South Carolina (12-6, 3-2) will take on the Auburn Tigers (7-13, 0-6) Saturday afternoon at Colonial Life Arena.
The Gamecocks have had a week off since the loss to Kentucky and will be looking to get back on track in the SEC race as they find themselves 1.5 games back of first place Florida (16-4, 5-1).
Leading scorer Bruce Ellington has hit a dry spell scoring wise, averaging only 10.5 points per game in his last two games. He was held to eight points against Kentucky last Saturday and will be looking to stay out of foul trouble against Auburn and get back into a scoring groove.
Sam Muldrow has been on a tear for the Gamecocks defensively and had a breakout scoring game against Kentucky, scoring a career-high 23. If the Gamecocks want to get back to winning, Muldrow will have to continue to score inside and give the Gamecocks a reliable defensive presence in the paint.
Ramon Galloway has been a reliable threat off the bench in the last couple games and has given the Gamecocks a much needed spark from outside the starting lineup. If he can continue to be successful off the bench, it will give South Carolina another weapon to use later in games to keep fresh legs on the floor and still be successful in scoring.
Auburn has had a tough time of late, losing all of their six conference games, including a 45-40 heart-breaker at home last week to Florida. If Auburn wants to win this game, they must get leading scorers Earnest Ross and Andre Malone going early.
Ross has scored 20 and 15 in his last two games, respectively, and Malone has averaged 11.7 points per game. Auburn has struggled to score against some of the weakest defenses in the country this year and they need to find a way to score to have a shot to upset the Gamecocks on the road.
South Carolina should have a win after Saturday's contest, but you can never count out the possibility of an upset in the SEC.
Prediction:
Auburn 55 South Carolina 70
Friday, January 28, 2011
Thursday, January 27, 2011
South Carolina Baseball Ranked No. 7 by Baseball America
The defending national champion South Carolina Gamecocks have been ranked at No. 7 by Baseball America.
They will welcome two new transfers into the starting lineup this season, one at catcher, Dante Rosenberg, a junior from Palm Beach (Fla.) CC, and Peter Mooney, a junior shortstop from Palm Beach (Fla.) CC as well.
Many familiar names will stack the Gamecock lineup and bullpen including Jackie Bradley, Jr., Christian Walker, Scott Wingo, Adrian Morales, Michael Roth, Matt Price and a few others.
The Gamecocks were given an above average rating in hitting and power, a solid average rating in speed, average rating in starting pitching, and elite rating in defense.
The Gamecocks are not the only SEC team in the top 25. Florida is the top-ranked team in the country, Vanderbilt sits at No. 4 and LSU is at No. 22. Rival Clemson comes in at No. 10.
The full top 25 is available at Baseball America's website, www.baseballamerica.com.
Carolina will open their 2011 season at home against Santa Clara on February 18.
They will welcome two new transfers into the starting lineup this season, one at catcher, Dante Rosenberg, a junior from Palm Beach (Fla.) CC, and Peter Mooney, a junior shortstop from Palm Beach (Fla.) CC as well.
Many familiar names will stack the Gamecock lineup and bullpen including Jackie Bradley, Jr., Christian Walker, Scott Wingo, Adrian Morales, Michael Roth, Matt Price and a few others.
The Gamecocks were given an above average rating in hitting and power, a solid average rating in speed, average rating in starting pitching, and elite rating in defense.
The Gamecocks are not the only SEC team in the top 25. Florida is the top-ranked team in the country, Vanderbilt sits at No. 4 and LSU is at No. 22. Rival Clemson comes in at No. 10.
The full top 25 is available at Baseball America's website, www.baseballamerica.com.
Carolina will open their 2011 season at home against Santa Clara on February 18.
Monday, January 24, 2011
Team Report: Jan. 24, 2011
The South Carolina Gamecocks (12-6, 3-2) are coming off a 67-58 loss at the hands of the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats (15-4, 3-2).
