The advice Frank Martin is leaning on with No. 1 Tennessee coming in

Frank Martin was 19 when he landed his first assistant coaching gig. He joked he was so young he didn’t even know his name, but it was at that job he got one of the biggest pieces of advice he still uses today:

“Frank, always remember the most important person in the room is always the head coach,” Martin remembers.

He’s taken that saying and still applies it to his teams today, and it will be put to the test tonight with No. 1 Tennessee coming to Colonial Life Arena.

“As I’ve gone on in my journey, if I’m consistent with how I handle things, then the players will be consistent in how they prepare for things,” Martin said. “If I come into practice and say, ‘Hey we have to be real good today cause those guys are real good and rah, rah, rah and I didn’t do that against Vanderbilt, then the players start playing the next opponent based on my mood.”

Also see: Fast-rising hoops prospect gives the latest on USC's interest

The saying essentially means this: a coach is responsible for keeping teams and players even keel despite the opponent.

That’s Martin’s job Tuesday night taking a young team with two freshmen and a graduate transfer starting up against the top-ranked team in the country that’s won 14 straight games.

Martin’s approached this game like he has the other 19 games on the schedule and hopes the freshmen do the same after a few good days of practice coming off a loss at Oklahoma State.

“The best way to prepare players for whatever stage, whatever moment, is for me to prepare players the same way. It doesn’t mean I’m not going to be a little more on edge because we didn’t play the right way. But I’m not going to be on edge because of who the next opponent is.”

Also see: Justin McKie breaks down his keys to an upset tonight

Despite the loss on the road Saturday, South Carolina (10-9, 5-1 SEC) has played really well in conference and a win would keep them in second place almost halfway through SEC play.

The freshmen aren’t strangers to highly-ranked teams having gone up against top five teams already in Michigan and Virginia and Martin’s hoping the preparation he and the team had entering those games.

“Are they going to get swallowed in the voices telling them, ‘Wow, the number one team?’” he said. “Now they’re sitting there saying, ‘Holy cow we’re playing the number one team in the country.’ You hope they can go back from the Virginias and the Michigans in the world and find a place of peace in their preparations.”

Also see: Elite running back recaps "great" USC visit

The Gamecocks have also played the Vols close the last two times the teams met, losing both games by a combined 10 points and taking Tennessee to overtime in Knoxville.

These two rosters know each other well, so the Gamecocks know what Tennessee does well and vice versa. That’s why they’re not getting wrapped up in the number next to the Vols’ name.

“We don’t get too hype over the fact that it’s number one,” Hassani Gravett said. “We’re just playing them like they’re another team.”