South Carolina feeling excited to take on No. 24 Clemson in hostile environment
Head coach Lamont Paris and the Gamecocks will travel to upstate rival Clemson this Wednesday. The Gamecocks were able to defeat the Tigers last season at Colonial Life Arena at the buzzer. But will traveling to Clemson produce the same results for South Carolina?
“It’s a lot of fun. The one thing that compares to being in front of your own crowd is to be in front of a hostile crowd and that’s certainly what it will be,” Paris said. “We’re just excited to go up there and be able to continue trying to play good basketball.”
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This game means a little bit more to junior guard Jacobi Wright, a South Carolina native. Wright has played a crucial role in the depth of the Gamecocks’ bench.
“It’s definitely a big game, I’m just really excited for it,” Wright said. “Both teams are undefeated and it’s an in-state rivalry game so it means a lot.”
Last year against the Tigers, Wright had 10 points in 22 minutes with four rebounds. Wright recognizes the hostile environment Clemson fans will create and the challenges it will pose.
“Just going and preparing for it, going in there like we do every other game. We know there is going to be a hostile crowd there but you just have to go in there like every other game and tune out the fans,” Wright said.
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Junior guard Meechie Johnson has landed himself a major leadership role for South Carolina. So far this season, Johnson has averaged 17.9 points and 28.4 minutes per game. Clemson’s strength and skill has not gone unnoticed by Johnson but South Carolina is confident in their abilities.
“They are a great team, they have a lot of great pieces but we really trust in our work and our shooting and everything and all the work we have been putting in. We feel like this game is going to really come down to physicality and who really wants it more,” Johnson said. “This is for everything, this is for the state, we know what’s on the line so we are trying to prepare ourselves to be ready for it.”
The matchup has an extra layer of excitement now that Clemson snuck its way into the top 25. Players repeatedly used the word “excited” to describe how they were feeling going into this undefeated matchup.
“I’m so excited not only just for the environment but now that they are ranked 24th in the country you are going down there with a lot you can take away from,” Johnson said. “It’s an exciting game that we are all just waiting excitedly for.”
