The Gamecocks are home for the week, but will find no rest.
Coming back to Columbia after a victory is one thing, but after losing to an SEC school, the coming home factor does not have the same effect. South Carolina will quickly have to turn around to play in its next game.
Hosted by Auburn (10-7, 2-2 SEC), South Carolina (10-6, 1-3 SEC) could not finish the game strong and lost to the Tigers 71-68.
In the first half the Gamecocks were already down 39-29, and according to head coach Frank Martin, they were not playing their best to take on the Tigers.
“We tried, and we turned it over way too much in the first half,” Martin said. “We just didn’t play strong enough in the first half.”
By the second half the Gamecocks came out strong, scoring 39 points compared to the Tigers who only scored 32 points.
Sophomore guard Sindarius Thornwell, commented on the team's playing ability in the first half of the game.
“I think it was more us being careless and having lazy passes,” said Thornwell. “I’m not saying it was necessarily tough, we just didn’t do what we needed to do. They wanted it more than we did, and that’s what it comes down to.”
Auburn is known for scoring well, averaging 67 points per game, and for having a crowd at home cheering them on. Martin said he admires the amount of fans that came out to support the Tigers and believes it had a lot to do with Auburn winning.
“There is a reason they won today. That right there (the support from fans) had a lot to do with it. We got rattled coming out the stretch,” said Martin. “Winning on the road is hard because of that right there.”
Even though the Gamecocks could not bring home a victory, Thornwell said he knows they will learn from this loss and move on to the next game against the Tennessee Volunteers.
“It helps us overcome adversity. We learn from our mistakes and down the stretch we know what to do and what not to do, and we just get better from it,” said Thornwell.
The last time these two SEC schools met were in the SEC tournament, and Tennessee took the victory 59-44. South Carolina has also fallen to this team in their last 14 meetings. In their first time meeting this season, the Gamecocks will host the Volunteers (11-5, 3-1 SEC) in Columbia, South Carolina.
Tennessee has recently beat Missouri 59-51 on the road and will bring that energy to Columbia to defend their winning title against the Gamecocks.
Two key players to watch for with the Volunteers are senior Josh Richardson and junior Kevin Punter who score an average of 15.9 and 10.2 points per game, respectively.
This week (Jan. 19-25) marks the Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers Week that helps bring awareness to the fight against cancer. Martin and his assistant coaches will take part in this event by wearing sneakers in both home games.
The Gamecocks take on the Tennessee Volunteers Tuesday at 9 p.m. in the Colonial Life Arena.