South Carolina Gamecocks at DePaul Blue Demons
· Arizona Tip-Off - Cactus Division
Meechie Johnson scores 24, South Carolina beats DePaul 73-68 at Arizona Tip-Off
South Carolina (4-0) is off to its best start since the 2016-17 team, which lost 77-73 to Gonzaga in the Final Four, won its first eight games.
Johnson scored 12 points in a 20-6 run that gave the Gamecocks a 24-10 lead when he capped the spurt with a jumper and then a three-point play midway through the first half. South Carolina took a nine-point lead into intermission and stretched its lead to 58-44 when Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk made a layup with 12:18 to play. Elijah Fisher and K.T. Raimey each hit a 3-pointer as the Blue Demons scored 11 of 14 points to trim their deficit to six with 5 minutes to go and Da’Sean Nelson hit 1 of 2 free throws to make it 67-62 with 2:35 remaining. Johnson answered with two free throws 13 seconds and the Gamecocks, who shot just 59% (20 of 34) from the charity stripe, made 4 of 6 from the foul line from there to seal it.
Chico Carter Jr. — a native of Columbia and a graduate transfer from South Carolina — scored 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting for DePaul (1-3).
Zachary Davis added 10 points for the Gamecocks.
South Carolina plays Grand Canyon in the Cactus Division title game, and DePaul plays San Francisco in the third-place game, on Sunday.
How can I watch South Carolina vs. DePaul?
Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 73 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:00 | End of 2nd half | 73 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:03 | Ta'Lon Cooper Steal. | 73 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:03 | K.T. Raimey Turnover. | 73 - 68 |
| 2nd 0:09 | Ta'Lon Cooper made Free Throw. | 73 - 68 |
Statistics
 SC |
 DEP |
|
|---|---|---|
| 24-51 | FG | 23-56 |
| 47 | Field Goal % | 41 |
| 5-21 | 3PT | 4-16 |
| 24 | Three Point % | 25 |
| 20-34 | FT | 18-24 |
| 59 | Free Throw % | 75 |
| 38 | Rebounds | 29 |
| 9 | Offensive Rebounds | 6 |
| 29 | Defensive Rebounds | 23 |
| 12 | Assists | 11 |
| 6 | Steals | 5 |
| 3 | Blocks | 3 |
| 17 | Turnovers | 13 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 1 |
| 17 | Total Turnovers | 13 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 1 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 1 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 13 | Points Off Turnovers | 14 |
| 6 | Fast Break Points | 6 |
| 30 | Points in Paint | 36 |
| 24 | Fouls | 26 |
| 14 | Largest Lead | 0 |
Game Information
Location: Glendale, AZ
Attendance: 3,214 | Capacity:
2025-26 Southeastern Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 16-2 | - | 27-8 |
| Arkansas | 13-5 | 3 | 28-9 |
| Alabama | 13-5 | 3 | 25-10 |
| Vanderbilt | 11-7 | 5 | 27-9 |
| Tennessee | 11-7 | 5 | 25-12 |
| Texas A&M | 11-7 | 5 | 22-12 |
| Georgia | 10-8 | 6 | 22-11 |
| Kentucky | 10-8 | 6 | 22-14 |
| Missouri | 10-8 | 6 | 20-13 |
| Texas | 9-9 | 7 | 21-15 |
| Auburn | 7-11 | 9 | 22-16 |
| Oklahoma | 7-11 | 9 | 21-16 |
| Mississippi State | 5-13 | 11 | 13-19 |
| Ole Miss | 4-14 | 12 | 15-20 |
| South Carolina | 4-14 | 12 | 13-19 |
| LSU | 3-15 | 13 | 15-17 |
2025-26 Big East Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. John's | 18-2 | - | 30-7 |
| UConn | 17-3 | 1 | 34-6 |
| Villanova | 15-5 | 3 | 24-9 |
| Seton Hall | 10-10 | 8 | 21-12 |
| Creighton | 9-11 | 9 | 16-18 |
| DePaul | 8-12 | 10 | 16-16 |
| Butler | 7-13 | 11 | 16-16 |
| Providence | 7-13 | 11 | 15-18 |
| Marquette | 7-13 | 11 | 12-20 |
| Georgetown | 6-14 | 12 | 16-18 |
| Xavier | 6-14 | 12 | 15-18 |