USC to face Tigers

Coming off their first loss in their first road game of the season, the South Carolina Gamecocks (4-1) will travel to New Jersey to take on the Princeton Tigers (2-2) for a Tuesday night basketball showdown at 7 p.m. It will be the Gamecocks' second road game of their year, and their only non-home game in the month of December. Friday night, Carolina limped out of the College of Charleston game with their first loss of the season. "We probably would have never scheduled these games back-to-back if we had a choice, but at the same time I think this is the kind of challenge that we need, coming off the game that we had Friday," head coach Darrin Horn said Monday afternoon. Besides being on the road so far from home, Princeton offers a unique challenge to the Gamecocks in what has come to be known as the "Princeton Offense." The offense relies on constant motion and finding open shots or backdoor cuts. For coach Horn, little will change in what South Carolina does defensively. "I think we're going to do what we do. Are some things going to be more important because of how they play? Sure," Horn said. Horn offered a short comparison between Princeton and the College of Charleston. "In terms of playing a lot of guys, yes [they are similar]. In terms of having some big guys that can step out and do some things, I would say yes. In terms of how they play and that type of thing, they are very different basketball teams," Horn said. The 82-80 overtime loss against the College of Charleston may lead to some opportunities for the Gamecocks to learn from their mistakes. "We did not defend or rebound at a level that you have to for us to be our best and to have the opportunity to win a close game on the road, in a tough environment, and against a good basketball team," Horn said. Besides the road environment and the recent poor play by the Gamecocks, the absence of two key players will further complicate the game. Junior guard Brandis Raley-Ross, who has been sidelined with a knee injury since the first game of the season, and sophomore forward Sam Muldrow, who has been out due to academic issues so far this season, will not play in Tuesday's game. "We're still going in short-manned," Horn said. "We told you all when we knew something on Sam we would let you know. At this point in time, it does not look like he's going to be available to us until at least the end of the semester," Horn said. In 2006, Princeton traveled to the Colonial Life Arena and were defeated by the Gamecocks 54-48.

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