COLUMBIA, SC – The Rider University men's basketball team led for much of the 28 minutes, but a 24-6 second-half surge sent South Carolina past the Broncs, 65-58, Sunday afternoon at Colonial Life Arena. With the loss, the Broncs fall to 3-5, while the Gamecocks are now 5-1.
After South Carolina scored on its first possession, the Broncs went on an 11-0 run to take an early 11-2 lead and maintained a lead for the remainder of the half. The teams exchanged runs near the end of the half, with Rider rebuilding its advantage to nine with an 8-0 spurt, before South Carolina responded with seven-straight. A Rider free throw with 0.6 seconds remaining in the period push the Broncs' lead back to three, 28-25, at the break.
Allen Powell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle College H.S.) led Rider with seven points at the intermission.
Rider extended back to a seven-point lead on a
Dimencio Vaughn (New York, NY/Callaway/The Masters School) jumper and two Powell free throws and continued to lead by six following an
Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson (Delta State, Nigeria/Monsignor Bonner) jumper at the 14:14 mark. But the pivotal 24-6 South Carolina surge was next. Playing in his first game of the year following a five-game suspension, Keyshawn Bryant scored 11 points in the spurt. The closest Rider would draw was to within six the rest of the way.
Quotes & Notes
"Our guys continue to battle. Another game that we led at halftime. We just haven't been able to close out games enough. Obviously, we did at Bucknell, but we weren't up at halftime. It's a learning process. Guys that we're counting on have to be on the court. Mervin has to stay on the court. Ajiri has to stay on the court. Dimencio has to stay out of foul trouble. Too many breakdowns, especially when the shot clock breaks down. Our guys are doing a good job defending (the opponent's) actions. It's just a matter of making sure, at the end of the shot clock, we don't foul or allow them a second shot opportunity."
"I'm not looking for the negatives right now, I'm looking for the positives. We've played a tough schedule. We've been in every game. We've competed. We haven't had a healthy team. We haven't had everybody play together. We're getting there. But yes, do we need to make shots? Absolutely. Without a doubt." –
Rider Head Coach Kevin Baggett
- Rider and South Carolina met for the just the third time. The Broncs took a meeting in the 1982-83 season, before the Gamecocks evened the series with a win in 2012-13. All three meetings have come in Columbia.
- Rider led at the half for the sixth time in eight games this season. However, the Broncs are now 2-4 when leading at the break.
- Ogemuno-Johnson returned to the line-up after two games away from the team due to visa issues that prevented him from crossing into Mexico for the Cancun Challenge.
- While Ogemuno-Johnson returned, the Broncs played without
Sedrick Altman (Rialto, CA/Colony [Pepperdine]), who'd started the last two games, due to injury.
- The Broncs faced foul trouble late, with
Mervin James (St. Thomas, USVI/Pebblebrook [North Alabama]) fouling out with just under 10 minutes remaining in the game. It marked the fifth time in eight games that James has been disqualified. Ogemuno-Johnson also fouled out at the 5:39 mark, while
Nehemiah Benson (Streetsboro, OH/Lutheran East) picked up his fourth foul with 6:53 remaining.
- The Broncs return to action Tuesday, when they travel to Ole Miss. Tip is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (ET) at The Sandy and John Black Pavilion.
Broncs by the Numbers
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Dwight Murray, Jr. (Austell, GA/Pebblebrook [Incarnate Word]) led the Broncs with 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists. It marked the eighth-straight game to open the season and the 14
th-straight dating back to last season in which he's scored in double figures.
- Powell also finished in double figures with 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 1-of-3 from long range and 2-for-4 from the free-throw line. He also had three assists.
- Vaughn narrowly missed a double-double with nine points and a season-high 10 rebounds.
- Ogemuno-Johnson added seven points, nine rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot.
- South Carolina outshot Rider, 40.0 percent (22-55) to 36.8 percent (21-57).
- The Broncs took a 38.5 percent (5-13) to 30.0 percent (6-20) advantage from long range and a 61.1 percent (11-18) to 57.7 percent (15-26) edge from the free-throw line.
- South Carolina took a 38-37 edge on the glass.
- The Gamecocks' bench outscored Rider's, 29-11. The bulk of that production came from Bryant (17 points).
