10-0 run helped USC surge past UK, 20-17. Down 30-27 at halftime, Kentucky again came out as the aggressor and took the lead. Carolina kept crawling back, tying the game six times in the second half, but they couldn’t get over the hump until Kinsey capped a streak of four straight 3-pointers with 5:41 to go. Sheldon and Kinsey combined for 30 points, and Balkman had 8 points and eight rebounds off the bench. Florida 81 LSU65 Behind a Noah double double (15 points, 12 rebounds) and a strong shooting effort (54 percent FG), the Gators pulled away to a comfortable victory. The Tigers went into the half with a 41-38 lead, even though Glen Davis scored only two points in the first period. In the second half, LSU’s short bench finally caught up to them, as Florida outscored the Tigers 43-24. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksportsQbgwm.se. edu I II ifi 1111 wm - H ipm We’ll save you a seat! g% + . NOTIII( \ROIi\\ CAMPUS recReation ’ 803-576-9375 http://campusrec.sc.edu yfi iHn V mEBmmmSEm SMB£B&&IB%ttQmX>S&*3f5&i3Xirtv 3** ? £-&&&NetFfGunWnHR St (olrianYS iDTf7STS4iSTVSi vCiTiTSrnflTI VficIBNSHBB^iVSTwSTflllynT^ WHA|^^H»sMHiHnwK|^yM|iAaBiajM *