Trevon Brazile scored 16 points Wednesday and Jonas Aidoo added a double-double as No. 9 seed Arkansas built a 20-point lead, then barely held on to eliminate 16th-seeded South Carolina 72-68 in the first round of the Southeastern Conference tournament in Nashville.
Aidoo finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds as the Razorbacks (20-12) advanced to a second-round matchup Thursday with No. 8 seed Ole Miss. Johnell Davis added 14 points, including two foul shots with 2.5 seconds left to seal the outcome, and D.J. Wagner chipped in 13 points plus six assists.
Collin Murray-Boyles scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Gamecocks, who finished their season with a 12-20 record. Jamarii Thomas added 16 points and Jacobi Wright hit for 13 plus four assists.
Arkansas owned a 54-34 cushion with 17:08 left when Davis fed Billy Richmond for a dunk but suddenly lost all its rhythm offensively. South Carolina went on a 22-4 run, closing within 61-60 at the 4:20 mark when Murray-Boyles swished a foul-line jumper.
Wagner hit a 3-pointer with 2:37 remaining to restore a four-point lead and the Razorbacks were able to hang on to avoid a potentially fatal blow to their NCAA Tournament at-large hopes.
Overall, Arkansas shot 44.6 percent from the field, including 7 of 22 from 3-point range. The Gamecocks made 39 percent and were 8 of 23 from long range.
The pregame storyline was whether Arkansas could avenge a 72-53 loss to South Carolina on March 1 in Columbia, when it shot 12 percent from the field in the first half and trailed by as many as 35 points in the second half.
It looked like the Razorbacks would have an easy time of it after a first half in which they connected on 17 of 31 field goals – they made two more field goals in the half than they made in the entire game 11 days ago – and held the Gamecocks to 10 of 26 accuracy.
Aidoo was a beast inside with 14 points on 6 of 7 shooting, as well as eight rebounds, in 14 minutes off the bench. Wagner added 10, including a layup with 37 seconds remaining that sent Arkansas to the locker room with a 47-30 advantage.
–Field Level Media
