After eight months off from competitive basketball, Frank Martin expected his team to come out a little flat. What he didn’t expect was the result.
The Gamecocks, playing in their first game since mid-March, had a season opener to forget, dropping their first game 78-62 to Liberty in the Hall of Fame Classic.
It was a game where not a lot went right, especially in the first half, as the Gamecocks trailed by as many as 20 points to a team that’s played two games already, dropping their opener for the first time since the 2000-01 season.
“I don’t care how old you are, I don’t care how many years you’ve been in college. Your first game of the year, you always have nerves,” Martin said.
“We’re in a 20,000 seat building with 20 people in the stands. It’s a different look; it’s a different vibe. (Liberty) felt that last Wednesday and Thursday. We hadn’t felt that yet…that sounds petty, but that’s not petty. That’s real. I thought we played better in the second half once we got comfortable. In the beginning we were tight.”
Also see: Instant analysis from Saturday's loss to Liberty
The Gamecocks dug themselves into a hole early, taking a quick four-point lead only to watch it evaporate as Liberty closed the first half on a big run, taking a 17-point lead into halftime.
Liberty widened their lead thanks to hot shooting in the first half—53.6 percent from the field, 47.1 percent from three, and a struggling Gamecock offense.
South Carolina mustered 26 points in the first half, shooting just 33.3 percent and hitting two of their 11 three-pointers.
The biggest issue offensively, Martin thought, was the lack of urgency and the Gamecocks poor ball movement, calling player movement “lethargic” and saying 60 percent of their shots came with two or fewer passes, saying “we didn’t give ourselves a chance offensively.”
Also see: This week's buy or sell for football
“It was pretty frustrating. Offensively we should have shot the ball with one more pass. That’s what coach told us,” said AJ Lawson, who led the team with 12 points. “We should have moved the ball more, put pressure on the defense by driving, trying to get fouls and get to the free throw line.”
Things got better in the second half—36 points on 44.8 percent shooting—but Liberty continued to outpace them and keep the Gamecocks at arm’s length.
There was a chance late in the second half where the Gamecocks cut things to a 12-point game with about six minutes left, but Liberty immediately hit a three and the lead ballooned soon after.
I thought our ball screen defense was bad. Like really bad, atrociously bad. We have to get a lot better there. That’s where Maik Kotsar always gave us the opportunity to stay in games. His ball screen defense was elite,” Martin said.
“We need to play better collectively defensively. It’s not a one-man thing. I thought our guards were gambling. I said two things: on defense, don’t take chances. They’re experienced, so as soon as you gamble they make you pay. We gambled too much.”
Liberty finished shooting 56.3 percent from the field (42.3 percent from three) and averaged 1.3 points per possession, but what frustrated Martin the most were the hustle stat issues.
Also see: Live thread for the football game against UGA
“Outside of the score the only thing I was disappointed in is they’re an older team with a winning culture. So are we,” Martin said. “They beat us to loose balls. We tried to screen them and they would not let us screen them. They were the more physical team. That one bothers me."
The Gamecocks have a quick turnaround, having to play either TCU or Tulsa at 1 p.m. tomorrow in the final game of the Hall of Fame Classic.
Some of the defensive issues can’t be fixed in less than 24 hours, but Martin expects his team to come out and play much better.
“We have to be at peace that the season’s long. We have great dudes on our team. We have really good guys on our team,” Martin said. “We have to continue to depend on each other and trust in each other. We have to come out and play a lot better tomorrow, which I think we will.”
