Lamont Paris 'not a big fan' of South Carolina's effort in season-opening loss

On Monday, South Carolina fans were left shell-shocked as they watched their beloved Gamecocks fall 74-71 to North Florida in their season opener. After the game, South Carolina head coach Lamont Paris wasn’t shy to criticize his team’s effort.

“It’s hard to coach effort. I’m not a I’m not a big fan of coaching effort,” Paris said. “Everyone knows everything. I played in the Stone Ages, so there wasn’t a lot of access to information, so you just naturally respected everybody. Had a healthy respect for anybody you played. You always felt like you were better than them, but you didn’t know.

“There were no highlights of them. You couldn’t go on YouTube and see any of those guys play. You just respect them and you played. Today, guys know who is who. They know that they got a guy who transferred from NAIA. So, you think any of those guys think they’re a worse player than that guy?”

If the Gamecocks overlooked North Florida, it was a mistake. The Ospreys played with an unmatched urgency, outrebounding South Carolina 43-37. North Florida’s extra effort proved pivotal, ultimately scoring 12 second-chance points in the victory.

Four players scored double figures for the Ospreys. Sophomore Jaylen Smith led the way, notching 16 points. It was a disappointing evening for Gamecocks fans, who had high hopes for this season after Paris led the program to a 26-8 overall record and NCAA Tournament appearance last season.

Now, Lamont Paris will look to solve his team’s effort issues before they take the floor again.

“Our whole thing has been we approach the game the same way, no matter who we play,” Paris said. “The same people that are going to overlook someone… are also the same people that are doubting themselves.

“That needs to be corrected. Those are individual decisions that they have to make is to respect the game, respect every opponent, respect them all. But at the same time, you’re not going to fear anybody. There’s nobody that you should feel like you’re not going to beat.”

The Gamecocks won’t have to wait long to redeem themselves. On Friday, South Carolina will square off against South Carolina State at 7 p.m. ET. The game will air live on the SEC Network+.