Tennessee State Tigers gets first win vs. SEC at South Carolina

Columbia, South Carolina -- Robert Covington scored 16 points, and Jordan Cyphers came off the bench to add 12 to lead Tennessee State past host South Carolina 64-63 on Sunday night for the Tigers’ first victory in 24 games against a Southeastern Conference team.

South Carolina (1-2), which trailed by 22 points with 14:49 remaining, had a chance to force overtime on two R.J. Slawson free throws with 7.5 seconds remaining, but the 78 percent free-throw shooter missed the second one. Eric Smith scored all 18 of his points in the second half for South Carolina.

“It’s always good to get a road win,” said TSU Coach John Cooper, a former South Carolina assistant coach. “(South Carolina) came out in the second half and outplayed us. We found a way to win. It got ugly for us. We had so many lessons from close losses, but we were finally able to get one.”

The Tigers play at No. 1 North Carolina on Tuesday.

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South Carolina Gamecocks Held Off by Tennessee State, 64-63

COLUMBIA, S.C. - The South Carolina Gamecocks (1-2) suffered a 64-63 defeat against Tennessee State (2-2) on Sunday night at Colonial Life Arena competing in the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational. Sophomore guard Eric Smith led the Gamecocks with 18 points, doubling a career high.

Tennessee State started a run as the game passed the 10-minute mark and held a 15-9 lead with just over eight minutes left in the opening half. Carolina gained new life 30 seconds later after senior Malik Cooke poked the ball free from a Tiger guard and Lakeem Jackson collected the loose ball to take it down the floor and slam home a two-handed dunk.

Tennessee State's Robert Covington would hit a 3 at the other end, but Cooke would follow with a free throw and Damien Leonard hit a 3 from the corner to pull the Gamecocks to within three points of the Tigers with 5:31 left in the stanza. Following the under-four minute media timeout, Tennessee State's Jordan Cyphers buried two 3s and added three free throws, as the Tigers took a 33-19 lead into the locker room at halftime.

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