South Carolina’s defense locked in during the second and third quarters, forcing Mississippi State into eight straight misses over a nine-minute stretch. The Bulldogs, who average 18 assists per game, were held to just eight for the afternoon as USC disrupted passing lanes and smothered ball handlers.

Well, that was one way to ring in the new year. After going 10-3 in the non-conference slate, South Carolina proved to be no match for No. 17 Mississippi State in the SEC opener, losing 85-50. Here are five things we learned from watching the way the Gamecocks performed on Saturday.

Just when it looked like South Carolina had survived getting run over by No. 17 Mississippi State for the first 13 minutes of Saturday’s SEC opener, the Bulldogs