Are the Gamecocks Legit Contenders in the SEC?
Lamont Paris and his Gamecocks hosted John Calipari and his young wildcat squad on Tuesday night in a surprisingly highly anticipated SEC matchup. This Kentucky team heading into the game came in averaging 89.9 points per game scored. As a team, they have an average of 40% shooting from the three-point line, which ranks seventh in the nation. South Carolina obviously did their homework because they limited Kentucky to 30.8% from three which resulted in a team total of only 62 points, their lowest of the season. With Vegas setting the line of this game at Kentucky -5.5, this game seemed a little sketchy to begin with. Given Kentucky is going on the road, they should have been a larger favorite being a top ten ranked team playing a non-ranked team. It hurts to say, being a long-time Clemson fan, this Gamecock team is legit and deserves proper credit.
There is no doubt that South Carolina came prepared for this matchup. Gamecock Head Coach, Lamont Paris, made it a huge focus on limiting Kentucky on offense, especially from doing damage from the 3-point line. Coach Paris, known for his keen defensive coaching style, did exactly what he planned on doing which resulted in the Gamecocks securing the win at home in Colonial Life Arena. This Gamecock defense limited projected 1st-round draft pick, Reed Sheppard, to only three points. Sheppard, along with his teammates, couldn’t get anything going from three-point land. As great as the Gamecocks were on defense, their offense was even more mesmerizing.
Starting point guard, Meechie Johnson, continued his run at being on the ALL-SEC team this season. He finished the game with 14 points, including a couple deep three-point shots, and a number of elite defensive plays that won’t show up in the stat sheet. The star offensive player of the night for the Gamecocks was local South Carolina native, Ta’lon Cooper. He showed up big time tonight on the offensive side of the floor. He scored 20 points to go along with six rebounds (three offensive) and tagged along five assists to his name. Together, the Gamecocks shot 11/24 (45.8%) from the three-point line, which is an important detail on how South Carolina won this game. Kentucky limits their opponents to 32% from three on average. They made seven more three-pointers than Kentucky, which resulted in a 21 point advantage for the Gamecocks which almost resulted in the exact winning margin. Needless to say, this was a huge reason why South Carolina ended up in a blow-out win with the score 79-62. As much as it pains me to say this, being a Clemson Tiger, South Carolina deserves their flowers and a ranking inside the AP top 25.
In the Gamecocks next matchup, they welcome the Missouri Tigers back at Colonial Life Arena on Saturday, January 27th. These two teams played on January 13th, with South Carolina pulling out a 71-69 OT thriller. I would expect Missouri to come out aggressive, seeking some revenge after losing a heartbreaker in the last matchup. The Wildcats look to get back on track as they travel to Arkansas, an Eric Musselman coached team who is not afraid of sizing up to the top dogs.
