COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolina's Chuck Eidson notched the first triple-double in Gamecock history Friday night as USC cruised to victory over South Carolina State 82-65 in the Carolina Center.
The Gamecocks hit the floor en fuego with a16-0 run in the first 4:27 of the contest. SC went 6-7 from the field in opening, including a perfect 4 for 4 from downtown.
State, now 0-2, fell behind by 20 in the first half but battled back to reduce USC's margin to 40-32 with a 12-0 run just before the half. Twice in the second half they pulled within three.
Moses Malone Jr. led the Bulldogs with 22 points.
Both teams had their share of turnovers, but SC State won that battle coughing up the ball 24 times compared to USC's 23.
The crowd became a bit anxious as well when there were numerous stoppages thanks to continued clock malfunctions with the new scoreboard. And if that wasn't enough to get the roughly 14,000 in attendance on the edge of their seats out of frustration - then the frustration quickly turned to disappointment as Gamecock big man and starting center Tony Kitchings broke two metacarpal bones in his left hand while reaching for a ball in the first half. He did not return and is likely to miss the next 4-6 weeks of action.
Coach Odom was obviously concerned after the game. "I feel very bad for Tony. Tony broke two metacarpal bones in his left hand. We do not know how it will be treated or how long he will be out. The hand specialist will see him tomorrow before lunch. The best guess from the doctors here is that he will be out several weeks. We will have a clearer understanding of the situation once the specialist looks at it. Surgery is a possibility but it is not definite."
Sy Alexander said regarding Chuck Eidson's triple-double against his Bulldogs, "Chuck had a tremendous game. I have had the chance to watch him for the past four seasons. He has turned into a complete basketball player. He can pass, shoot, and defend."
Dave Odom agreed. "Chuck Eidson had the game of his life today and Carlos Powell was very tough. Chris Warren played great defense while Marius Petravicius rebounded well. We need him to continue playing like that. We still need to get our younger players more playing time. We need them to be more ready."
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