Three days after holding Georgia to 59 points in 40 minutes, Vanderbilt only needs 24 minutes to reach that mark against South Carolina on Saturday night.
The week-long defensive adjustments of the Gamecocks that worked in Columbia on Wednesday did not work in Nashville. They dropped 93-81 for a Commodores team that won their first SEC game (0-6 previously). Vanderbilt’s 93 points were the peak of the season, guided by 13 three-point throws. Carolina closed the game with a 16-3 streak after Vanderbilt took a 26 point lead, with 3:58 to go.
“We made tremendous progress after the game with Auburn, even though it was just two training sessions,” head coach Frank Martin said post-game. “Our first defensive possession (tonight) I knew we were in trouble. When you are completely out of sync with the basic rules with which you enter a game, on first possession, you have zero chance of getting it right. It is disappointing. Defensively, we played so well a few days ago and so badly today, just not competitive and without paying attention to scouting reports. We left work, there’s not much to say about how disappointed I am right now.
“We changed the defense (after the defeat at Auburn) because I thought we were getting very spread out with the way I try to train and we didn’t have the training to improve on these things. We changed the defense and all Vanderbilt did was to direct the ball. They did some things differently than Georgia, but they had the same floor spacing ideas. They drove the ball and went to the edge and we must be in spaces to prevent the ball from reaching the edge. We were not very good with the ball and the players outside did not commit to helping each other ”.
Turnover was a big problem for Carolina at first. Gamecocks had 11 in the first half, six in the first nine minutes that helped the Commodores to a 23-8 lead. Vanderbilt’s 15-point lead at halftime was highlighted by 15 points from turnovers and 14 points from counterattack opportunities.
“If you combine the spins and the air balls, you can probably double that number. I’ve never been on a team that threw as many aerial balls as today, ”said Martin. “Coming into play, offensively, our whole process was if we were on the open court, being aggressive and whenever we were in a set defense, you cannot attack on the first pass and you need to work the attack and pass and cut and screen. The first time we had the ball, we attacked on the first pass. Again, it is not what we talked about doing and it was not the game plan. We scored points at the end of the game, which made the statistics look better. “
The spin was limited in the second half, with five, but Vanderbilt’s success on the free-throw line (22 of 27) and beyond the three-point arc took over the dispute. Commodores entered the game in second place in the SEC as a percentage of free throws (74.9 percent)
Coming into play on Saturday, South Carolina had two of the league’s top four scorers in Keyshawn Bryant (1st, 22.0) and AJ Lawson (4th, 18.4 ppg). Lawson had 21 points, while Bryant had 13. Although he hasn’t started a game with the SEC this year, Bryant has an average of 29.3 minutes per game. According to Martin, he was held at 20 against Vanderbilt because of problems. He ended the game with four.
Second Guard Redshirt Jermaine Couisnard was throwing less than 25 percent of the field in the first four conference games of the season. While he hit 44 percent and scored 18 points against Georgia on Wednesday, he scored 2 out of 15 to six points at Memorial Gymnasium. Starting shipowner Seventh woods scored 11 points but had five of his team’s 16 turns in 24 minutes played.
Carolina’s best point guard on Saturday night was a sophomore Trae Hannibal. In 12 minutes played, he scored 10 points (4 out of 4 FG) and had three rebounds. He left the game in the second half due to a back injury, but Martin said he could have returned had it not been for the uneven score with less than five minutes left.
“He played with a little bit of energy and enthusiasm, so he stood out like an injured finger today,” said Martin. “When he got there, he brought it and showed it. He tried to catch an attack and it was a very intense collision and he hit the flag on the back. As soon as he left, he hit it, but our coach thinks it will be fine.”
Vanderbilt second owner Scotty Pippen Jr. placed third in the SEC in scoring (19.8) and orchestrated everyone for the Commodores’ offense. He scored 23 points out of 6 out of 10 shots and 8 out of 8 on the free throw line. He had seven of his team’s 21 assists and was assisted by Maxwell Evans‘game-high 26 points with four trios made.
Gamecocks are now 4-6 in the year with a 2-4 SEC record. They return to Columbia only to get back on the road for a 6:30 pm report Wednesday night against Florida on the SEC Network. The Gators (10-4, 6-3) are leaving a disrupted road in 11th West Virginia.