South Carolina got a heads start on the scoreboard in its men’s basketball game against Mississippi State in Columbia on Saturday.

The Gamecocks shot technical free throws after there was a fracas before the national anthem as the Gamecocks looked to line up for the performance while the Bulldogs were still warming up. AJ Lawson, who later in the game eclipsed 1,000 points for his career, made 1-of-2 free throws. So South Carolina started the game up 1-0 before the tip-off. Mississippi State’s Keondre Montgomery was called for the technical.

There were six fouls called in the game by the under 16:00 media timeout, a sign that the game will be called tight and there won’t be a shortage of physical play.

Entering Saturday, South Carolina (5-6) is coming off a huge win at Florida on Wednesday, 72-66. The Bulldogs fell to Arkansas on the road on Tuesday, 61-45. The Bulldogs are 10-9 and 4-6 in SEC contests. MSU had lost four of its last five contests entering the game at South Carolina.