South Carolina will be left without initial guard Jermaine Couisnard (ankle) and starting forward Justin Minaya (head) for Wednesday night’s street game against No. 19 Tennessee. Head coach Frank Martin revealed the news of the injury on Tuesday afternoon, before the team headed for Knoxville.
Couisnard came out of Saturday’s loss to Ole Miss in the first half, while Minaya left at the end of the game. Couisnard played just eight minutes before leaving the court with the help of teammates and following head coach Mark Rodger into the locker room. Minaya was shaken after colliding with a teammate in a lost ball play.
In 14 games played this season (all matches), Couisnard has an average of 9.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. His 50 assists are a high team, as are his 38 turns. Minaya also played and started all 14 games this season, averaging 8.1 points and a team with 6.9 rebounds. His 30.9 minutes per game is the team’s strongest seconds, behind only the junior guard AJ Lawson31.4 minutes per game.
“In tomorrow’s photo shoot, I will make a decision (about who will start),” said Martin.
Gamecocks (5-9, 3-7) were originally supposed to play in Knoxville on Tuesday night at 8:30 pm, but the game was postponed to Wednesday at 9:00 pm due to more testing needed in the Tennessee program. The contest will be broadcast on the SEC Network. Volunteers (14-5, 7-5) are 2-2 in February, with victories over Kentucky on the road and Georgia at home and defeats at Ole Miss and LSU.
South Carolina remaining calendar
Wednesday, February 17 – in Tennessee – 9:00 pm
Saturday, February 20 – Missouri – 2:00 pm
Wednesday, February 24 – in the state of Mississippi – 19h
Saturday, February 27 – in Georgia – 1 pm
Tuesday, March 2 – Arkansas – 6:30 pm
TBD in Kentucky
TBD in Ole Miss
TBD vs Tennessee
March 10-14 – SEC Tournament (Nashville)
*audacious denotes home game