Frank Martin left Friday’s practice in a good mood.
He said the team (outside of Jalyn McCreary) was fully healthy—no “headaches, no thumbnails,” he joked—and was expecting a team at full strength against a Missouri team capable of coming into Colonial Life Arena and winning.
Then Keyshawn Bryant comes in for Saturday morning shoot around.
“Keyshawn walks in this morning and not the knee he hurt early but other knee was swollen. Like are you kidding me, man? This can’t be. There was no structural damage,” Martin said. “Since there’s no structural damage it’s about are you willing to try? He said he was. Away we went. Those two kids gave us everything they could.”
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The other one of the two was Jalyn McCreary, who was dealing with a knee injury after the Arkansas game and was a game time decision, but the injuries limited what both could do.
Bryant only played 11 minutes, the fewest since returning back to the lineup three games ago, and McCreary was hampered to just six minutes, the fewest since Dec. 8 against Houston.
Not to mention Justin Minaya dislocating his thumb in the first half and Trae Hannibal dealing with the death of what Frank Martin called one of Hannibal’s “closest, closest, closest” friends recently.
Through all of that, though, the Gamecocks persevered and showed a unique level of resolve to dominate the Tigers by 22 points Saturday in front of almost 15,000 fans.
“Give them credit. It’s about the team. It’s not about me or I. they’ve bought into the whole team thing. TJ didn’t play real good against Arkansas but came back and had a great practice yesterday and played fairly well. I know he had a couple cheap turnovers in the first half but he played really well today; really well today,” Martin said. “Trae Hannibal played great against Arkansas but he wasn’t as great today. TJ picked him up. Jair wasn’t any good today. That’s what it’s about. It’s picking each other up, having each other’s back and being ready when your number’s called.”
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Nine different Gamecocks logged double-digit minutes Saturday and the team got big performances from guys who had struggled some in recent games.
TJ Moss responded after a subpar Arkansas game with six points with two threes and Jermaine Couisnard, who had just five points against the Razorbacks, looked back to his old self with 15 points on 6-for-12 shooting and six assists.
“I feel like I was getting my teammates involved and everyone to their right spots,” he said. “I felt like I was giving other players confidence.”
The Gamecocks (13-8, 5-3 SEC) now take a three-game win streak on the road to Ole Miss for a Wednesday night game. It’s the middle of a very favorable stretch for the Gamecocks, who can gain some ground in the SEC.
“There are times in life where you have to put the brakes on, just like when you’re driving,” Martin said. “There are times you have to hit the gas. This is the time where we have to keep hitting that gas and we have to go as fast as we can to see what this team can become.”
