South Carolina vs. East Carolina: Four things to watch for and an opponent scouting report

South Carolina has started to gain some momentum with back-to-back wins over ACC foes. With another ACC matchup looming next weekend against Clemson, the Gamecocks have a chance to steam ahead towards that big showdown in Columbia.

But first, the East Carolina Pirates, a team they are familiar with, comes to town on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is at 2 p.m. on SEC Network Plus.

Here are four things to watch for and an opponent scouting report on the Pirates.

Continue to draw fouls and get to the line

One thing that South Carolina did well in its win over Boston College was making the Eagles constantly foul. The Gamecocks drew 21 fouls with three players from BC committing three or more fouls. They even forced Chad Denning, one of the Eagles’ better players, to foul out in 26 minutes of action.

Coming into this matchup with East Carolina, this is what the Gamecocks need to be able to do. Have they been perfect at the free throw line this year? Absolutely not. But you see they are going to the line for roughly 25 free throws per game. That’s a great number to look at, especially considering the fact that the Pirates average more than 17 personal fouls per game.

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Building off a complete performance

During Carolina Calls on Tuesday night, head coach Lamont Paris said he felt like South Carolina played its best 40 minutes of the season against Boston College, especially on the defensive end. With what they were doing as far as moving the ball and creating space, it was a really complete game.

That’s exactly what you want to hear from your coach after a 22-point drubbing to wrap up a successful roadtrip. The Gamecocks still have things to improve upon this early in the season. But to play the way they did on Tuesday with shooting well from the field, winning the rebound battle and forcing the Eagles to make mistakes, the goal should be to replicate that effort and more on Saturday.

Need to more consistent around the basket

Most of South Carolina’s shooting success came from behind the arc on Tuesday, as the Gamecocks drilled 10-of-19 three-pointers in the win.

From two-point range, they shot nearly 42 percent, which may not sound bad, but when you consider there was a near 10 percent dip in production between three- and two-point shooting, it’s something to keep an eye on. It also comes down to getting more guys going and hitting on the shots that should be made.

You’d like to see guys like Jamarii Thomas and Myles Stute, who played well on Tuesday, be a little more consistent with their makes. Once those guys get into a rhythm, things should be fine. It’s also good to know that others like Zachary Davis, Morris Ugusuk and Jordan Butler have been solid off the bench pieces so far this year.

Doing a better job of limiting turnovers but…

South Carolina only had five turnovers on Tuesday but that was not including Collin Murray-Boyles and his five turnovers he had in the game. He’s turned the ball over two or more times in every game so far.It’s a good sign most of the team limit their mistakes but it would also be great to see Murray-Boyles get on that same wave length.

The good news for him is that he’s been fantastic in virtually every other way this season. He’s been phenomenal on the glass and in the paint, averaging a near double-double with 15.8 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. Again, it’s just limiting the turnovers that would be a huge difference maker for him and the rest of the team.

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Scouting the opponent

East Carolina is off to a good start in 2024-25 with a 7-2 record but will be going into Saturday’s game fresh off a 14-point loss to UNC Wilmington. The Pirates also lost to Jacksonville State by double digits not too long ago.

But this is a team that South Carolina is very familiar with by this point. The Gamecocks made the trip to Fayetteville the last two seasons. They lost the first game in 2022 and then pulled away to a six-point win last season. These games have always been tricky for them and it could be that way on Saturday, despite this matchup being in Columbia.

East Carolina returns senior guard RJ Felton, who has gotten off to a tremendous start to this season, with 19.2 points per game on 42.7 percent shooting. Granted, he is coming off a game where he only scored three points on 1-of-12 shooting. But outside of that, he’s been consistent this year. He’ll be on the floor most of the day and will consistently have the ball in his hands.

Two others guys to keep an eye on in this game from an ECU perspective: CJ Walker and Jordan Riley. Walker, a transfer forward with stops at Oregon and UCF, is having a nice year with 17.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He might not grab a ton of rebounds against South Carolina’s front court. But you can expect him to get his points.

The same can be said for Riley, who comes by way of Temple, where he started in 29 games last season. But in his first season with the Pirates, he’s averaging 13.2 points per game on 45.3 percent shooting from the field. He hasn’t been a heavy three-point shooter but he can be a factor with rebounds and assists.

Game details

Who: South Carolina (5-3) vs. East Carolina (7-2)

When: Saturday, Dec. 7 at 2 p.m.

Where: Colonial Life Arena (18,000)

How to watch/listen: SEC Network Plus/107.5 The Game

ESPN gives South Carolina a 87.6 percent chance to win

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