On brink of season’s toughest stretch, Gamecocks are ‘prepared for what’s coming’
Keyshawn Bryant didn’t necessarily hurry himself back from injury. It’s just that he knew what South Carolina was facing in mid-December and, well, he aimed to lend the Gamecocks a hand.
And a healthy knee.
“I’m a competitive guy, so these games I didn’t want to miss,” Bryant said. “I didn’t rush, I tried to take my time with it, but if I was back for those games, I’d be ready to play.”
Bryant, making his season debut after knee surgery, scored 13 points Wednesday as the Gamecocks beat UMass, 84-80, in Amherst, Massachusetts. Call it a nice warm-up for what’s about to come.
Houston on Sunday. Clemson on Dec. 15. Virginia on Dec. 22. These are “those games” Bryant was referring to.
The stretch — minus a visit from Stetson on Dec. 30 — leads USC right into SEC play. It about matches the scheduling from this time last season when South Carolina took on Michigan, Virginia and Clemson. The Gamecocks lost all three and slumped to 4-7 before Christmas.
Currently Carolina is 6-3 and in better shape to handle the meat of its non-conference slate, Frank Martin said Friday. Why? The USC coach nodded to better depth — Bryant’s availability finally puts the Gamecocks at full strength whereas last year they were already down Justin Minaya and were about to lose Maik Kotsar for a few games and T.J. Moss for the season — and being more battle-tested.
Gardner-Webb made the NCAA Tournament last season. Wichita State has a “Sweet 16” caliber roster, according to Martin. Northern Iowa is a No. 12 seed in Joe Lunardi’s latest Big Dance projection posted to ESPN.com. UMass was 4-0 in Amherst before the Gamecocks came to town.
South Carolina went 2-2 against these teams, the losses coming in blowout (WSU) and narrow (UNI) form.
“That doesn’t mean we’re going to win the next three games,” Martin said, “but I think we’re prepared for what’s coming in front of us. But all three are going to be hard, two of those on the road.”
The Cougars (4-2) are coming to Columbia. They boast five double-digit scorers and rank among the nation’s top 20 teams in blocks per game.
Kelvin Sampson’s program has made the NCAA Tournament each of the past two seasons, including 33 wins and a Sweet 16 appearance in 2018-19. Lunardi has the current Cougars in his bracket as a No. 12 seed.
Quentin Grimes, a former McDonald’s All-American and Kansas transfer, leads Houston in points (16.3) and assists (3.7) per game.
The Cougars lead the American Athletic Conference in rebound margin (plus-11.7).
“I got so much respect for how (Sampson’s) teams play,” Martin said. “We got our hands full. It’s going to be by far the most physical game we’ve played this year, as far as the way they play and how consistent they are with their physicality. And they got real good players.”
Impression opposition is all the Gamecocks will see for a while. According to projections from college basketball analytics guru Ken Pomeroy, South Carolina has a 39% chance to beat Houston, a 31% chance to beat Clemson (5-3) and an 11% chance to beat reigning national champion Virginia (7-1).
“They’re really important,” Kotsar said. “Every opponent is really good. Everyone’s a tournament team and we need to go out there and compete and give it our best and hopefully win.”
HOUSTON AT SOUTH CAROLINA
Where: Colonial Life Arena
When: Noon, Sunday
TV: ESPNU
Radio: 107.5 The Game in Columbia area
Projected starting lineups
Houston (4-2)
G DeJon Jarreau 11.0 ppg, 3.2 rpg
G Quentin Grimes 16.8 ppg, 4.3 rpg
G Nate Hinton 11.2 ppg, 8.8 rpg
F Fabian White Jr. 12.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg
C Chris Harris Jr. 3.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg
South Carolina (6-3)
G Jair Bolden 9.2 ppg, 3.8 rpg
G A.J. Lawson 16.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg
F Justin Minaya 7.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg
F Wildens Leveque 3.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg
F Maik Kotsar 9.8 ppg, 6.4 rpg
