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Quiet road test less than ideal for USC
Small crowd at Princeton could affect Gamecock energy level
CommentsTonight, the South Carolina men’s basketball team, which plays its home games in an 18,000-seat arena, will enter a gym that seats about a third of that and play against a team that has drawn 1,500 fans for its first two games. Normally that would be ideal for a road team.
Not for this group of Gamecocks, if history is any indication. They would probably prefer a full building tonight at Princeton.
Last year, the players fed off of raucous road crowds. They said they got more excited than playing in front of lackluster home crowds, and with players like Devan Downey, the energy level was important.
USC won at Arkansas and Mississippi, and played close in front of big crowds at Florida, Vanderbilt, Kentucky and Mississippi State.
Then came this year’s first road test, and in front of a near-sellout crowd at the College of Charleston, the Gamecocks raced out to leads of 9-2 and 25-12.
It was only later in that game that things faltered, and the players said it was not the crowd.
“I didn’t really think the atmosphere was that hostile, personally,” forward Dominique Archie said after the game.
But the Gamecocks still fell, 82-80 in overtime, their first loss of the season. So that left first-year coach Darrin Horn wondering whether it was the road-home affect, or a coincidence.
Horn gets to study that tonight, when USC plays its last road game until Jan. 2.
“We probably never would have scheduled these games back-to-back, had we had the choice,” Horn said. “I think this is the kind of challenge that we need, coming off the game that we had Friday.”
A number of issues arose from that game, according to Horn. The rebounding and defense were off from the Gamecocks’ first four games, which were all at home against weaker opponents. The passing was sloppy.
“We just didn’t play at the level that we need to,” Horn said. “It is going to be harder on the road. We’re more worried about sticking to (the gameplan), whether we are road or home. And the first time it showed this year was when we were on the road.”
Muldrow still out. Sophomore center Sam Muldrow could be out longer than expected, Horn said.
The 6-foot-9 Muldrow has yet to play this season because of what Horn has called “academic issues.” If he is academically ineligible for the fall semester, he could return after exams for the team’s game on Dec. 16, against North Carolina-Central.
But Horn said a timetable for Muldrow’s return is not set.
“It does not look like he’s going to be available to us until at least the end of the semester,” Horn said.
Happy for the Hilltoppers. Western Kentucky, pulled off the upset of the weekend by beating then-No. 3 Louisville on Sunday. Horn, who left WKU after last season for USC, said he did not watch the game but was pleased for his old team.
“A big win for them. And also a testament to what happens when a group of young people believes they belong in that situation, and can do it,” Horn said. “That belief and confidence is what we’re trying to instill here, and we will, we’ll get to that point. This is a great group of young people, they’re working extremely hard, and they want to do the right things. We’ve just got to continue to get better.”
Reach Emerson at (803) 771-8676.
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