SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS BASKETBALL

South Carolina lost a big piece Sunday with the “spirit” and leader of the team Justin Minaya going down for at least four to six weeks with a knee injury.

That left not only a big hole in terms of leadership, but the Gamecocks were now without an entrenched starter and needed to shuffle things in the starting five.

Frank Martin did that in a big way, opting to start three true freshmen. It paid off as they combined for over 30 points as the Gamecocks beat Coastal Carolina 85-79.

“I gave it a go today,” Martin said. “Am I going to do it again next week? I don’t know; I don’t know yet. That’s on them.”

Also see: What the Gamecocks said after Friday's win

AJ Lawson made his seventh start of the year but was joined in the backcourt by TJ Moss and Keyshawn Bryant, both making their first-career starts.

Paced by Lawson’s career-high 25 points, the three combined for 36 points on 10-of-26 shooting and hauled in 14 rebounds.

Those three producing and being in the starting lineup gives Martin an experienced player coming off the bench in Hassani Gravett, who scored a career-high 23 points and shot 70 percent from the field.

He gave the freshmen a chance to get their feet wet in starting roles and provided a calming influence off the bench, playing 34 minutes and went 4-for-7 from three.

“If I start ‘Sani and you look down the bench, everyone’s here for the first time in their lives,” Martin said. “I like the fact I have a guy coming off the bench, if the game doesn’t start the right way or the game’s not going the way it needs to go you can come in with somebody that’s’ been through this and understands and wont’ be emotionally attached to the moment. I think it brings our team balance.”

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Lawson, who was a starter since day one, continued to perform at a high level as he led the team with a career-high 25 points and went to the free throw line 15 times, sinking 11 of his attempts.

He also finished second on the team with six rebounds and had two assists after not scoring at all against in a loss to Wofford Monday and turning it over three times.

“I’m really happy with that kid. He was very passive in practice leading up to Wofford,” Martin said. “Yesterday in practice, I got after him a little bit. For the last 30 minutes of practice, he was the best player on the court. Then obviously you saw the way how he played, how aggressive he was offensively, defensively, how engaged he was. He responded. I see that, I get excited about that.”

Lawson’s now scored in double figures five times this season and is averaging 14.9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. He’s shooting 43.4 percent from the field and 31.4 percent from three.

“For him to come in with so much confidence to put the ball in the hole, we appreciate that. that’s what we’re going to keep asking him to do.”

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South Carolina doesn’t play again until Dec. 5 at Wyoming, and while Martin hasn’t decided who starts yet, the freshmen are going to continue to be a big factor moving forward.

“Freshmen are freshmen,” he said. “You’re going to have those moments at the end of the first half where I just want to jump over the scorer’s table and hide. But they’re fun to be around.”