Over Thanksgiving break, both the South Carolina men’s and women’s basketball teams saw lots of action as they each hosted a game and traveled to participate in their respective tournaments.
The men’s basketball team traveled to White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia to compete in the Skechers Greenbrier Tip-Off, first facing off against the Butler Bears on Nov. 21, which resulted in a 79-72 loss.
Redshirt senior guard Meechie Johnson led the team with 24 points, followed by senior guard Mike Sharavjamts and freshman guard Eli Ellis with 13 points each.
Butler remained in the lead for most of the game, with their largest lead being 15 points. By the end of the first half, the Bulldogs led the Gamecocks 38-31. Despite both teams scoring 41 points each during the second half, Butler was able to secure the win.
The Gamecocks then took on the Northwestern Wildcats on Nov. 23, falling in another close game, 79-77. During the game, there were nine lead changes and six ties. Northwestern was able to come out on top of the Gamecocks by the end of the first half, 36-34, with both teams scoring 43 points in the second half.
Junior forward Elijah Strong led the team with 16 points scored, closely followed by Johnson with 15. Ultimately, the Wildcats had a higher field goal, 3-point and free-throw completion percentage.
South Carolina then returned to Colonial Life Arena to play against the Charleston Southern Buccaneers on Nov. 28, winning 74-62. Once again, Strong led the team with 22 points, followed by redshirt senior guard Kobe Knox with 15. While there were eight lead changes and eight ties, South Carolina led at the half 30-28.
During the second half, the Gamecocks were able to go on a 7-0 run, leading the Buccaneers 57-45 with seven minutes remaining in the game. With a comfortable lead, the Gamecocks continued to stay ahead of Charleston Southern, pulling out a win following a two-game losing streak.
“I was disappointed a couple of times in the first half with just our individual one-on-one defensive abilities versus some of their guys," head coach Lamont Paris said. "But in the second half, I thought we got the ball inside a little bit more, and created some situations for ourselves and hung on.
Strong also expressed similar views to Paris, noting that the team got off to a slow start during the beginning of the game.
“We knew that we had to come out here and play harder, and we didn’t play as hard as we wanted to tonight, " Strong said. "We got away from ourselves in Greenbrier a little bit, so we just came back here and we still have a lot of work to do to be a competing team in our conference.”
While the men’s team went 1-2 during the break, the women’s team went 2-1. They first hosted the Queens Royals on Nov. 23, winning in dominant fashion, 121-49. The Gamecocks were 43/65 on field goals, scored eight 3-pointers and shot a 79 free-throw completion rate. Sophomore forward Joyce Edwards led the team with 25 points, with senior guard Ta’Niya Latson following closely behind with 24 points.
The team then traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, where they competed in the Players Era Championship.
Their first matchup was against the Duke Blue Devils on Nov. 26, which they won 83-66. Though the Gamecocks were outscored in both the first and third quarters, South Carolina made up ground by outscoring Duke by 14 points in the second quarter and 7 points in the fourth quarter.
Despite only scoring one 3-pointer, the Gamecocks shot 75% on their free-throws, going 12/16. Senior center Madina Okot led the way with 23 points, while Edwards scored 22 points.
The Gamecocks took on the then-No. 4 Texas Longhorns on Nov. 27, falling in a close game, 66-64, marking their first loss of the year. Texas outscored South Carolina during the first and fourth quarters, with both teams scoring 10 points in the second quarter.
Both teams also capitalized on points off turnovers, scoring 18 points. While there were three lead changes and eight ties, Texas ultimately won with a jumper made by graduate student guard Rori Harmon with only one second left in the game.
Despite the loss, Latson said the team is looking forward to playing Texas later on in the season with a game plan and better mindset.
“We’re not where we want to be, but we’re going to get there. We’re going to see them again. We've just got to dig deep, have personal conversations with each other, continue to grow and build chemistry, but also, we know that it's hard,” Latson said. “It’s going to take all of us to get on the board, make good plays and follow what the coaches need us to do.”