Solid start: Gamecocks take down Mississippi State in SEC opener
If there was a game USC men’s basketball needed to circle on its conference schedule, the Southeastern Conference opener against Mississippi State would be on top of that list.
Both teams walked into Colonial Life Arena on five-game win streaks, both receiving votes in the AP Top 25 and both with an opportunity to show out on national television. With Mississippi State having a chance to tie or take the lead in its final possession, guard Meechie Johnson came up with a steal and hit two free throws to put away the game for the Gamecocks.
South Carolina walked out of its home court with a 68-62 win Saturday.
“All right, it’s officially here,” head coach Lamont Paris said with a small smile as he sat down postgame. “SEC basketball.”
Welcome to the SEC
The good news for South Carolina is that aside from facing Tennessee next month, there won’t be another defense like Mississippi State. The Bulldogs are notorious for forcing their opponents into double teams and eliminating the baseline.
It worked. At least for the first half.
“It was tough to kind of get our feet wet,” Myles Stute said. “Those first couple possessions, we were stagnant. They weren’t giving us any good looks to start things off, so we just came together and thought about what they were doing and how we could kind of take advantage of switching defenses and things like that.”
South Carolina’s first three possessions were unsuccessful. Each came down to the final seconds — in one case milliseconds — and the Gamecocks came up empty. USC couldn’t get an open look from three, passing too quickly and too often. It was frantic.
SEC play means it’s going to be a close game every game. USC just had to find a way to limit errors against the aggressive, impressive MSU defense.
The Gamecocks did find their rhythm toward the end of the first half. Slowly, the chaotic passing got more controlled. Screens were working, and USC got a few offensive rebounds and open looks.
Adjusting on the fly
Mississippi State’s defense has been consistent throughout the non-conference season and it’s thrived off forcing opponents to change game plans.
If South Carolina did make real defensive adjustments, whatever it flipped around worked in its favor. Paris found ways to give his players offensive rebounds, get them more open 3-point shots and play more of USC’s style of basketball.
“They were switching a lot, one through four especially,” Stute said of reading Mississippi State’s tendencies. “And in the post, they were helping from the baseline side. So we knew if we got a touch down there and they send it to the post that we’d be able to take advantage of that.”
Sure, the Gamecocks fell into some foul trouble. BJ Mack had three fouls with eight minutes to play; Collin Murray-Boyles sat on the bench after his second foul. But it did help that no guard had more than two fouls, and that Stute was in the clear toward the final minutes. Paris chose to keep Mack and Murray-Boyles in the game, even with the fouls. He trusted his intuition.
“I go by gut and feel on that,” Paris said. “I don’t automatically just take somebody out of the game because they have a couple fouls. You know what, there’s a lot of factors in it.”
But against the Bulldogs, USC out-rebounding MSU was a feat that shouldn’t be ignored. Not only did the Gamecocks win the rebound battle, but they did so on both offense and defense. South Carolina won the battle, 35-26. USC scored 16 second-chance points compared to MSU’s six.
If there’s a sign the Gamecocks can hold their own in a category outside their 3-point shooting, it would be rebounds.
Stute stays hot
Stute is one of the Gamecocks’ transfers with previous SEC experience. In his garnet and black SEC debut, he scored 15 points to lead all forwards. Stute had the first Gamecocks bucket in the first half, slamming the ball down for a flashy dunk to bring some energy into Colonial Life Arena.
He didn’t have many flashy scores after that, but he was efficient.
“That’s been something I’ve been working on as well,” Stute said. “Just opening up my entire game, not just being able to shoot threes, but moving without the ball, cutting screens and getting good looks.”
The afternoon’s top-performing forward was 6 for 11 in field goals and 3 for 5 beyond the arc. Mack followed with five points, his lowest-scoring game of the season. Murray-Boyles also gave USC a big lift off the bench with eight points, going 3 for 4 in the paint and 2 for 3 at the line.
Stute’s role this season is similar to Mack’s: bring the physicality in the paint while putting up big numbers. And while he hasn’t scored in double digits every game, when the Vanderbilt transfer does have that high-flying performance it shows up.
“You don’t accidentally carve your way into a win against a team like that,” Paris said. “So our guys earned it. And it was good.”
Other notable stats
- Stute has scored 10-plus points in his last four games. He’s now scored in double digits in 10 of 14 games this season.
- South Carolina has won its last 10 home games, dating back to defeating Georgia on March 4 last season. It’s the longest home-game win streak since the 2015-16 season.
- Johnson has scored 20-plus points in six games this season. His 24 points against Mississippi State marked his 10th 20-plus point game at South Carolina.
- South Carolina’s win was the first SEC opening win since defeating Texas A&M during the 2020-21 season. It was the first time USC defeated Mississippi State in a conference opener, and is 1-3 all-time in that category.
Next four games
- Jan. 9 at Alabama, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
- Jan. 13 at Missouri, 3:30 p.m. (SEC Network)
- Jan. 16 vs. Georgia, 9 p.m. (ESPNU)
- Jan. 20 at Arkansas, 1 p.m. (SEC Network)
This story was originally published January 6, 2024 at 2:18 PM.
