South Carolina vs. Florida: Three things to watch for, scouting the opponent and injury report

The search for the first win of conference play continues. When it will happen remains a mystery, especially with the schedule only continuing to be a challenge.

South Carolina (10-8, 0-5 SEC) went winless on its two-game road trip last week and now returns home to face No. 5 Florida on Wednesday. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. on SEC Network.

Here are three things to watch for, an opponent scouting report on the Gators, plus the latest injury report.

Losing Thomas is becoming more noticeable

Since losing Jamarii Thomas to a right knee sprain, South Carolina hasn’t been able to find a viable replacement to be the point guard of the offense. Jacobi Wright has slotted in for the time being but even his production hasn’t been great lately.

The same can be said for most of the guards, expect for Morris Ugusuk, who has thrived since joining the starting five three games ago. But it doesn’t really matter who takes over Thomas’ spot; there are still a lot of issues.

In the past three games, the Gamecocks have turned the ball over 50 times. Teams have been taking full advantage of these mistakes, as Auburn had 12, Vanderbilt had 22, and Oklahoma went for 19 points off turnovers.

When the turnovers come in bunches, they normally come back to bite South Carolina in a big way. Would having Thomas on the floor completely erase this problem? No, the Gamecocks were still turning the ball over a lot even before he got hurt. But it’s critical that they try to find some consistency at the guard position and limit their mistakes.

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Will the energy be there?

While times are tough during a five-game losing streak, no one is going to feel sorry for the Gamecocks. The schedule will only continue to be a challenge from here with six of the next seven games coming against ranked opponents. It could be viewed as an opportunity to get some big-time wins. But it also could be seen as the season’s coffin being prepared if things don’t turn around in a hurry.

On the list of problems that South Carolina is currently facing, a lack of motivation seems to be one of them. Whether it actually is or isn’t, it’s concerning that it has to be brought up as a potential issue 18 games into the season.

After tying Saturday’s game with Oklahoma at 47 with 12 minutes to go, things quickly fell apart for the Gamecocks, as the Sooners went on a 35-15 run to close the game out to roll to a 20-point victory. Once Collin Murray-Boyles fouled out with five minutes left, it seemed they were out of the fight. This took place in the middle of what ended up being a 14-0 run for Oklahoma.

It’s going to be interesting to see what happens when the first sign of adversity takes place on Wednesday. South Carolina should benefit from being back at home in front of its fans. But it needs to get off to a good start and play with some fire to have a chance.

Need more out of the starting frontcourt

Speaking of Murray-Boyles fouling on Saturday, he only played 22 minutes and finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Not too bad considering he had a double-double, but nearly half of his points came at the free throw line, going 5-for-8.

Nick Pringle provided next to nothing in his time on the floor, finishing with five points and four rebounds. He only played 18 minutes while racking up three fouls and three turnovers in the loss. When Murray-Boyles isn’t on the floor, there’s a clear drop-off in terms of production. But when Pringle isn’t doing much or sitting on the bench, it leaves the Gamecocks without a whole lot of options.

With the guard situation being in disarray, the only two backups in the frontcourt are Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk and Jordan Butler. Both have done a decent job in their limited time on the floor this season, but neither player provides the same production as the regular starters do.

That’s why it’s so important to keep Murray-Boyles and Pringle out of foul trouble. When Murray-Boyles is at his best, he can basically keep South Carolina in a game on his own. With Pringle, it’s been a little more hit and miss. He needs to be able to find some more consistency in his game and run with it.

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Scouting the opponent

Florida is off to its best start in year three of the Todd Golden era out in Gainesville. The Gators are 16-2 on the year, with both of their losses coming in SEC play against No. 9 Kentucky and Missouri. Other than that, they’ve been exceptional all season.

They’ve had some nice wins on their schedule this year, including wins over North Carolina, Wake Forest, and Florida State in non-conference play. But their real standout win came in a 73-43 rout of then-No. 1 Tennessee on Jan. 7.

In his second season at Florida, senior guard Walter Clayton Jr. has been slightly better than he was last year, at least from a statistical standpoint. He’s currently leading the team with 17.9 points per game on 45.8 percent shooting. Behind him, the Gators boast two more starters averaging double-digit points along the perimeter. Alijah Martin with 16.2 and Will Richard with 13, respectively.

In the frontcourt, 6-foot-11 forward Alex Condon is averaging 10.8 points and 8.2 rebounds. Both he and starting center Rueben Chinyelu are top 10 in rebounding in the SEC, with Chinyelu grabbing 7.2 boards per game. Between them, they could create a tough matchup for Murray-Boyles and Pringle, especially if they only play as much as they did against Oklahoma.

Florida is fourth in the SEC in scoring, averaging 85.9 points per game. The Gamecocks have already faced two of the top three teams in scoring (Alabama and Auburn) with some mixed results. Through five games in league play, the Gators are scoring roughly 82 points.

On the defensive end of the floor, Florida is allowing 65.6 points per game, third-best in the SEC. To go along with having two of the top rebounders on any team, the Gators are the best rebounding team in the SEC and tie for the top rebounding margin in the country. They’re also solid defensively at defending shots from behind the arc, with opponents shooting at just a 27.7 percent clip, second lowest in the conference.

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Injury report

Things will mostly remain the same from an injury standpoint for South Carolina. In Tuesday’s SEC student-athlete availability report, Myles Stute and Jamarii Thomas are both listed as out. This is now the fourth consecutive game in which the Gamecocks will be down two starters. Both aren’t expected to be back anytime soon.

The one real change to the availability report is freshman guard Cam Scott being listed as questionable. He hasn’t appeared on the list so far this season and is coming off a game in which he scored two points in six minutes against Oklahoma.

As for Florida, starting guard Will Richard is listed as probable on the availability report. Other than that, the Gators are in good shape.

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Game details

Who: South Carolina (10-8, 0-5 SEC) vs. No. 5 Florida (16-2, 3-2 SEC)

When: Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m.

Where: Colonial Life Arena (18,000)

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

ESPN gives South Carolina a 24.3 percent chance to win

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