Basketball pundits often warn about the dangers of "letting an opponent hang around."

Kentucky learned the hard way on Wednesday night in Columbia, S.C.

Unranked South Carolina battled back from frequent double-digit deficits to upset the No. 10 Wildcats, 81-78, on a running 3-pointer banked off the glass by Jermaine Couisnard as the buzzer sounded.

"You got a chance to get someone to 20 (points down) you do it," UK head coach John Calipari said. "This team does not do it. We haven't done it all year... You're not playing St. Aloysius. This is is Division I, major college, Power 5. Every possession matters, and when you get a chance to get somebody down, you do."

It marked only the seventh time in 279 occasions under Calipari that UK lost after leading by 10 points at any point in the game.

Couisnard, a freshman guard who scored a game-high 26 points, fueled a huge second-half performance by the Gamecocks. South Carolina (9-7, 1-2 SEC) entered the matchup as one of the worst offensive teams in the nation among Power 5 schools but tallied 56 points over the final 20 minutes of play.

To put that half in perspective, South Carolina scored 56 total points or fewer this season in losses to Tennessee, Stetson, Houston, and Wichita State.

Kentucky (12-4, 3-1 SEC) fought back from a six-point deficit with 1:04 remaining to tie the game on Immanuel Quickley's baseline jumper with 4.1 seconds to go, but Couisnard pushed the ball through the UK defense and launched a running 28-footer that touched off a wild celebration at Colonial Life Arena.

After shooting 24% from the field in the first half, South Carolina shot 56 percent in the second period. The Gamecocks helped themselves tremendously on the glass, where they owned a 42-41 advantage and pulled down 20 offensive rebounds leading to 16 second-chance points.

South Carolina did so despite its top post player, Maik Kotsar, playing only 12 minutes due to foul trouble. He fouled out with no points and four rebounds. Keyshawn Bryant helped compensate with 15 points, while Justin Minaya and TJ Moss added 11 and 10, respectively.

The Cats' offense faltered down the stretch, producing only one bucket between the 5:08 mark and the :04 mark.

Quickley finished with a team-high 20 points, continuing his recent hot stretch of games. Nick Richards followed with 15 points and seven rebounds despite battling foul trouble. Ashton Hagans and Tyrese Maxey each added 13 points for UK.

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In this Cats Illustrated "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK loss…

THE GOOD:

Immanuel Quickley might be UK's best player now. His last five games have been tremendous. The sophomore guard has gone 14-of-21 (67%) from 3-point range in SEC play.

THE BAD:

Kentucky was beaten 42-41 on the glass by a team that did not have its top big man for most of the night. South Carolina pulled down 20 offensive rebounds leading to 16 second-chance points. The Cats compounded that issue by turning the ball over 15 times leading to 19 points off turnovers for the Gamecocks. That's 35 brutally bad points to surrender.

THE UGLY:

The officiating crew, headed by Pat Adams, called 54 fouls in a 40-minute game and disqualified four players, two from each team. Toss in 24 turnovers between the teams and you had nearly two play stoppages per minute played.

GAME BALL:

Jermaine Couisnard, South Carolina -- Forget the hero shot at the buzzer. That was luck. What wasn't a fluke was Couisnard's play throughout the game. He put the Gamecocks on his back and carried them to a memorable upset.

BY THE NUMBERS:

3 - Losses for UK to teams ranked outside of KenPom's Top 100 (Evansville, Utah, South Carolina).

4-4 - John Calipari's record in Columbia since becoming UK head coach.

10 - Missed free throws for the Cats, who went 25-of-35 at the line.

10/15 - UK was underwater in the assist-to-turnover ratio for the first time since the loss to Utah on Dec. 18.

14 - Kentucky's largest lead of the night, 46-32, coming with 16:34 remaining. The Gamecocks scored nearly three points per minute from that point forward.

34-26 - South Carolina's points-in-the paint advantage.

2016 - The last year that UK won a game at South Carolina.

QUOTABLE:

"Toughness. Just didn't have it." -- UK head coach John Calipari

UP NEXT:

Kentucky returns to action Saturday at Arkansas. Tipoff is slated for 4 p.m. ET on ESPN.