Preview: Gamecocks look to solidify NCAA Tourney bid against Vols
WHAT: Tennessee (15-13, 7-8) at South Carolina (20-8, 10-5)
WHERE: Colonial Life Arena (18,000), Columbia, SC
WHEN: Sat., Feb. 25, 1 p.m. ET
TV/RADIO: SEC Network (Mike Morgan, Pat Bradley); Gamecock Radio Network (Derek Scott, Casey Manning).
LAST MEETING: South Carolina won 70-60 at Knoxville, Tenn. on Jan. 11, 2017.
SERIES STREAK: Gamecocks have won two games in a row and three of the last five.
While South Carolina’s current three-game losing streak has tested the patience of antsy Gamecocks fans who remember last season’s late stumble, USC is firmly into the NCAA Tournament as a mid-level seed as long as they take care of business at home over the next four days.
When the calendar reaches late February, losing at home is a surefire recipe for being ignored by the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Just ask Tennessee, which started slowly and lost by double digits (67-56) to intrastate rival Vanderbilt Wednesday night in Knoxville.
As a result, the Vols went from being a legitimate bubble team (some bracketologists had them as one of the First Four out) to being a nonfactor come Selection Sunday. A loss Saturday afternoon at Colonial Life Arena would all but kill Tennessee’s NCAA Tournament hopes.
Right now, the Gamecocks are viewed as a No. 7 seed by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, who emphasized that the 3-game losing streak by the Gamecocks has merely narrowed their margin of error as they had built a comfortable cushion with previous wins.
“I don’t think this is going to be a disappointing Selection Sunday for South Carolina,” Lunardi said late Thursday night on the SEC Network. “The schedule does turn in their favor. They have a 50-50 game with Tennessee, but then Mississippi and Mississippi State. They should get at least two out of three. That would put them in very solid position, if they aren’t already.”
Lunardi added last week’s home loss to Arkansas helped the Razorbacks more than it hurt the Gamecocks because USC “has built up a certain amount of cushion.”
Just don’t lose at home again. Lunardi’s message was clear – beat Tennessee and Mississippi State at home and the Gamecocks will punch their ticket to the Big Dance.
The Gamecocks are 13-3 at home this season, but have lost their lost two game at Colonial Life to Alabama (4 OT) and Arkansas. Reversing that trend is Job. 1 for USC on Saturday.
“Home losses actually hurt you more on the computer than losses on the road,” Lunardi said.
P.J. Dozier, who maintained his back is fully healthy, said the Gamecocks players are approaching Saturday’s game as ‘must win’ for the very reasons laid out by Lunardi.
“We feel every game is a must win game, especially after what happened last year,” Dozier told reporters on Friday. “We know every game is important. Last year definitely resonates in our minds as we reflect back. Now we have to move forward and get some wins.”
Monday, Frank Martin invoked a positive tone about the Gamecocks even though they last won a game on March 11 at Mississippi State and last won at home against Georgia on March 4.
“One thing we don’t let come into the locker room is negativity,” Dozier said. “We have all positive vibes, even if we have negative thoughts about what happened. We just have to get back to what we had been doing. Coach Martin is trying to get our minds back to the place where they have to be for us to get the wins. He has been doing a great job.”
NOTES
-- The Gamecocks are No. 29 in the latest NCAA RPI revealed Friday following Thursday’s slate of games. They remain the third highest ranked SEC team in the RPI behind Florida (No. 8) and Kentucky (10), both of whom won Saturday.
-- Lunardi said Thursday night on the SEC Network that he expects four SEC teams will earn bids to the NCAA Tournament – USC, Florida, Kentucky and Arkansas.
-- After scoring 23 points in Tuesday’s loss at Florida, Thornwell has accounted or 38.9% of the team's scoring over the course of the last five games.
-- Through 28 games this season, the Gamecocks have held the opposing team's top scorer below his season average in 22 of those games.
-- The Gamecocks have forced at least 15 turnovers in every SEC game this season except the Arkansas game. In league play, opponents are averaging 18.3 turnovers per contest.
-- The Gamecocks currently rank third in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to just 29.2 percent from beyond the arc this season. USC leads the SEC in several defensive categories entering Saturday's matchup with the Vols. In overall games, Carolina is tops in scoring defense (64.7), FG pct. defense (39.8) and 3-point FG pct. defense (29.2), and is second in steals (7.9 per game).
-- Tennessee averages just 63.5 ppg against Frank Martin’s South Carolina teams. That includes four games in which the Vols have scored 60 or less points.
-- Tennessee’s leading scorer, senior wing Robert Hubbs III, scored his 1,000th career point in Wednesday night’s home loss to Vanderbilt.
PROJECTED STARTERS:
USC: Sindarius Thornwell (21.2 ppg), Duane Notice (10.4), P.J. Dozier (13.6), Maik Kotsar (6.1), Chris Silva (10.1).
TEN: Jordan Bone (7.3), Shembari Phillips (5.9), Robert Hubbs III (14.3), Grant Williams (12.7), Kyle Alexander (3.4)
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Scoring Average: Sindarius Thornwell (21.2)
Total Points: Sindarius Thornwell (467)
Total Field Goals: Sindarius Thornwell (141)
Field Goal Pct: Chris Silva (.567)
3-Pointers: Duane Notice (52)
3-Pt Pct: Rakym Felder (43.5)
Free Throw Pct: Sindarius Thornwell (.846)
Total Rebounds: Sindarius Thornwell (163)
Defensive Rebounds: Sindrius Thornwell (103)
Offensive Rebounds: Maik Kotsar (62)
Assists: P.J. Dozier (78)
Turnovers: P.J. Dozier (57)
Blocks: Chris Silva (39)
Steals: Sindarius Thornwell (50)
Minutes: Duane Notice (912)
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Feb. 25 TENNESSEE, 1 p.m. (SEC Network)*
Feb. 28 MISSISSIPPI STATE, 7 p.m. (ESPNU)*
March 4 at Ole Miss, 8:30 p.m. (SEC Network)*
March 8-12 SEC Tournament (at Nashville)
(All Times Eastern)
* SEC Game
SEC SCHEDULE (Feb. 25)
Tennessee at South Carolina, 1 p.m. (SEC Network)
Florida at Kentucky, 2 p.m. (CBS)
Missouri at Ole Miss, 3:30 p.m. (SEC Network)
Mississippi State at Vanderbilt, 4 p.m. (ESPNU)
LSU at Georgia, 6 p.m. (SEC Network)
Alabama at Texas A&M, 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
Arkansas at Auburn, 8:30 p.m. (SEC Network)
SEC STANDINGS (As of Feb. 24)
Florida 13-2
Kentucky 13-2
Arkansas 10-5
South Carolina 10-5
Alabama 9-6
Ole Miss 8-7
Vanderbilt 8-7
Georgia 7-8
Tennessee 7-8
Texas A&M 6-9
Auburn 6-9
Mississippi State 5-10
Missouri 2-13
LSU 1-14
According to the ‘Road to Nashville’ section in the SEC’s weekly media notes package, here is the seeding for the SEC Tournament if the season ended today:
1. Florida
2. Kentucky
3. Arkansas
4. South Carolina
5. Alabama
6. Ole Miss
7. Vanderbilt
8. Georgia
9. Tennessee
10. Texas A&M
11. Auburn
12. Mississippi State
13. Missouri
14. LSU
Opening night matchups on March 8 would be Mississippi-State-Missouri and Auburn-LSU.