ROCK HILL, S.C. — South Carolina gave Rock Hill an early look at its rebuilt men basketball roster Thursday night, beating Wake Forest 78-69 in a preseason tuneup played at the city Sports & Event Center .
The Gamecocks went to the break up 39-34 and stretched the margin to 17 in the second half. Wake Forest answered with an 11-0 burst in the last three minutes to get within five, but South Carolina closed it out.
Jakub Necas topped every scorer with 22 points and added five rebounds. Camden Heide hit two early second-half threes on his way to 14, and freshman guard Marcus Johnson logged 34 minutes and scored 13.
For the Demon Deacons, freshman Gavin Placide went 6-for-6 from the field and finished with 21 points, and Justin Ray chipped in 14. The Deacs did their damage inside, with 36 paint points, and added 30 more off fast breaks.
Free throws were a big gap. The Gamecocks made 26 of 29 at the line, while Wake Forest hit 21 of 30, and South Carolina won the boards 40-30. The Demon Deacons start games that count on Nov. 2, hosting Maryland Eastern Shore.
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