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Cavs Fall To Gamecocks, 73-71
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Nov. 25, 1999
BAYAMON, Puerto Rico (AP) – South Carolina’s size trumped Virginia’squickness Thursday as Antonio Grant scored 13 points and Tony Kitchings hadnine – all in the second half – to lead the Gamecocks to a 73-71 victory overVirginia at the Puerto Rico Shootout.
South Carolina (3-0) faces No. 3 Michigan State, an 82-58 winner overProvidence, on Friday.
Virginia (2-1) had planned to trap and press South Carolina into mistakes.Instead, it was the Cavaliers who came unglued. After making six of 13 from3-point range in the first half, they hit only one of their next seven3-pointers.
Meanwhile, 6-foot-10 Kitchings, 6-10 Marius Petravicius and 6-5 Grant livedon the inside. Kitchings scored seven points, Petravicius and Grant four eachas the Gamecocks went on a 21-3 run that gave then a 61-49 lead.
Keith Friel’s three free throws brought Virginia to 73-71 with 39 seconds togo. Friel had a chance to win at the buzzer, but his one-hander hit off therim.
It’s the second time in three seasons the Gamecocks have started 3-0. Butthis may have been one of their more unlikely victories. They have just onesenior, Herbert Lee Davis, and one junior in Grant, who left with 2:20 to goafter hurting his right knee for the third time.
Virginia’s three-point shooting nearly beat the Gamecocks in the first half.Willie Dersch’s 3-pointer started a 17-4 Virginia run that included three3-pointers from Hand and a long-range shot from Keith Friel as the Cavaliersled 28-15.
But then it was South Carolina that got hot from the outside with 3-pointersfrom Grant, Travis Kraft and David Ross to cut the lead to 32-28.
Colin Ducharme scored six of his eight first-half points in the final fiveminutes to put Virginia up 36-33 at halftime.
The team’s met at the Maui tournament in 1996 with Virginia winning easily,93-70.
Cavaliers coach Pete Gillen gets to face his old team, Providence, inFriday’s second round. Gillen left the Friars two seasons ago to replace JeffJones at Virginia.
By PETE IACOBELLI
AP Sports Writer