Some of the first words out of Frank Martin’s mouth when discussing his crop of transfers came with Chico Carter and it didn’t take long for him to reference Carter’s shooting ability.

Carter, a career 43.9 percent three-point shooter, came to South Carolina with the reputation of shooter and he didn’t get the chance to show it through the Gamecocks’ first eight games.

But, with a handful of players out and dealing with either COVID or injuries, Carter is making the most of his chances.

“I feel like I’m getting more comfortable out there just helping my team and off the court working out,” he said, “getting more game shots and seeing it translate to the game.”

In his first seven games, as he struggled to learn Martin’s rotations and structure coming over from Murray State, he averaged just 2.1 points on 41.7 percent shooting (20 percent from three) in just over five minutes per game.

But a switch flipped as the semester ended and Carter got more opportunity playing some point guard but a lot of shooting guard.

In the four most recent games—as COVID hit the team and Jermaine Couisnard battles injury—Carter is up to 23.3 minutes per game and shooting 50 percent from the field, 66.7 from three. He’s averaging 14.5 points per game and is plus-19.

He’s now had back-to-back 20-point performances for just the second time in his career.

“I really feel like it’s the work off the court actually going in the gym with a purpose,” Carter said. “Putting up the shots I’m getting in the game and then actually shooting them in the game and seeing them go in.”

Coming on campus, Carter—tasked with playing the point this year in Martin’s system—found himself down the pecking order in the backcourt with veteran players ahead of him.

But Carter kept chugging along and going against those veterans in practice has helped him.

“The reason he’s had the success he’s had is because when he’s in practice every day he’s dealing with Erik (Stevenson) and with James (Reese) and Devin (Carter) going against those guys every play,” Martin said. “He can really shoot it and is a confident man. He’s a tough kid. He doesn’t back down.”

Now comes Carter’s next challenge of sustaining his play as non-conference play ends and league play begins while still learning the Gamecocks’ system.

“Chico’s a confident young man. We need Chico to understand what we’re doing better. That’s been his challenge. He has to be at peace with knowing where he belongs on the court. It’s not like he’s done something wrong,” Martin said. “We need him to do some things better from a structure standpoint.”

----

• Not a subscriber? Learn more about Gamecock Central here!

• Watch our live show and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

• Sign up for Gamecock Central's FREE news alerts and daily newsletter.

• Subscribe to our podcast on whatever podcast platform you prefer!

• Follow us on Twitter: @GamecockCentral, @GCChrisClark, @WesMitchellGC, @CollynTaylor and @Mike_Uva.

• Follow Gamecock Central on Instagram @GamecockCentral.