SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS BASKETBALL
The Gamecocks are about 48 hours away from starting their SEC schedule against Florida, and there are a few conclusions that can be drawn from the team's first 12 games.
South Carolina is 5-7 and has played five teams in KenPom's top 70, including three in the top 35 in Michigan, Virginia and Clemson.
There's still a lot of basketball to play, but here's what we know about this year's edition of the Gamecock basketball team.
Frank Martin was right about his freshmen
Coming into the season, Martin said top to bottom this could be the most talented group of freshmen he brought in during his time at South Carolina, and 12 games in it's hard to argue against that.
Also see: Latest recruiting scoop on a few priority targets
Of the four members of the freshmen class eligible—AJ Lawson, Alanzo Frink, TJ Moss and Keyshawn Bryant—are all playing significant minutes when healthy with Lawson and Bryant developing into major contributors with Lawson being used in 73.2 percent of possessions and Bryant used in 46.6.
Still looking for leadership
One of the biggest things Martin talked about before the season started was getting better vocal leadership from some of the team's more experienced players in Chris Silva, Maik Kotsar and Hassani Gravett.
At points this year Martin mentioned he wanted more from those players on the court and, with a young team about to start its first trip through a tough conference slate, it'll be important for the older players to step up and lead on the court and in practice.
Also see: Frank Martin updates Alanzo Frink's status, talks Chris Silva
This is a totally uncharacteristic Martin team
During Frank Martin's 11 previous years as a head coach, his teams have been known for defense and offensive rebounding while playing at a slower pace. This year, they're currently 79th in defensive efficiency, the lowest of a Martin-coached team since 2013, and 107th in offensive rebounding, the lowest of his career.
They're also 24th nationally in adjusted tempo, averaging 74 possessions per 40 minutes against the average D-I tempo.
Regardless of what happens the rest of the way, it will look completely different than past South Carolina teams.
Front court needs to step up
Chris Silva's stepped his game up the last four games—averaging 17 points and 8.5 rebounds with an offensive rating of 119.5—but Martin's lamented the lack of production from the other front court position. The team has tried to cycle in a few different players into that spot like Maik Kotsar, Felipe Haase and Jason Cudd, but not have been as productive as needed.
Also see: What's the latest on Dequanteous Watts?
Entering SEC play, where the Gamecocks will face a slew of talented big men, it'll be imperative for another big man to step up the last half of the season.
Banking on Campbell's development
Campbell was brought in to be a stabilizing force in the backcourt and anchor the Gamecocks' point guard position. So far, he's been in and out of the starting lineup and Martin said he's struggled with how to coach the graduate transfer. He's only playing in 53.6 percent of the team's minutes with AJ Lawson anchoring the point and has an offensive rating of 87.9 with a turnover rate of 14.6.
With TJ Moss out with a foot injury, Campbell's minutes will increase more and more during SEC play and his development could be key to South Carolina's success in conference.
