Keyshawn Bryant shines in first action for Gamecocks
SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS MEN'S BASKETBALL
Frank Martin has been incredibly complimentary of his freshman class during the entire offseason and Tuesday South Carolina fans saw why.
The Gamecocks had one freshman—Keyshawn Bryant—take over the game, showcasing his freakish athletic ability to the tune of 21 points and a few highlight-reel dunks.
But this is nothing new for Bryant, who’s been doing this in practice since he arrived on campus.
“He’s been real good in practice this past week. And that’s the way he plays in practice,” Chris Silva said. “Was I surprised? A little half and half. He’s a freshman and hasn’t played a game of college basketball. Seeing him feel comfortable was a little surprising, a little not.”
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Coming off the bench, Bryant finished with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-12 in just 21 minutes.
Bryant was one of the first guys off the bench and the first freshman to come in as a sub. He didn’t have to wait long for his first bucket.
That came 18 seconds after he checked into the game; a vicious dunk that happened as he took flight before making it to the paint. He finished with another dunk as well in the second half on a Euro-step that freed him up for a two-handed slam.
But, that’s nothing new from his teammates with Silva joking earlier in the preseason Bryant tries to challenge him at the rim every day.
“Nah, definitely not,” Hassani Gravett said about if Bryant’s performance was surprising. “That man can jump out of the gym and any time he’s able to attack the rim he definitely will. You’ll see a lot more of that.”
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Along with 21 points, Bryant had a team-best 23 plus-minus and finished tied for second on the team with seven rebounds. He also sunk five of his seven free throws.
That showed head coach Frank Martin that he’s not passive on offense and is attacking the rim when he gets the chance to.
“Offensively, some of those offensive rebounds, some of that tells me he doesn’t stand and watch,” “I don’t like guys that stand and watch. If you want to stand and way, buy a ticket and sit in the upper deck. I like guys that chase the ball. He chases the ball.”
If there was a knock on Bryant in his first college game it could have been his turnovers—he had three, but that comes with the territory as a freshman—or not connecting on a few dunks.
He also missed his only three-point attempt, something that’s not worrisome to Martin, who says Bryant just has a “knack to score.”
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“Some guys can jump and dunk but they have no feel how to score,” Martin said. “He’s got a feel to score. He’s not a great shooter, but he’s not a bad shooter. He actually makes threes in practice.”
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