The offenses from both teams were on from the start of this game.  I also think the game has gotten pretty physical, but I think one of the moments that should have gotten called has propelled the Bulldogs to their lead.   Przemek Karnowski, the Zags big center who had been making lots of good plays in the lane, went up for a layup and got blocked by Chris Silva.   While the block of the ball was clean, Silva’s hand followed through to slap Karnowski across the face and knocking him down to the ground – while the contact on the shot was clean, I didn’t think you were allowed to follow through to cause that type of contact.   With the big guy lying on the ground in pain, South Carolina quickly went down the court and hit Justin McKie for a three-pointer to tie the game at 31.

And while Gonzaga lost their center for the last 5 minutes of the half, Gonzaga was sparked by this.   The Zags started to get more physical themselves – including a brutal screen that took out a South Carolina defender.   Zach Collins took over inside with a layup, a couple of rebounds, and a block.  And Nigel Williams-Goss was incredible.  Williams-Goss was unstoppable when he drove to the basket, and then kicked the ball out to Jordan Matthews on the wing for a three pointer that stretched the lead to 45-36.   The Bulldogs almost added 3 more to their 14-5 run, but Silas Melson’s three-pointer was still in his hand when the buzzer went off.

It is probably not helping that South Carolina’s star player Sindarius Thornwell has struggled in the first half – it was very unfortunate timing that he has been fighting the flu all week, but he looks a little lethargic in only getting 5 points.

This is not unfamiliar territory for the Gamecocks.   They have been down at half time in 3 of their 4 tournament games, including down 7 to both Duke and Florida.   We will see if they can come back one more time.