Mississippi State 56, South Carolina 54: Freshman guard Craig Sword finished with 18 points, including a crucial late-game dunk, to boost the host Bulldogs to a comeback win over the Gamecocks.

Sophomore forward Roquez Johnson came off the bench to score 14 for the second straight game while junior forward Colin Borchert had eight points and six rebounds for Mississippi State (6-7, 1-0 SEC).

South Carolina (10-4, 0-1) played to a 26-26 halftime tie despite giving up 15 points off turnovers. The Bulldogs took the lead with 46 seconds to play on a pair of Sword free throws and he followed with a dunk to make it a two-possession game before South Carolina's Brian Richardson missed a 3-pointer with three seconds left.

Richardson scored a game-high 20 points and added eight rebounds while fellow junior guard Bruce Ellington finished with 11 points.

Mississippi State was 0-for-10 from beyond the 3-point arc.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Mississippi State is 3-0 against South Carolina when they meet in a conference opener. … The Gamecocks have won only once on the road in their SEC opener since 1993. … The Bulldogs hold a 17-8 lead in the series.