USC looks to rebound from loss in SEC opener to Kentucky
Not many coaches can come off a loss with a positive outlook, but USC coach Darrin Horn has found himself in that position after a 79-64 loss to Kentucky.
“After having an opportunity to review the film from Saturday, we saw a lot of really, really good things that we emphasized and wanted to focus on, mainly taking care of the basketball and rebounding,” Horn said. “To outrebound that team was a really good job and the job we did on the offensive glass was something that we want to build on moving forward.”
Naturally, with the good came the bad. As the Gamecocks prepare to face Vanderbilt (11-4, 1-0 SEC) tonight at 9 p.m., Horn wants to see his team improve in the way it has all season — putting the pieces together one by one, even against the highest level of competition.
South Carolina (8-7, 0-1 SEC) has had some of its better performances in the losses to some of the best teams in the country — then-No. 1 UNC, then-No. 2 Ohio State and most recently, No. 2 Kentucky. And while USC has steadily improved over the course of the season — with its past two losses coming to OSU and UK — there’s still something missing.
“We got away from defending at the level that had helped us play well and get wins,” Horn said. “We’ve got to find a way to put those things together as we move forward through conference play. Every game is a new challenge and I think Vanderbilt presents a great challenge from the standpoint that, defensively, they’re as good, if not the best team in our league.”
Vanderbilt will not only be challenging as a defensive squad, but also as an offensive one, as junior guard John Jenkins leads the SEC in scoring with 20.3 points per game.
“He’s a great scorer and terrific shooter,” Horn said. “Obviously, he’s the focal point of their offense. Usually guys like that are going to find a way to get enough shots and have enough offensive opportunities — there’s a reason he scores 20 points per game even though every team that plays him is trying to shut him down. I think any time you play a player of his caliber, I think you’ve got to try to make it as hard on him as you can and do your very best to try to limit as much as possible.”
Furthermore, the Commodores are coming off a convincing 65-35 win over Auburn on Saturday, while the Gamecocks will face the challenge of making adjustments from the UK loss in the short span of Saturday to Tuesday.
“It doesn’t give you the practice time that you would like to just get better — it becomes more of a game prep thing,” Horn said. “One thing that I think was huge for this team in the last month was that with no school and some break in between games, we had some practice time, which helped us get better, and so you get limited on that.”
USC opened the conference against Vandy in Colonial Life Arena last season, where Sam Muldrow had a triple-double to lead the Gamecocks in the upset. Senior Malik Cooke doesn’t think the game gives USC any edge going into this matchup because the Gamecocks have already proven that they can compete against the top teams in the country. Now, South Carolina looks to do more than just compete, but win.
“We feel like we can beat anybody on any given night,” Cooke said. “It was a learning experience last year and we learned a lot from that game and hopefully we can carry that into this one.”