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

South Carolina returns home to Colonial Life Arena with the same mission as before: find a way to get that first SEC win and end the losing skid.

The Gamecocks (10-13, 0-10 SEC) will host No. 19 Ole Miss on Wednesday night. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. on SEC Network.

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

Going to be tough to limit and force mistakes

For as much of a blowout as Saturday’s loss at Kentucky was, the Gamecocks didn’t turn the ball over as much as they normally do. Compared to their SEC-worst 15.2 turnovers per game, they only had nine turnovers in Lexington. Still, it didn’t amount to much with a poor shooting day and struggles to keep Kentucky’s offense in check.

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Heading into Wednesday’s matchup, South Carolina will face an Ole Miss team that is No. 1 in the conference in turnover margin. In 11 SEC games, the Rebels turn it over 8.5 times, while they force 13.7 turnovers. This isn’t ideal for the Gamecocks since they haven’t proven to be consistent with limiting their own mistakes. Plus, they only force about 10.9 turnovers per game.

Ole Miss has never had more offensive turnovers than any opponent it’s played this season, which speaks to just how good it has been. It’s a big ask but if South Carolina can be the team to force some turnovers, it could drastically help in winning this game.

Which way is this one going to go?

There hasn’t been much in between with how South Carolina has performed during its 10-game losing streak. It’s either been losing in blowout fashion or going down to the wire and coming up short.

The Gamecocks have lost five SEC games by double digits, with four coming by at least 20 points. In the five other games, they’ve lost by a combined 16 points. All of those losses came by five or less points.

In some ways, this team’s record doesn’t completely reflect how things have gone this year. If a few possessions or moments in a game went their way, there’s a good chance they could be hovering around .500 in league play and feeling a lot better about this season. That just hasn’t been the case, though.

If there’s one thing to expect, South Carolina will put up a good fight at home. Outside of a 20-point loss to Alabama, it has kept every other game close at Colonial Life Arena. But as has been the case all year, there’s just no telling what kind of outcome could transpire.

Won’t win shooting the way they did at Kentucky

If there’s a simple formula to play well and come away with a victory on Wednesday, it’s just shooting better and scoring more points than the other team. Obviously, South Carolina hasn’t been able to do that consistently since SEC play began, and Saturday was a prime example of that.

In the loss to the Wildcats, the Gamecocks shot 32.8 percent from the field and 18.2 percent from three-point range. They finished with more shots taken (58) than points scored (57). The overall numbers aren’t good, but they were better in the second half, shooting 45.8 percent from the floor. But it’s going 8-of-34 (23.5 percent) in the first half that put them behind by double digits at the break.

With Ole Miss averaging 75.4 points per SEC game, it’s going to not only take better defense but a good shooting performance to stay within striking distance. In addition, the free throw shooting continues to plague South Carolina. The team went 15-for-23 (65.2 percent) at the line on Saturday. Eight missed free throws doesn’t make a difference in a 23-point loss but it does in the games where the Gamecocks lose by single digits.

Expect Collin Murray-Boyles and Jamarii Thomas to take the bulk of the shots moving forward, but South Carolina is going to need more from its other starters and bench players.

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Scouting the opponent

For a full look into Ole Miss, click here to read Resume Check: Looking ahead to South Carolina basketball’s next opponent, the Ole Miss Rebels.

Injury report

For South Carolina, Myles Stute is OUT (blood clot).

For Ole Miss, Matthew Murrell is PROBABLE.

Game details

Who: South Carolina (10-13, 0-10 SEC) vs. No. 19 Ole Miss (18-6, 7-4 SEC)

When: Wednesday, Feb. 12 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 32.3 percent chance to win

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