Stetson stunner: South Carolina falls in non-conference finale
The basketball bounced into press row and Frank Martin buried his head in his hands. The South Carolina coach stayed in this position for a good 10 seconds, even after Stetson in-bounded following the Gamecock turnover and game action resumed.
There was a scene unfolding at Colonial Life Arena that Martin just needed a break from watching.
The USC team that took down a top 10 opponent on Dec. 22 was hardly visible Monday afternoon. Playing Stetson — a bunch that entered on a four-game skid and with a No. 323 NET ranking — apparently didn’t motivate the Gamecocks like No. 9 Virginia did over a week earlier.
Stetson stunned South Carolina, 63-56, closing the non-conference season on head-scratching note.
So who are these Gamecocks (8-5) entering SEC play? The one that beat ACC teams on the road in consecutive games? Or the one that lost to Boston University and Stetson?
The fight for consistency continues as Florida comes to Columbia on Jan. 7.
“It’s all I talked to the guys about before the game,” Martin said, “let’s figure out who we are. We can’t be Jekyll and Hyde. You can’t be both. You got to have one personality. Who are we?
“Obviously today we flipped personalities again.”
The Hatters (6-9) had won before in 2019-20, but two of them came against Division II opponents. Members of the Atlantic Sun conference, Stetson entered as kenpom.com’s 331-st ranked team. This was set up for a Carolina cruise, extending the good vibes from Virginia for another 40 minutes as the Gamecocks came to SEC season red-hot and with eyes toward the NCAA Tournament.
But then Jair Bolden air-balled a 3 on USC’s first possession and the ugliness began.
“I don’t think we played aggressive enough,” said sophomore forward Justin Minaya. “We didn’t play with the right attitude, with making shots. We didn’t play our best.”
Stetson led by seven at halftime as South Carolina more than foreshadowed an upset was brewing. The Gamecocks were stagnant against the Hatters’ zone defense, settling for outside shots — and not making any of them (0 of 7 from 3). Other possessions were often lost with unforced turnovers (see A.J. Lawson’s three in eight minutes).
A good Monday matinee crowd of 10,985 tried to give the Gamecocks life for a second half rally. The place roared when Trae Hannibal scored through contact for a layup to cut the lead to seven with 6:11 left. But then it felt the disappointment of his ensuing missed free throw, one of Carolina’s 12 for the afternoon.
Stetson, meanwhile, was feeling it. A wild 3-pointer — launched from 20 feet as the shot clock expired — made by Rob Perry put the Hatters up 10 with 8:13 left. The advantage grew as big as 13.
When South Carolina’s 7-0 run — punctuated by a Justin Minaya 3 — got the Stetson lead down to two with 5:25 left, the Hatters got it back out to six within a minute.
Jermaine Couisnard finished a 3-point play at the 2:30 mark to make it 56-53, but T.J. Moss missed a floater on Carolina’s next possession that would have cut the lead to one.
The Gamecocks finished four of 19 on 3-pointers and shot 50% from the free throw line, all of it a far cry from eight days ago in Charlottesville.
“I don’t want to say front-runner,” Martin said, “but that’s kind of who we are right now. When things are going our way, we talk, we’re excited, we’re energetic, we’re together. As soon as things get really hard, we get very quiet, passive and individualistic.”
Maik Kotsar (11 points) was Carolina’s only double-digit scorer.
Christiaan Jones, a Columbia native and Cardinal Newman grad, led Stetson with 18 points.
“It’s great to come home and be able to play in this gym,” Jones said. “I haven’t played here since maybe I was 8 at their camp. It’s great to come back. They’re a great team, a great program.
“It was great to go out there and get that win. It feels really good.”
And one: Freshman Wildens Leveque collected six rebounds — second on USC behind Kotsar’s nine — in seven minutes.
Personal foul: Bolden and A.J. Lawson, a pair that ignited the Virginia win, was held to eight points and played just a combined 28 minutes.
Tip-in: Stetson outscored USC at the free throw line and beyond the arc by 21 points.
NEXT
What: Florida at South Carolina
When: 7 p.m., Jan. 7
TV: ESPN2
Radio: 107.5 The Game in Columbia area
BOX SCORE
STETSON (6-9): Panzo 0-1 1-2 1, Perry 5-14 0-0 13, Jones 3-8 10-13 18, Rawley 3-5 8-12 16, Diawara 3-8 3-4 9, Kabimba 1-2 0-2 2, Aninye 1-5 2-3 4, Foucart 0-1 0-0 0, Crutchfield 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 16-45 24-36 63.
SOUTH CAROLINA (8-5): Minaya 2-8 2-3 7, Kotsar 4-6 3-4 11, Couisnard 3-8 2-7 8, Bryant 2-8 0-0 4, Moss 2-4 0-0 5, Hannibal 3-5 2-5 8, Frink 0-1 2-4 2, Bolden 0-4 0-0 0, Lawson 3-7 0-0 8, Leveque 1-2 1-1 3, Nelson 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 20-54 12-24 56.
Halftime—Stetson 33-26. 3-Point Goals—Stetson 7-17 (Perry 3-6, Jones 2-3, Rawley 2-4, Aninye 0-1, Crutchfield 0-1, Diawara 0-1, Foucart 0-1), South Carolina 4-19 (Lawson 2-6, Minaya 1-2, Moss 1-3, Couisnard 0-1, Nelson 0-1, Bolden 0-3, Bryant 0-3). Fouled Out—Diawara, Kabimba, Kotsar, Couisnard, Moss. Rebounds—Stetson 32 (Panzo 7), South Carolina 36 (Minaya 9). Assists—Stetson 11 (Perry, Rawley, Aninye 3), South Carolina 13 (Couisnard 4). Total Fouls—Stetson 22, South Carolina 27.
This story was originally published December 30, 2019 at 5:06 PM.
