The symbiotic relationship that’s opening up South Carolina’s backcourt
A season ago, A.J. Lawson was blossoming into a potential NBA player as a member of South Carolina’s basketball team. Jermaine Couisnard was sitting on the bench, locked away by the NCAA.
It’s easy to imagine Lawson, a veteran of sudden stardom, could do something to unlock a player whose ability was the providence of practice reports and whispered scuttlebutt. This was not the case.
As Lawson had one of his most efficient scoring games of the year Wednesday and Couisnard came off taking a lead role in slowing future NBA draft pick Anthony Edwards and Georgia, USC coach Frank Martin explained that it’s been Couisnard who helped unlock his talented teammate.
“A.J. can play point,” Martin said. “But he’s really young and that’s why early in the year I was trying to play Jair (Bolden) because he’s older. But I just wasn’t happy with how we were playing.”
In went Lawson, and Martin quickly saw that wasn’t the right approach.
“He just kind of got swapped out with the burden of responsibility of having the lead,” Martin said.
In went Couisnard, a 6-foot-4 combo guard with an aggressive streak and an attitude the matches the coach’s in-your-face approach.
Couisnard delivered a balance of taking over the offense, when needed, and setting others up. He seemed to find Lawson in the places he’s comfortable.
And you get an evening such as Wednesday, where Lawson scored 20 points on 10 shots, taking advantage of a leaky Georgia defense. Couisnard handed out a team-high four assists, hit half his 3-pointers and scored a solid 14 points.
Couisnard explained the pair’s on-court balance in the simplest terms.
“Whoever’s hot, just give him the ball, basically,” Couisnard said. “Tonight he had it going.”
Just about every bucket Lawson had Wednesday in Athens came either at the rim or from beyond the arc.
“He was finding me in transition and keeping me positive,” Lawson said. “Just talking the whole time, just encouraging me. That’s what a good leader does.”
The Gamecocks offense opened well, something Couisnard credited to quick ball movement. He said he approaches the point guard spot with an eye toward being aggressive, feeding bigs in the paint and creating inside-out opportunities.
Couisnard took a burden off Lawson’s shoulders, Martin said, and the sophomore agreed. That energy and aggressiveness on the other side just made things easier.
Don’t forget: The two were classmates. Lawson was a late add to the 2018 USC recruiting class, reclassifying to come to college a year early. Couisnard joined up more than a month after the first signing day, a prep school player who raised his profile by going halfway across the country.
Lawson rose so fast in terms of his profile and expectations that he became the preseason avatar of South Carolina’s tournament hopes this year. Couisnard was the unknown and not as highly rated, but he built up buzz by doing enough behind the scenes.
And yet, the player who waited not once but twice has proven the bedrock for one who had so much come to him so fast. In Martin’s eyes, his leadership role well beyond that.
“He stays grounded and connected with who he is and what we’re doing,” Martin said. “Jermaine is one of those special people who exudes confidence. He just makes everyone feel better.”
South Carolina-Georgia basketball box score
SOUTH CAROLINA (15-9): Bryant 4-5 4-4 12, Frink 1-1 1-4 3, Kotsar 5-12 1-2 11, Couisnard 5-13 1-1 14, Lawson 7-10 4-5 20, McCreary 4-8 0-3 8, Hannibal 2-7 0-0 4, Bolden 1-6 0-0 3, Moss 0-1 0-0 0, Leveque 0-1 0-0 0, Anderson 0-1 0-0 0, Nelson 0-0 0-0 0, Green 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-65 11-19 75.
GEORGIA (12-12): Camara 0-4 0-0 0, Hammonds 2-6 1-4 5, Edwards 4-13 8-8 16, Harris 4-6 2-2 10, Wheeler 1-6 2-4 4, Crump 2-5 2-2 8, Fagan 2-6 2-2 6, Gresham 2-3 3-4 8, Peake 0-1 0-0 0, Howard 1-1 0-0 2, Brown 0-1 0-0 0, Etter 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-52 20-26 59.
Halftime—South Carolina 38-20. 3-Point Goals—South Carolina 6-17 (Couisnard 3-6, Lawson 2-4, Bolden 1-4, Anderson 0-1, Hannibal 0-1, Moss 0-1), Georgia 3-24 (Crump 2-4, Gresham 1-2, Brown 0-1, Camara 0-1, Peake 0-1, Fagan 0-2, Hammonds 0-2, Harris 0-2, Wheeler 0-2, Edwards 0-7). Rebounds—South Carolina 41 (Frink 9), Georgia 31 (Howard 6). Assists—South Carolina 17 (Couisnard 4), Georgia 9 (Hammonds, Wheeler, Peake 2). Total Fouls—South Carolina 20, Georgia 16.
