South Carolina seeks its first road win of the season, with the Gamecocks traveling to Vanderbilt on Saturday in Nashville, Tenn.
Both teams found it difficult to build momentum due to seasons that were interrupted at various points because of COVID-19. South Carolina (4-5, 2-3 SEC) and Vanderbilt (4-8, 0-6 SEC) played the least number of games between SEC schools, both inside and outside the league.
South Carolina’s 83-59 home defeat against Georgia on Wednesday should provide some encouragement.
Georgia held Gamecocks’ top scorer AJ Lawson (16.8 ppg) in check (12 points out of 4 out of 12 shots). However, Keyshawn Bryant led the way with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Jermaine Couisnard added 18 points.
But the key on Wednesday was South Carolina’s obstinate defense, something that had recently slipped. South Carolina kept Georgia in a low point season after allowing 109 to Auburn on Saturday.
“It was fun to watch not just because of the score, but also because of the union and connection with which we played defensively,” said South Carolina coach Frank Martin after the game with Georgia. “And I thought, as the game progressed, it gave us the same kind of offensive confidence.”
As for Vanderbilt, the Commodores were down 22 with 9:52 remaining in Florida on Wednesday, before a late race that ended with a 78-71 loss. Scotty Pippen Jr. scored 32 points, the best of his career, and Dylan Disu added 18 points and nine rebounds.
Finding a third marker has been a persistent problem for Vanderbilt. Pippen averages 21.6 points, Disu adds 13.7, and then there’s a big drop for Jordan Wright (7.9), who scored double digits only once in SEC play.
“We have to find another consistent, third option (score),” said Vanderbilt coach Jerry Stackhouse. “Trey (Thomas) and Myles (Stute) – they’ve been struggling a little lately – but I hope we can get these guys up to speed. We need them to do 3s.”
Thomas and Stute, both freshmen, scored two points in 27 minutes in Florida.
Defense is the other issue.
Commodores allow the worst 119.1 points in the league for 100 possessions at stake, according to KenPom.com. Florida hit 58.1 percent from within the arc and 43.5 percent in the 3-point range on Wednesday.
Wednesday’s defeat kept Vanderbilt in a familiar routine. Counting the tournament game, Vanderbilt is 3-41 against the SEC in the past three seasons, although 3-22 under Stackhouse.
One of Vandy’s three wins was an 83-74 defeat by the South Carolina visitor at the last team meeting on March 7, 2020. The Gamecocks were 10-7 in the league and hoped to win a trip to the tournament of the NCAA, but they couldn’t stop Pippen, who had the best mark in the game, 21 points and was 15 out of 16 from the foul line.
– Field-level media