South Carolina’s bedrock cracked Saturday, and it cost the Gamecocks in a big way
South Carolina men’s basketball coach Frank Martin shows off a range of emotions every game, and that can include angst, exasperation or occasional fury.
But Saturday, he said, was the first time he felt disappointed.
His teams are built on defense — they always have been. His squad got itself onto the periphery of the NCAA tournament conversation with a defense that had been the best in the Southeastern Conference.
And the past two games, it hasn’t held up, especially in Saturday’s loss to LSU.
“With six months of practice, this time of year you can’t have bad discipline and bad attention to detail and win against teams that are as good as LSU,” Martin said.
“We had to be real good today and we weren’t.”
In terms of points allowed per possession, Saturday was South Carolina’s fourth-worst performance of the season. The only worse day in SEC play came against Auburn.
The LSU showing came three days after Mississippi State put up a solid day on offense.
Part of the poor effort against LSU linked to the timing of the game in Starkville, Martin said. The tipoff time in that game was 9 p.m. Eastern, and the team didn’t get back to Columbia until way late.
“It was very hard to prepare the team for (Saturday),” Martin said. “We got home at 3 o’clock in the morning Wednesday night. On Thursday, there’s only so much you can do. To deal with the physicality and the style of play that they play with five perimeter guys, we basically could only spend one day trying to get ready for that.
“If you want to call that an excuse, you can call it whatever you want to call it.”
Shooting was a particular issue against the Tigers, as it took a cold run down the stretch for the Tigers to fall to 47 percent from 2-point range and 39 percent from 3.
The players admitted they didn’t do their job on the defensive side. Martin was asked if the issues started with the guards and put the forwards in a bad spot, as had happened against the Bulldogs, and he agreed.
“We’ve got young guards and we played two teams that have got ... Mississippi State has got a three-year starter at guard in Tyson Carter,” Martin said. “They just toyed with us. The things that we talk about doing defensively, we have not done for two games in a row.
“We’ve been bad.”
The team also did a poor job closing out on big man Darius Days when he popped out after setting a pick. The 27.9 percent 3-point shooter hit four of his six attempts from long range.
Asked about breakdowns there, Martin said, “My assistant coaches did their jobs,” and said those questions should be directed to the players. (Guard Jermaine Couisnard admitted the players felt they did not, in fact, do their jobs.)
The loss puts South Carolina behind the 8-ball in terms of the NCAA tournament. The Mississippi State trip and LSU game symbolized two of the team’s best chances to boost their resume.
Martin admitted that part hurt, but continued his mantra that the teams aren’t picked just yet, and there’s still time.
To get things in place, they’ll need to get that defense in order.
USC’s next game, against Georgia, offers some relief with the No. 80 offense coming to Columbia. But then comes a trip to Alabama and its No. 40 offense, with Mississippi State’s No. 18 attack coming to USC after that.
The Gamecocks’ young roster is at the point where it should have a feel for what Martin wants on that side of the ball. But if it hopes to move forward in a significant way, the team will have to rediscover that spark and that toughness.
“We’ll fix it next week,” Martin said. “We’ve got two solid days of practice coming off a day off tomorrow. We’ll rectify our issues.”
South Carolina LSU box score
LSU (19-8): Days 6-8 2-2 18, Hyatt 1-2 0-0 3, Watford 5-11 4-6 15, Mays 3-11 7-8 13, Smart 7-12 2-2 18, Manning 2-8 4-6 9, Williams 2-6 4-5 8, Taylor 0-1 2-2 2, Cooper 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-59 25-31 86.
SOUTH CAROLINA (16-11): Bryant 5-14 5-9 15, Frink 0-1 1-2 1, Kotsar 4-10 2-2 10, Couisnard 4-16 5-6 15, Lawson 5-12 0-0 13, Bolden 6-9 0-0 15, Leveque 2-3 1-3 5, Hannibal 2-7 1-2 6, McCreary 0-2 0-0 0, Moss 0-1 0-1 0. Totals 28-75 15-25 80.
Halftime—LSU 44-37. 3-Point Goals—LSU 9-23 (Days 4-6, Smart 2-5, Hyatt 1-2, Watford 1-2, Manning 1-5, Mays 0-3), South Carolina 9-25 (Bolden 3-6, Lawson 3-8, Couisnard 2-6, Hannibal 1-4, Moss 0-1). Rebounds—LSU 37 (Watford 10), South Carolina 40 (Bryant 10). Assists—LSU 15 (Mays 6), South Carolina 12 (Couisnard 4). Total Fouls—LSU 23, South Carolina 22. A—15,979 (18,000).
NEXT
What: Georgia at South Carolina
When: 6:30 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Colonial Life Arena
TV: SEC Network
Radio: 107.5 The Game in Columbia area
