Martin updates Bryant, Couisnard injuries

The Gamecocks are down a man to start the year with Frank Martin officially announcing Keyshawn Bryant will miss “a while” as he comes back from a knee injury.

Bryant missed Wednesday night’s exhibition game and is expected to miss the majority of the team’s nonconference schedule now, as well with loose cartilage in his knee.

“He’ll be gone for a while,” Martin said postgame. “It’s very similar to Alanzo Frink’s injury—almost identical—so he’ll be gone for a while. The healing part is the part we don’t control. Once he starts healing he can start strengthening and moving forward.”

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Bryant developed a cyst over the weekend and had it drained earlier in the week, which Martin said went well. After that, Bryant started developing some pain in his knee and they eventually found the issue after a MRI Tuesday.

Bryant was a key piece of the Gamecocks' success last year, coming in for an injured Justin Minaya to average nine points and 3.8 rebounds in 26 starts.

The injury is, like Martin said, almost identical to what Frink had at the start of last season, which caused him to miss the first month of the season. Frink didn’t appear in a game until Nov. 30 and didn’t play double-digit minutes until Dec. 8.

Martin said the tentative timeline would have Bryant missing about six weeks, which would put him back about two days after the Gamecocks’ Dec. 8 game against Houston.

The hope is to have him back before the six weeks, though.

“Everyone heals differently. It’s all how hit heals with range of motion. Rah Felder broke his foot and it was supposed to be eight or nine weeks and on the fifth week he was ready to go,” Martin said. “Everyone’s a little different. I’m hoping it’s closer to four weeks. Alanzo’s was right at six weeks. I’m hoping it’s closer to four, but if it’s six, it’s six.”

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Jermaine Couisnard also missed Wednesday’s exhibition dealing with an illness.

Martin said Couisnard woke up with a fever and couldn’t play against CIU; he wasn’t on the bench either dealing with the illness, and Martin didn’t know when he’d officially be back but they’re hoping he could be by their next practice.

“It’s not the flu, but anytime you got a fever, they’re not going to let you play,” he said. “We don’t practice tomorrow. Hopefully he doesn’t eat too much candy and he feels a little better and his tummy doesn’t hurt too much on Friday.”

Trae Hannibal dealt with some cramping issues as well, only playing six minutes after leaving both times with obvious cramping issues.

He spent some time with the training staff trying to work through those and was seen riding the stationary bike behind the bench. He’d finish going 0-for-1 from the field with a rebound and an assist.

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“He cramped in the first half and I put him back in and he cramped again. It’s probably nerves number one. Number two, this school’s hired people to monitor the way our guys hydrate. That’s been a challenge not just with him but all the freshmen to learn how to hydrate. I haven’t met with them yet,” Martin said. “We put pictures up. I support it but the person in charge of this puts pictures up in the locker room of the guys who are hydrating and the guys that are not hydrating. His picture is always on the one of guys not hydrating properly. I’m not trying to throw him under the bus but it’s part of his growth. He’s one of those kids that most high-muscular kids have to hydrate more than most kids because they don’t have that extra layer that I have between muscle and skin. We have to figure out what happened there. I think it was nerves.”