Gamecocks look to improve on exhibition win
Heading into tonight's season opener against Western Carolina, South Carolina coach Darrin Horn has a clear vision of what needs to improve for his young squad after its exhibition win over Kentucky Wesleyan.
"Right now, early on especially, I think the big key is defending and rebounding," Horn said. "Especially defensive rebounding, which was not very good in our first exhibition game under the lights. Taking care of the basketball — I think those things are going to be so important for us."
In the 69-59 exhibition win over the Panthers, the Gamecocks shot 42.6 percent but also tallied 20 turnovers. Leading the team in turnovers was Lakeem Jackson, who was moved to point guard in Bruce Ellington's absence.
"I think he's done well, all things considered," Horn said of Jackson. "It'll be a continual growing process. One of the things we've been stressing to our team is how I think there'll be a lot of focus in how that position goes and plays, especially as it relates to taking care of the basketball. It's a part of it, no question, but I'm much more concerned with how our team takes care of the basketball."
Jackson and guard Eric Smith rotated in the point guard slot, and Horn said he expected both of them to continue to make strides and get more comfortable with the position as they gain experience.
However, with Jackson being 6-5 and 238 pounds, he adds considerable size to the backcourt as oppose to Ellington or Smith, who are both under 6 feet.
"For me, I think the big thing is that I want Lakeem Jackson to be Lakeem Jackson," Horn said. "We're not trying to make him Eric Smith or Bruce Ellington or Devan Downey or Chris Paul or any other point guard. He has a certain skill set that brings some strengths to the table with his size and strength and athleticism and his willingness to create and all of those things. We just want him to be the best Lakeem Jackson he can be."
The exhibition was also the debut for freshmen Anthony Gill and Damien Leonard, who were both in the starting lineup, though Horn said he was not sure on who the starting five would be for the season opener. Horn also mentioned that the team did not find out who the starters were going to be for the exhibition until its walk-through the afternoon of the game.
For Leonard, he will be pitted against former high school teammate Brandon Boggs, a guard for the Catamounts, in just Leonard's second collegiate game.
"Hopefully they won't be reuniting — hopefully, [Leonard] will be trying to go at [Boggs] a little bit," Horn said. "I've got a lot of respect for Brandon — I liked him when we were recruiting Damien. I saw him play several times over the summer and with his high school team over at J.L. Mann. He plays very hard, he's a high-energy guy, he's a slasher, and I think he's an example of why tomorrow night's a challenge."
Horn hasn't taken Western Carolina lightly, and as the Gamecocks prepare to open the season, he is looking for the team to continue to improve — something he stated as a goal going into every season.
"When we talk about controlling what you can control, really we're talking about our attitude or focusing on your role, which is par for the course," Horn said. "Sometimes turnovers are created by guys trying to do a little bit too much, but I think all in all, in our first outing, our guys did focus on those things. We just have a long way to go like every team does in November."