Gamecocks score knockout

ATHENS, Ga. - South Carolina's Carlos Powell didn't need to see clearly with both eyes to identify a basketball game turning into something more physical.

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Asked if he felt he had just gone 15 rounds after he left South Carolina's 60-53 win over Georgia with a swollen eye Saturday, the senior managed a pained laugh.

"Oh man, 15? No, 30," Powell said. "I got hit twice. Two times! Same eye."

Powell took the first hit from Georgia's Corey Gibbs in the first half and then scored 12 of his team-leading 16 points in the second half.

Powell, teammate Rocky Trice and South Carolina coach Dave Odom were hit with technical fouls in the second half as officials tried to control the physical game.

There were a combined total of 38 fouls called, but no player fouled out.

Taking its first Southeastern Conference road victory since Jan. 28, 2004, South Carolina improved to 13-7 overall and 5-4 in the SEC.

Georgia (7-12 overall, 1-8 SEC) suffered its fourth straight loss.

Odom said he expected a physical game and might have gone too far in gearing his team up for that style of play.

"It was a difficult game to get a handle on," Odom said. "There was a lot of body contact from the outset.

"I'm probably as much at fault as anybody. I had my team a little on edge. I'm not sure we reacted as well as we should when there was physical contact."

Georgia, last in the SEC in scoring, field goal percentage and 3-point shooting, has been held to 55 or fewer points in five conference games. But even by Georgia's standards, this was an offensive struggle.

The Bulldogs shot 30.6 percent from the field and made only 4 of 22 3-point attempts.

"We fought hard; we fought really hard," said Georgia coach Dennis Felton. "And hallelujah! We finally outrebounded a team (31-30) for the first time in over a month. I'm very pleased with that."

Channing Toney led Georgia with 15 points. Sundiata Gaines added 12 points.

Levi Stukes, Georgia's leading scorer with 15.7 points per game, had 10 points.