South Carolina MBB picks up first win in 32 days. Lamont Paris reacts

For the first time in 32 days, Lamont Paris addressed the local media after a win.

“I’d be lying if I didn’t say it felt good to be on the other side of the win and loss situation,” Paris said.

South Carolina men’s basketball took down Mississippi State 97-89 on Saturday at Colonial Life Arena. The win snapped a seven-game losing streak for USC as the Gamecocks improved to 12-15 on the year and 3-11 in the SEC.

Here’s what Paris had to say after the game:

Opening statement

Paris’ opening statement was a mix of relief, praise for his players and acknowledgement that the Gamecocks must capitalize on the win however possible as they play the final four regular-season games of the year.

“I’d be lying if I didn’t say it felt good to be on the other side of the win and loss situation. So really happy for our guys that played well. We’ve been playing better. I’ve been saying this in these last couple of games. You’re on the road at the top two teams in standings, and I thought we did some really good things in those games ... So we’ve been doing some things well, and then for it all to come together on a day that we also shot the ball well, I thought it was really good for the guys just to enjoy that feeling,” Paris said. “The rest of the season is the shortest part of the season, but it’s the most important part of the season for us. So we’ll approach every game like that, and try to build on some of the things that have been brewing for a little bit. This is the first one that has culminated in a win in a little while, but continuing to build on some of the things that we’ve really been working on.”

Ending the drought

Paris said he hadn’t been counting the days since USC last won, an 85-76 victory against Oklahoma on Jan. 20, but admitted it’s been a challenging stretch for him.

“It sounds so different when you say 32 days. I wasn’t counting, but it does sound different when you say 32 days. There’s challenges. My own personal anything always comes so far down the list as it is. When I know that I have any challenges, I know that the guys have perceived to have more difficult challenges, and probably are less equipped to handle those challenges. ... A couple times I don’t sleep the way I should, and whatever, but usually by the next morning, by time 10 o’clock rolls around, I got my mojo back,” Paris said. “So we practice, usually 10 in the afternoon, and there’s never a day I don’t go in there with tremendous energy. And sometimes that’s dialed up in some other areas, like when we don’t rebound, it comes across as aggressive. But there’s not a day that I don’t have tremendous energy when I go in there, and I love what I do. I love the opportunity to be around these young people and help them navigate this path and improve and have opportunities and all those things.”

Paris said he has to enjoy the challenge and helping his players through it if he’s going to succeed at doing so.

“You have to take time to think about that when you have it, because it’s challenging. It’s challenging. I can look at my track record as an assistant coach, as a head coach. Call it luck. I’ve been really lucky. I’ve had a lot of winning go on. And so then when you have a stretch like this, it’s unfamiliar territory,” Paris said. “We had similar last year. These are just completely foreign places for me to ever be. And so there is a level of, you have to meet that head on and acknowledge that and then work your way through. But like I said, I’m a pretty positive guy. When it’s all said and done, I believe in my guys. So it’s not very long for me to turn the page from frustration to, when I look at why I’m frustrated, and what we should and could be doing, to motivation. And that happens pretty quickly for me.”

Containing Hubbard

Mississippi State’s Josh Hubbard, the SEC’s leading scorer with 22.4 points per game, was stifled entirely by USC’s defense. He finished with 13 points on 4-of-20 shooting. Paris gave his team credit for executing the game plan to stop Hubbard perfectly.

“I don’t know if there’s anything (Hubbard) doesn’t expect at this time. This guy has been getting buckets, I imagine, his entire existence, but this is what I will say: I’ll have to watch the game to confirm it, but it would surprise me if we ever rotated to him one time in the game. We always were on him with one man, and then we had another man who was, who half of his responsibility was being close to him,” Paris said. “I’m going to give a lot of praise to our guys. I already have, and I will continue to for their discipline and their obedience in terms of what it was to follow a game plan that we had talked about for only the last couple of days, right? These preps are pretty quick, and so they get a lot of credit for that, and how we guarded Hubbard was part of that, and then there were some other changes that we needed to make in order to guard Hubbard like that on some other actions.”

Jordan Butler shines

Despite playing just 10 minutes in the game, USC forward Jordan Butler was praised by Paris and his teammates for his effort late in the win. Butler immediately grabbed two offensive rebounds after entering the game, and finished with six points, three rebounds and a block. His defensive energy helped fend off the Bulldogs.

“I do think it changed where the complexion of the game was going, because we had gotten into a groove offensively and had taken the lead, and then they were really getting aggressive to rebound on some defensive reboundings or whatnot. And so we put Jordan in, and instantaneously he gets in there. He’s got a couple of tip shots or tipped rebounds, and gets an offensive rebound, tips another one and gets it. I think he blocked a shot, he challenged another one at the rim,” Paris said. “He just was really active, really active. ... He really catapulted us into another level of energy, and the fans appreciate it too. We got such smart fans that way, but our fans really appreciated it, because you could hear them celebrating his activity.”

Paris said he thinks consistency in effort is the only thing keeping Butler from having nights like this every time he touches the floor.

“It’s just consistency. I’ve said that word so many times, that we’re after consistency. I think as humans, we’re always trying to get that to improve in our lives, all of us, but at this age and in this game, it’s hard to come by sometimes. It’s no lack of ability or talent, on behalf of Jordan Butler,” Paris said. “I remember a long time ago, months ago, I said, ‘When Jordan Butler is active, he ends up making positive things happen.’ That’s the only thing. There’s some physicality at times here or there, but usually even when he’s active, he can override the lack of physicality relative to some of the guys that he ends up going against. He just can when he’s active. And so he was really active. I thought it was really good. I told him at halftime, I pulled him back in as we broke and came in, I said, ‘Be ready to go when we put you in the game. Just be ready to go.’”

This story was originally published February 21, 2026 at 4:42 PM.