Five things we learned from South Carolina's home win over Arkansas

South Carolina picked up its second straight home win with a dominant performance over Arkansas on Saturday.

Following a win over Texas last time out in Colonial Life Arena, South Carolina thoroughly demolished the Razorbacks. The final score of 72-53 did not do justice to the extent of the Gamecocks’ defensive dominance. With seven minutes to go, the margin was 64-29.

Here are five things we learned from watching the way South Carolina performed on Saturday.

Perimeter defense steps up in a major way

One troubling issue that the men’s basketball notebook had picked up on was the lack of perimeter defense exhibited by the Gamecocks. In the eight games prior to Arkansas, South Carolina had given up a 46.1 3PT% to opponents. That’s historically bad. But on Saturday, something clicked.

Maybe Lamont Paris woke up early and installed those plastic rim protectors at stores to prevent customers from shooting on their basketball goals. Perhaps, as one Arkansas message board poster suggested, the Gamecocks loosened the rims on Arkansas pre-game. It’s theoretically possible that every guard on Arkansas’s roster had the worst shooting day of their respective careers.

But for a team to start 0-17 from deep, that takes defensive prowess. That is the result of a team following defensive directions to a T. That is a result of making the right switches on screens and sending maximum effort on every play. Whatever was up with South Carolina’s outside defense in February, clearly it didn’t make it to March. Maybe it’s a seasonal affliction. Does the warmer weather bring better defense?

Whatever the reason, the flip in defensive efficiency seen on Saturday was one of the quickest turnarounds in program history. That’s not an exaggeration. If anything, it’s an understatement. Perhaps it can foster a permanent change in perimeter fortunes.

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Jordan Butler turned in the best performance of his college career

Despite playing on a team that was floundering for most of the year, Butler had not received much playing time. Before Saturday, his season high in minutes was 15 against Texas. The Missouri transfer had not eclipsed three points in an SEC game this season.

Against Arkansas, however, Butler showed a newfound aggression that many would expect from a 7-footer. A block late in the second half got Colonial Life Arena to their feet, and it was on Zvonimir Ivišić. The sophomore from Croatia is even taller than Butler. Butler also met Jonas Aidoo at the rim earlier in the game and seemingly got another clean block at the rim but was whistled for contact.

On offense, he hit a pair of triples, spacing the floor for the offense. That’s something that non-shooters Nick Pringle and Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk can’t reliably do. Butler, at one point, faked and drove in, drawing contact and getting to the line. That’s evolution in action. He ended up with a season-high nine points.

Although he did tally four fouls in 18 minutes, one could argue that it’s not necessarily a bad thing. It means he’s stepping into his taller frame and learning how to use it to effect in the SEC.

(Almost) everything went right for South Carolina

It was the perfect storm for the Gamecocks on Saturday. South Carolina made its defensive rotations and hit its free throws and perimeter shots. Paris’s team was careful on offense and absolutely smothering on defense. Physicality was evident on both sides of the court. The Gamecocks looked like the better team for 36 minutes.

Yes, there were some mistakes in the fold. Quite a few open looks right at the basket were missed. The defense slipped up quite a bit in the last several minutes once the game was a surefire victory. The offense committed nine turnovers in the second half after just three in the first. They also committed 12 fouls in the second half.

All in all, this was arguably the best all-around performance for South Carolina throughout the season. That’s including wins over Clemson and Texas. It’s something the program can build on, not just for this season but for the next as well. Sure, the team’s at-large hopes disappeared in early February. That doesn’t take away from Saturday’s performance. Almost every player on the roster did their job. Austin Herro got into the game not because of the Gamecocks losing by a substantial margin but because South Carolina was winning by 25.

Lamont Paris has John Calipari’s number

With the blowout win, Paris improves to 3-0 against John Calipari all-time. To put that in perspective, John Calipari has defeated every other SEC basketball coach. As a matter of fact, Memphis’s wins from 2007-08 were vacated. So, Calipari has even defeated Calipari. But he has not yet bested Lamont Paris.

In those three victories, the average score is 74-61 in favor of South Carolina. Despite two seasons below .500 at South Carolina, Paris seems to bring out the best in his team against Calipari. Will the teams face off again this season? Per the SEC tournament format, very likely not, unfortunately for the Gamecocks.

Paris is also 2-1 against Brad Brownell, with both of those victories coming at Colonial Life Arena. On the flip side of the coin, Paris is 1-3 all-time against LSU head coach Matt McMahon. That includes a loss to Murray State while at Chattanooga.

Credit this team for not giving up

Following a rough defensive performance against LSU in Baton Rouge, there was a cloud of negativity surrounding Columbia. That game had previously been considered the team’s best chance to secure their first conference win. The Gamecocks sat at 11-16 overall with a 0-13 conference record.

But out of thin air, South Carolina’s offense woke up against Texas, handily defeating the Longhorns. Following a blowout loss to Missouri, the team had every opportunity not to show up against Arkansas. But the Gamecocks fought from the opening tip-off and thoroughly demolished the Razorbacks.

Defensive effort and physicality were visibly present. The interior offense was clicking on all cylinders. Collin Murray-Boyles and Pringle matched Arkansas’s entire scoring output. Similar to the 2022-23 Gamecocks, this team is clearly improving toward the end of the season, or at the very least, finally seeing a reward for their effort.

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