Not much has come easily for Tennessee in SEC play.
    
But things seem to be even tougher on South Carolina.
    
Behind 50 percent shooting from beyond the arc, the Vols beat the Gamecocks for the 10th straight time, 69-57 Wednesday night at Thompson-Boling Arena.
    
After trailing by as much as 15 points, the Gamecocks used a 14-3 run to climb back to within four points by the 6:36 mark in the second half. It was a three-point game with four minutes remaining.
    
Tennessee coach Cuonzo Martin wasn’t surprised at all by South Carolina’s late surge.
    
“We did a poor job of executing our offense,” Martin said. “Just play simple basketball. You went up 15 by passing, cutting and moving, let’s go up by 20 by passing, cutting and moving. It’s not a celebration time. It’s finishing a basketball game.”
    
Senior guard Cameron Tatum’s six points were exactly what he needed to make him the 44th member of Tennessee’s 1,000-point club.
    
Junior guard Skylar McBee scored a career-high 18 points on 4-of-7 3-point shooting in his second career start for UT (12-12, 4-5 SEC). The junior from Rutledge, Tenn. got his first start Saturday against Georgia.
   
 “A little bit of the nerves were gone,” said McBee. “But like I said, it ain’t about starting or finishing, it’s about our five guys working as a unit when we’re out there, whether those minutes come early or late.”
    
Sophomore Trae Golden returned to the staring lineup at point guard after coming off the bench for the first time this season Saturday, scoring 14 points with four assists.
     
Junior forward Kenny Hall started in place of freshman Jarnell Stokes, who sprained his hand in practice, contributing a game-high 10 rebounds to go with three blocks.
    
 “I thought Kenny Hall played a tremendous game,” Martin said. “I thought he was special on the defensive side of the ball. Executing, switching guards, I thought he came ready to play.”
     
Stokes has played in seven games this season, and started UT’s previous five games after he joined the team in January.
     
Bruce Ellington led the Gamecocks (9-14, 1-8 SEC) with 12 points. Brenton Williams and Brian Richardson each added 11.
     
The Vols outrebounded the Gamecocks 34-30, but South Carolina won 18-14 on the glass in the second half.
    
 The Vols have won two straight games for the first time since a four-game win streak that ended with a Jan. 4 loss to Memphis. The Gamecocks dropped their fourth game in a row and remain in last place in the SEC.
    
 McBee hit three-straight 3-pointers in the final three minutes of the first half and added a pair of free throws to send UT on a 14-4 run and take a 35-27 lead at halftime.
    
“When you hit one or two, your confidence boosts up,” McBee said. “And then you just let it fly. You don’t even really think about if it’s going in or not, and I think that’s kind of what happened.”
     
With 2:52 left in the game, Golden hit a layup and the and-one free throw to give UT a 62-55 lead.