Defense guides South Carolina to 35-13 victory over Kentucky

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- , South Carolina’s defense returned two turnovers for touchdowns within a span of three plays on Saturday night and the Gamecocks beat Kentucky, 35-13. The Wildcats (2-2, 0-2 SEC) were gashing South Carolina with the run and held a 10-7 lead in the second quarter. Quarterback Cutter Boley was sacked by Dylan Stewart , the ball popped loose and defensive lineman Jatius Geer retrieved it, chugging 40 yards for a touchdown. Two plays later, Boley cast into the secondary but his pass clanged off the hands of Kendrick Law . South Carolina’s Gerald Kilgore gobbled the carom and sprinted 45 yards to the end zone. “Obviously when you score twice on defense, you’re going to be really hard to beat,” coach Shane Beamer said. “We didn’t just want to win the turnover battle, we wanted to dominate it.” Trailing 21-10, the Wildcats tried to get their offense back in gear.