South Carolina coach Frank Martin didn't sense a lot of fear in his players as the one-loss squad faced an 11-point deficit with little more four minutes remaining.

That faith proved prudent as the No. 24 Gamecocks rallied to force overtime and eventually registered a 77-74 victory over Ole Miss on Tuesday at Oxford, Miss.

"I know our guys have a lot of heart, I know that," Martin said. "We've been through a lot for the last 3 1/2 years. I know our guys are going to fight. They are never going to throw in the towel."

Nobody battled harder than senior forward Michael Carrera, who had 19 points and nine rebounds. Carrera also converted the tiebreaking three-point play in overtime as South Carolina (17-1, 4-1 SEC) continued its successful turnaround from the team that lost 54 games in Martin's first three seasons.

"We needed a big win like this one," Carrera said. "We stayed together. We lose together, we win together and that's how we've been doing it the whole season."

Senior forward Laimonas Chatkevicius had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Gamecocks. Junior guard Duane Notice added 14 points and made four 3-pointers, while senior forward Mindaugas Kacinas had 10 points.

Rebels senior guard Stefan Moody scored 24 points and became the 38th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points. Moody made 8 of 13 shots from the field, including four 3-pointers, for Ole Miss (12-6, 2-4) but was ineffective late in the contest after injuring his left hamstring.

"He wanted to play," Rebels coach Andy Kennedy said, "but he just couldn't move."

Senior forward Anthony Perez scored a season-best 16 points for Ole Miss, which lost its third consecutive game. Freshman forward Marcanvis Hymon contributed 10 points and nine rebounds.

South Carolina held a four-point edge in overtime, but the Rebels eventually tied the contest at 72 when freshman guard Donte Fitzpatrick-Dorsey stole the ball from Gamecocks junior guard Sindarius Thornwell and drove in for the tying dunk with 53.3 seconds to play.

Carrera scored in the lane and added a free throw to give the Gamecocks a three-point edge with 29.3 seconds left. Ole Miss junior guard Rasheed Brooks airballed a 3-point attempt with 10.4 seconds left and Carrera added two free throws.

"I felt real good about our guys and they felt good that we got the game into overtime," Martin said. "Had a chance to win it in regulation and couldn't do it but they felt real good coming down the stretch and for us to go out and play the way we did in overtime is great."

South Carolina looked headed to a loss in regulation when Perez made two free throws to give the Rebels a 66-55 lead with 4:13 remaining.

However, Ole Miss didn't score again in regulation, and the Gamecocks rolled off 11 straight points. The splurge was capped by back-to-back baskets by Carrera, the latter which tied the score at 66 with 42.1 seconds left.

"To beat a ranked team in an SEC game, you have to make a play," Kennedy said. "Somebody has to make a play. We didn't get it done."

Thornwell, the Gamecocks' leading scorer, had five points on 1-of-15 shooting.

South Carolina also trailed by 11 points early in the second half and used an 8-0 burst fueled by a three-point play by Chatkevicius and a 3-pointer by Notice to move within 44-41 with 16:23 remaining.

The Rebels answered with eight straight points -- five by Hymon -- to restore their 11-point advantage.

The Gamecocks crept within 54-48 on two free throws by Carrera with 9:37 left. But Moody scored all the points in a 7-2 surge -- including a free throw for his 1,000th career point -- as Ole Miss held a 61-50 edge with 6:25 to play.

Moody first departed the contest with 5:12 remaining in regulation after grabbing his left hamstring. Trainers stretched him out and he returned to action 48 seconds later but was hampered and exited again with 2:03 to play.

Moody returned for the final 42.1 seconds of regulation and played the first 3:02 of overtime before leaving for good. He didn't score after sustaining the injury.

"We think it's a strain," Kennedy said. "Typically, if you've ever pulled your hamstring which would be very problematic, there would be a divot formed based on where the tear is. There's no divot. I don't think he could have even given us as much as he did if it was torn."

Moody had 12 first-half points and Perez also scored 12 -- making each of his four 3-point attempts -- as the Rebels held a 39-29 halftime lead.

Perez's fourth 3-pointer came in the midst of an 8-2 burst that gave Ole Miss a 36-25 lead. Thornwell and Kacinas recorded back-to-back hoops to get the Gamecocks back within seven, but Moody drained a last-second 3-pointer over the tight defense of Thornwell to account for the 10-point halftime advantage.

NOTES: After the win, South Carolina owns a 2-12 record in games played in Oxford. The previous victory was an 80-77 decision on Feb. 2, 2008. ... Rebels junior F Sebastian Saiz and senior G Martavious Newby missed the game with eye injuries and Saiz will be sidelined indefinitely after undergoing surgery to repair a detached retina. ... Gamecocks sophomore G Marcus Stroman (concussion) returned to action after missing Saturday's game against Missouri. ... Ole Miss senior G Stefan Moody scored 20-plus points for the 13th consecutive game. ... South Carolina matched its victory total of last season when it went 17-16. ... The Rebels played their fourth game at The Pavilion, their new $96.5 million, 9,500-seat home arena that opened earlier this month.