Frank Martin doesn’t shy away from it.

South Carolina’s head coach understands how tough of a year it’s been for a lot of people, him and his team especially, both off the court and on it.

The Gamecocks have dealt with a myriad of COVID-19 issues—Martin’s had it twice himself—and wins haven’t come easy with the Gamecocks sitting at 6-14 (4-12 SEC) entering Thursday’s SEC Tournament.

“We’ve had a difficult year internally. We’ve had a difficult year. This is a winning program. We haven’t had a good year from a winning game standpoint. There’s nothing broken,” Martin said.

“We just have to figure out a way to have a positive mindset heading into this week and figure out a way to put the last 11 months in the rearview mirror and say, ‘You know what? Let’s do the best we can this week and see how long this journey takes us.’”

Also see: Keys to a win over Ole Miss

The Gamecocks take on Ole Miss Thursday night with tip tentatively scheduled for 9:30 p.m. (it’ll tip 25 minutes after the 7 p.m. game).

A win keeps the team’s season alive for at least one more day, a loss ends what’s been a frustrating season for a lot of reasons.

South Carolina entered the season with NCAA Tournament hopes and those were derailed early with COVID causing a nearly seven-week pause in December and early January.

After freshman big Patrick Iriel departed the team before the season began, the Gamecocks lost another big during the pause with a medical condition forcing Alanzo Frink to sit out all but three games in 2020-21.

Since returning for good Jan. 16, losses have mounted with the Gamecocks 3-12 in that stretch with issues deeper than on-court results.

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“Wins and losses have been the least of the struggles this year. It’s dealing with people. It’s dealing with spirits. It’s dealing with 18 year olds losing loved ones. It’s dealing with a player who wasn’t allowed to play the rest of the season. It’s dealing with an atmosphere of individuality where everyone’s sequestered,” Martin said.

It’s dealing with a bunch of 18 or 19 or 20 year olds who are dealing with the fact they have to get their noses stabbed every single day so they can play. It’s dealing with seven weeks of not being able to practice and identity. Those have been the struggles.”

The Gamecocks have had plenty of issues with injuries and inconsistent play on the court, but for Martin and his staff it’s been dealing with the other issues mounting off the court that come with an abnormal season and having to have players quarantine to be able to play.

“Guys don’t sign up to do academics on a computer screen in their bedroom. They sign up to go to class and get the instruction they need,” Martin said. “They sign up to live the life of a college student and get the tutoring and assignments and academic meetings in person, not locked in their apartments by themselves. Winning and losing, after I just threw everything at you, is the last thing on the plate that we’ve struggled with.”

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The Gamecocks face Ole Miss now for the second time this season after the Rebels won the first match up of the season 81-74 in Colonial Life Arena.

“I say defensively we need to step up. We’ve given up way too many points each game,” AJ Lawson said. “Offensively as a team we could have shot way better field goal wise, three point wise. Just execute plays. All those three come to me right there.”