USC defeats Chattanooga in the first game of the Eric Musselman era

Musselman era begins with a win

The Eric Musselman era at USC began with a 77-62 win over Chattanooga on Tuesday night at Colonial Life Arena. The Gamecocks (1-0) were led by A.J. Lawson, who scored 17 points. Jeriah Horne added 14 points, Erik Stevenson had 13 points, and James Reese had 10 points.

Chattanooga (0-1) was led by Malachi Smith, who scored 18 points. Darius Banks added 12 points, and David Jean-Baptiste had 10 points.

The Gamecocks took an early lead and never looked back. They led by 10 points at halftime, and they extended their lead to 20 points in the second half.

Musselman pleased with team's effort

Musselman was pleased with his team's effort in the win.

"I thought our guys played really hard," Musselman said. "We had a lot of energy, and we were able to get some stops on the defensive end. We also made some shots, and that helped us get the win."

The Gamecocks will be back in action on Friday night when they host South Carolina State. The game will tip off at 7 p.m. at Colonial Life Arena.