South Carolina is back on the road for the second time this week in Athens on Saturday afternoon for a 1 pm tip at the Stegeman Coliseum. The Gamecocks (5-12, 3-10) are looking for something positive to hold on to as they try to break a streak of six straight losses, tied in the biggest no-win drought at the conference in nine years under coach Frank Martin. This will be the last game of the regular season of the season, as a road game in Kentucky on March 6 was added to the end of the schedule after it was postponed in late December.
GAME INFORMATION
Arena: Stegeman Coliseum (10,523)
Streaming: SEC Network
Game by game: Dave Neal
Analyst: Jon Sundvold
Radio: Gamecock Radio Network
In columbia: 107.5 The Game
Game by game: Derek Scott
Analyst: Casey Manning
Sirius: – | XM: 386 | Internet: 976
Watch: App WatchESPN / ESPN
Live Stats: GamecocksOnline.com
Series: Carolina leads 59-58
In Athens: Georgia leads 33-20
Series Trend: Carolina has won nine consecutive meetings
Last meeting: 83-59 Gamecock wins on January 27, 2021, in Columbia
GAMECOCK NOTES
– South Carolina travels to Georgia on Saturday at the second meeting between the two schools this regular SEC season. The Gamecocks won an 83-59 victory over visiting Bulldogs in Columbia on January 27, marking Carolina’s ninth consecutive victory in the series.
– Gamecocks recently suffered a loss on Highway 69-48 in the state of Mississippi on Wednesday. Carolina hit the season low of 29 percent on the field and 19 percent in the three-point range, in the loss. Junior striker Keyshawn Bryant’s 14 points marked the team’s high, and TJ Moss gave the team’s best four assists.
– Gamecocks lead the SEC in offensive spins and rebounds, but have failed to capitalize on these extra opportunities with basketball. Gamecocks are forcing 16.82 opponents’ turnovers per game (games in general), which is the best at the SEC, and the 14th nationally. In SEC games, Carolina’s 13.8 offensive rebounds per game lead the league. In this sequence of six consecutive defeats, Gamecocks have an average of 15.5 turnover points and 10.8 second chance points.
– South Carolina will receive No. 20 Arkansas next Tuesday night at the Colonial Life Arena at its end of the regular season at home. Tip time vs. Razorbacks are set for 6:30 pm ET on the SEC Network. The meeting is the only one between the two schools this regular SEC season.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
– Georgia has 14-9 overall this season and 7-9 in SEC disputes. Bulldogs are led by coach Tom Crean in his third season.
– In home games, UGA is 12-3, including a 5-3 mark in disputes at home from the SEC. The Bulldogs most recently won a 91-78 victory over LSU at the Stegeman Coliseum on Tuesday.
– Second-year point guard Sahvir Wheeler steps in with 14.1 points and 7.2 assists per game this season. Wheeler’s assists by game brand are the best of the SEC and are in fifth place nationally. In the victory against LSU, Wheeler posted the first triple-double in UGA history with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists.
– Toumani Camara’s 7.6 rebounds per game are the best on the team. In SEC competitions, he also leads the UGA with 7.3 rebounds per game. The UGA is forcing 16.7 opponents’ turnovers per game, which is in 18th place nationally, and the UGA’s 8.5 steals per game are in 2nd place in the SEC, 25th in the country.
QUOTES
– “I don’t really follow who’s playing well and who’s playing badly. I start studying teams as soon as our last game ends. I think (Tom Crean) has an older team. His point guard, although he’s only in the second year, he played 35 minutes per game for two consecutive years. This young man plays with a lot of confidence. Tom is an excellent coach and is persistent and has those guys playing very well. He has good players and when you have good players and a good coach, you will win games. ” – Martin on facing Georgia
– “We are just trying to stop every day and try to improve every day in training and try to get a victory and put ourselves on the right path. We need to get confidence from each other and from our coaches. We need to carry any momentum that we can gather and stay with him . “ – Justin Minaya