What to watch for: South Carolina basketball hosts USC Upstate

A little less than a week after wrapping a disappointing trip to Charleston, South Carolina is back on the court trying to snap a three-game skid.

South Carolina hosts USC Upstate Friday at 4 p.m. with a chance to pick up a much-needed win. Here’s what to watch for. 

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Fast starts

South Carolina wasn’t able to sustain fast starts in Charleston, and it led to three losses in four days. The Gamecocks are coming off a four-day break and tipping in the middle of the afternoon the day after Thanksgiving. 

This is a prime example of a team that could come out slow. How South Carolina looks over the first 10 minutes of game time will be interesting to track. 

Injuries and starters

Starting point guard Meechie Johnson is nowhere close to 100 percent right now, and even Lamont Paris said the Ohio State transfer is a shell of himself after the Charleston Classic. 

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The Gamecocks were relying on Johnson to play a big role this season, and he looked the part in practice before an ankle injury in the season opener. Seeing if he plays, and how that injury responded over the last few days, will be intriguing. Then how South Carolina structures its starting five to make sure they’re optimizing Johnson’s role. 

South Carolina defensively

The Gamecocks haven’t been a good defensive team early in the season and will need to be better down the stretch of non-conference play. South Carolina’s had practice time to try and improve there, and this is the first outside test to show it.

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The Gamecocks showed some ability to play well when in a 1-3-1 zone, especially early against Davidson. There could be a chance that zone shows up more as South Carolina’s man-to-man defense inches along. 

Frontcourt rotation

South Carolina has lacked a true post presence through five games with inconsistent play from a banged-up Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk and Josh Gray. Teams have attacked the paint against this South Carolina team and the offense has been dreadful inside. 

South Carolina is shooting just 41.2 percent from two, 335th nationally, and only have 46.6 percent of points coming from two this year. Seeing not only which big men start but how Paris manages that rotation will be something to track against Upstate. 

Opponent scouting report

The Spartans are not off to a hot start this year sitting at 2-3 with wins over Brevard and Coastal Carolina. The losses have come to Duke, Clemson and most recently Monday at Air Force. 

USC Upstate is one of the worst defensive teams to start the year, allowing 111.2 points per 100 possessions. That’s 350th nationally, but that’s skewed some by an 84-38 loss to a really good Duke team. 

The Spartans rank below 300th nationally in opponent effective field goal percentage, opponent offensive rebound rate and two-point percentage against. They’re a largely average offensive team, although they struggle to offensive rebound the ball and foul too much while not getting to the line a ton. 

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USC Upstate is shooting 34.2 percent from three, slightly above average and don’t get the ball picked from them a ton. They largely protect the ball and take efficient shots. 

The Spartans are led by Jordan Gainey, who’s averaging 14 points on 41.7 percent shooting this year. Two other players–Justin Bailey and Trae Broadnax are averaging double figures. 

Game details

Who: USC Upstate (2-3) at South Carolina (2-3)

Where: Colonial Life Arena (18,000)

When: Friday, Nov. 25 

How to watch/listen: SEC Network Plus/107.5 FM

KenPom projection: 77-63 South Carolina win (Gamecocks given 89 percent chance to win)

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