How to watch/what to watch for: South Carolina looks to bounce back versus Arkansas

Though it’s still early in SEC play, South Carolina could use a win more than ever on Saturday. After losing to Georgia earlier in the week, the Gamecocks will head to Arkansas.

Tip-off is at 1 p.m. on SEC Network.

Here are some things to watch for.

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Hit your free throws

To South Carolina’s credit, it did a good job of drawing plenty of fouls on Tuesday. However, while it went to the line 32 times, it only made 17 free throws. Meanwhile, Georgia had the same amount of free throw attempts and hit 25. That was the difference in the game.

The Gamecocks haven’t been great at the line so far this year. It’s come back to hurt them more than once. Going into Saturday, they have to find a way to be better. If they can keep making Arkansas foul and hit those shots, they’ll have a good chance of winning.

Get into a rhythm early

Throughout most of Tuesday’s game, it felt like South Carolina was off. It went 6-for-26 from three-point range and shot 39.7 percent overall. There were a few points in the game where it had good scoring runs, but overall, it was a struggle.

Myles Stute will be out for the next two to three weeks, so it becomes even more important for others to step up and hit shots in his absence. There just needs to be at least one or two guys who go off and have big games to get the job done.

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Who fills in for Stute?

Speaking of Stute, his shoulder injury will force Lamont Paris to make a change to his starting five. He’s been running a two-guard, three-forward look all year. He could either stick with that, or go with a three-guard lineup.

Look for someone like Jacobi Wright or Zachary Davis to get the starting nod. They’ve played the most minutes amongst the bench players. And it’s not that starting another big man would be a bad idea. It’s just none of those guys have really played heavy minutes yet this season.

When will BJ Mack get going from three?

It’s been a rough go of it from the outside for Mack as of late. He’s been taking a lot of three-pointers and missing in most cases. He went 1-for-6 on Tuesday.

While his scoring numbers have been better, he either needs to start hitting those outside shots or dish the ball off to someone that can be more reliable. In a way, it’s almost hurting the team with how many times he misses from out there.

But if he can get hot from three, he’s one of the toughest players to stop, especially with how valuable he can be in the paint.

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Scouting the opponent

Under head coach Eric Musselman, it’s been a shaky start for Arkansas. The Razorbacks are off to a 10-7 start.

Despite the losses stacking up, Arkansas’ schedule hasn’t been easy by any means. The Razorbacks lost to Memphis and North Carolina in back-to-back games, then Oklahoma a few weeks later. But the worst loss of the season has been UNC Greensboro, who is ranked No. 128 in KenPom, back on Nov. 17.

At the start of SEC play, Arkansas lost three straight games to Auburn, Georgia and Florida. But it picked up a much-needed win over Texas A&M on a last-second shot.

And speaking of that game-winner, junior guard Tramon Mark was the one to hit the shot. He’s been out of this world for the Razorbacks this year. In that last game, he dropped a season-high 35 points on 8-of-15 shooting.

For the season, Marks is averaging 17.8 points per game on 53 percent shooting. He’s in his first year with the program after spending three years at Houston.

Another name to watch for is senior guard Khalif Battle. He’s been averaging 12.1 points per game on 37.3 percent shooting. He’s a guy that can take over a game by himself. But at the same time, he can go very cold. Over his last four games, Battle has been 2-for-19 from the floor.

Game details

Who: South Carolina (14-3, 2-2 SEC) at Arkansas (10-7, 1-3 SEC)

When: Saturday, Jan. 19 at 1 p.m.

Where: Bud Walton Arena (19,200)

How to watch/listen: SEC Network/107.5 FM

ESPN gives South Carolina a 35.8 percent chance to win

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