The road struggles continued for the 17-2 South Carolina men’s basketball team Saturday, falling to the Tennessee Volunteers 78-69. The Gamecocks have now lost two of their last three road games, gaining the win with a dramatic overtime comeback. Coach Frank Martin’s team’s unaddressed problems were evident yet again, as the Gamecocks struggled to shoot the ball from the free throw line and beyond the arc and fell victims to another poor start.
South Carolina trailed for the majority of the first half, though the deficit was generally narrow, as Tennessee’s biggest lead was just eight points. As has been the case all year, the Gamecocks lack a consistent offensive identity, and the offense was inept for parts of the first half, missing twelve consecutive shots at one point. Senior forward Michael Carrera poured in 22 points on 8-14 shooting, but the other four starters combined for just 18, including a second straight poor performance from junior guard Sindarius Thornwell, who made just one of eight shots, finishing with two points.
Defensively, South Carolina turned in an uncharacteristically poor performance, allowing the Volunteers to shoot 9-12 from beyond the arc in the second half, including seven makes on as many attempts to begin the half. The Gamecock offense was unable to keep pace, shooting a pedestrian 28.6 percent from deep, making just two in the second half.
The lack of a sharpshooter has hindered South Carolina all year, as the team shoots just 34.1 percent from three, and an abysmal 25.2 percent in conference play. Junior guard Duane Notice can heat up in a hurry from downtown, but he is just 12-32 from behind the line over the last six games. Outside of Carrera, no player in the starting lineup makes even 30 percent of his three-point attempts, including Thornwell, who has taken the second-most threes of any player on the team.
Beyond the inefficiency from deep, South Carolina’s balanced offense can sometimes do more harm than good. The Gamecocks boast five players who average double figures in scoring, but no player scores more than Carrera’s 12.6 points per game. When one or more of those players struggle, the team has no star player to lean on for instant offense. Over the last two games, Carrera has outscored the rest of the starting lineup, but that is more due to off nights from the other starters than a standout performance from the Venezuelan guard.
The solution to this problem is unclear. Freshman guard Jamall Gregory has seen more minutes as of late, providing a spark in the Gamecocks’ overtime win over Ole Miss. Gregory is one of many playmaking guards on the roster, and along with sophomore Marcus Stroman and fellow freshman PJ Dozier, he must begin to create offense for his teammates. Coach Martin also could turn to the post-up play of freshman forward Chris Silva, who scored six of South Carolina’s first ten points in Saturday’s loss.
However, Silva lacks experience, and with the lack of post presence from forwards Laimonas Chatkevicius and Eric Cobb, the Gamecocks must look to develop an identity through strong guard play. If the Gamecocks are to get back on track, Thornwell will have to shake off consecutive poor shooting performances, and Notice will need to hit big shots from behind the arc if the team falls behind. If those improvements are made, and Silva continues to develop, South Carolina will remain relevant in the SEC. On the other hand, if the offense continues to struggle as it has this season, the Gamecocks will be looking at another disappointing late-season slide.