SOUTH CAROLINA MEN’S BASKETBALL
South Carolina heads north to take on UMass Wednesday night.
1. More Maik
After Maik Kotsar hit his first six shots against George Washington, I joked that he was like a pitcher having a perfect game, we shouldn’t mention how well he’s been playing lately or he would turn into a pumpkin (yes, I mixed a baseball and Cinderella metaphor). He has reached double figures scoring in five straight games, the longest stretch of his career, and the 17 points against George Washington were the second-most of his career. Sure, five straight double figure games isn’t the most impressive stat, but consider that he was the only South Carolina player in double figures against Wichita State.
“It’s my last go around, I don’t want to lose a game,” Kotsar said. “Confidence has a lot to do with it.”
People tend to focus on what Kotsar is not, the things he can’t do or his limitations. I’m not going to argue that he has suddenly become a great player, but he has become consistent. And without another experienced post player on the roster, South Carolina needs consistency as much as anything. That confidence Kotsar mentioned has made him consistent.
“There were moments last year that I didn’t know how to help him, he was great defensively but would shrink on offense,” Martin said. “He would not allow himself to succeed offensively. I couldn’t be happier for him. I want him to stay aggressive.”
2. Wildens at Work
The game will be a homecoming for freshman Wildens Leveque, who is from Brockton, Massachusetts. After a slow start to the season, which included being held out of the opener with a sore toe, Leveque moved into the starting lineup against Gardner-Webb. His numbers have been inconsistent, but his effort hasn’t, and that gives Martin something he can count on.
“I know how Wildens responds to being uncomfortable. It’s hard to play better when things are hard. He did that. He earned some trust.”
Leveque’s continued development over the course of the season could be one of the keys for the Gamecocks. He has been repeatedly compared to Chris Silva. That comes with a lot of pressure, but there are some similarities. Leveque is a little bigger than Silva was as a freshman, but although he’s athletic, he isn’t as springy. Like Silva that year, Leveque relies on instinct and athleticism to make plays since he has no idea what to do. As he has gotten a better grasp of where he is supposed to be, he has emerged as the Gamecocks’ most dependable post player other than Kotsar. George Washington tried to go at Leveque in pick and rolls and confuse him, and he did what he was supposed to. That had Martin elated.
“Wildens did exactly what he was coached to do. I’m so happy with that kid right now,” Martin said. “For a kid that’s seven games into his college career, I’m really, really excited about him.”
3. Besides Wildens and Maik...
Martin was asked about the depth behind Leveque and Kotsar following the George Washington game. He flipped an imaginary coin. It’s that shaky. Graduate transfer Micaiah Henry is a complete non-factor, with one point and six rebounds in 27 total minutes this season.
Freshman Jalyn McCreary looked really good in the exhibition, but hasn’t matched that productivity as he has often struggled with foul trouble. Sophomore Alanzo Frink also started the season strong and he continues to perform well in bursts, but he has issues with fouls and a tendency to relax (which leads to fouls).
“One guy knows what we do, he just brings no desire, and the other one hasn’t learned what we do yet,” Martin said. “(McCreary) brings a lot of desire, but he has numerous breakdowns where he’s not in the right place.”
McCreary can be forgiven for being slow to adjust, but Frink, who again, is putting up good numbers in limited minutes, is frustrating. He has shown the potential to be a valuable contributor, but until he plays harder Kotsar and Leveque have to carry the load.
4. Forty minutes
One of the concerns the Gamecocks have after the last two weeks is the recurring lapses during games. There was a stretch in the first half against Wichita State that South Carolina was never able to recover from. More troubling have been the stretches where South Carolina has been playing well and then relaxed and let the opponent back in the game. It happened against George Washington, which Martin attributed to “pouting:” letting a bad offensive possession or missed shot negatively affect defensive effort.
“That’s something we’ve got to talk about: we’re a young team and when we get up like that we can’t relax,” Jair Bolden said. “We have to still play hard on defense and execute on offense. We have to play the same way regardless of what the score is.”
5. Scouting the Minutemen
Martin has complained about the difficulties of playing experienced teams recently. That won’t be a problem with UMass. UMass added nine new players this season, and currently starts three freshmen. UMass has just four upperclassmen, tied for third fewest in the country, and lists just two seniors on the roster, a walk-on who joined the team over the summer, and graduate transfer Djery Baptiste, who plays just 11 minutes per game and began his career at Vanderbilt.
The freshmen aren’t pushovers, though. Center Tre Mitchell was the 2019 Connecticut player of the year and a four-star recruit. Guard T.J. Weeks is averaging 15.5 points per game, but the alarming thing for the Gamecocks is that he is shooting 54.2 percent from three. With the way South Carolina has defended the three, he could have a big night.
The Minutemen are 5-3, but trending in the wrong way. They won their first five games against weaker competition. The three straight losses have been to power conference teams, but the margins have been getting bigger. After a 58-46 loss to #6 Virginia, they lost 78-63 to St. John’s and then 82-57 to Rutgers.
The Ws
Who: South Carolina vs UMass
When: Wednesday, December 4, 7:00 pm
Where: Mullins Center, Amherst, MA
Watch: CBS Sports Network
