Gamecocks trying to get Kostar's 'confidence back'

SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS BASKETBALL

There are a few benefits to Hassani Gravett’s new haircut; with the new hairdo, he can wear some of his old hats.

So he was in a sentimental mood Friday as the Gamecocks get ready for a big stretch run, and threw on a hat from the 2017 NCAA Tournament where Gravett and the Gamecocks went on their Final Four run.

It gave him a chance to reminisce over that three-week stretch in March, and he’s hoping to see one of his teammates from that run—Maik Kotsar—return to that kind of form from the tournament after a rough February.

“We definitely need Maik. He plays a big role in this team. He’s a starter,” Gravett said. “We got to get him better production than he’s displayed the last games but we’re going to help him with that in practice and give him that confidence back.”

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Kotsar’s struggled over the Gamecocks’ last six games, averaging just 3.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in February. He’s shooting just 34.5 percent from the field and hasn’t taken any threes.

He’s missed all 10 free throw attempts this month and is 1-for-14 from the stripe dating back to Jan. 22 against Auburn.

His average offensive rating in February is 64.8 and, as a junior, he’s only been used in 17.3 percent of the team’s possessions. Excluding the two games he missed because of a concussion, Kotsar played a season-low 12 minutes against Ole Miss and had two points and five rebounds.

“That’s the situation we’re in. He somehow has to reach deep inside and find confidence that ‘I’ve been doing this for three years, I know I can do this’ and do it,” Frank Martin said. “He needs some good things to happen to him, but offensively he’s just not engaged right now.”

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It’s a far cry from Kotsar’s performance in the tournament run where he had an average offensive rating of 102.6 and shot 46.2 percent from the field.

Now, it’s about building the junior center’s confidence back up and getting him to play better, specifically on the offensive end and with crashing the boards.

“We’re trying as hard as we can. Because he’s a real good guy, he’s a good teammate and we’re trying real hard to help him right now,” Martin said. “He’s been a good player for us for two and a half years. He solidifies our defense. If he would rebound better, defensively especially, it would make us that much better defensively.”

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Even when Kostar isn’t scoring, he does bring something to the team defensively with his ability to guard the two through five spots and Martin said Kotsar is “always in the right place” with “highly above average” ball screen defense.

But the Gamecocks (14-12, 9-4 SEC) need him to build his confidence back up as they fight to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

“I’ve seen Maik guard guards and he can play the three at times,” Gravett said. “He has so many things to his game that he brings to the table that helps us. We just have to get his confidence back.”