The Gamecocks were coming into the ballgame on the strength of two consecutive SEC victories at Florida and a home overtime win vs. Arkansas. A win against Kentucky would've given the Gamecocks a two game lead in the SEC eastern division, but the Wildcats pulled even with South Carolina in conference play.
The young Gamecocks trailed from beginning to end as Kentucky controlled the game from the opening tip. Brandon Knight had 23 points for the Wildcats and Terrance Jones bounced back to have a solid game for Kentucky, recording 14 points and seven rebounds.
Sam Muldrow was the lone bright spot for Carolina, scoring a career-high 23 and pulling down 13 rebounds. Freshman and leading scorer Bruce Ellington was limited due to foul trouble for a second consecutive game and was held to a modest four points.
Even with the loss to Kentucky, Head Coach Darrin Horn has to be pleased with the play of his young team, who was predicted by most college basketball experts to finish last in the SEC East. There is plenty to look forward to this season for Horn and South Carolina.
South Carolina will welcome the struggling Auburn Tigers to the Colonial Life Arena this Saturday, giving the Gamecocks a week to prepare. Coach Horn should use this time to get his team re-focused after the loss to Kentucky, as they have winnable games coming up in the next couple weeks.
A big key to South Carolina's success so far has been the great play of Sam Muldrow and Bruce Ellington. If the Gamecocks wish to continue their winning ways, Ellington must stay out of foul trouble and Muldrow has to continue to be a defensive force in the paint. If Ellington stays out of trouble, his ability to run the offense gives the Gamecocks a better chance to create opportunities in transition. His quickness creates chances for second chance points and also gives the Gamecocks a good three point threat.
Player to Watch:
Ramon Galloway
Galloway has been outperforming starter Brian Richardson at the shooting guard position for the most part this year. If Horn leaves Richardson in the starting lineup, Galloway will continue to get chances to give the Gamecocks a spark from the bench. Before recording six points and five rebounds against Kentucky, Galloway scored 21 against Arkansas and was a big part of South Carolina's OT win. Look for Galloway to continue his solid play and give the Gamecocks a great option off the bench.
Next 3:
vs. Auburn (7-12, 0-5)
at LSU (10-9, 2-2)
at (19)Vanderbilt (14-4, 2-2)
The Gamecocks were coming into the ballgame on the strength of two consecutive SEC victories at Florida and a home overtime win vs. Arkansas. A win against Kentucky would've given the Gamecocks a two game lead in the SEC eastern division, but the Wildcats pulled even with South Carolina in conference play.
The young Gamecocks trailed from beginning to end as Kentucky controlled the game from the opening tip. Brandon Knight had 23 points for the Wildcats and Terrance Jones bounced back to have a solid game for Kentucky, recording 14 points and seven rebounds.
Sam Muldrow was the lone bright spot for Carolina, scoring a career-high 23 and pulling down 13 rebounds. Freshman and leading scorer Bruce Ellington was limited due to foul trouble for a second consecutive game and was held to a modest four points.
Even with the loss to Kentucky, Head Coach Darrin Horn has to be pleased with the play of his young team, who was predicted by most college basketball experts to finish last in the SEC East. There is plenty to look forward to this season for Horn and South Carolina.
South Carolina will welcome the struggling Auburn Tigers to the Colonial Life Arena this Saturday, giving the Gamecocks a week to prepare. Coach Horn should use this time to get his team re-focused after the loss to Kentucky, as they have winnable games coming up in the next couple weeks.
A big key to South Carolina's success so far has been the great play of Sam Muldrow and Bruce Ellington. If the Gamecocks wish to continue their winning ways, Ellington must stay out of foul trouble and Muldrow has to continue to be a defensive force in the paint. If Ellington stays out of trouble, his ability to run the offense gives the Gamecocks a better chance to create opportunities in transition. His quickness creates chances for second chance points and also gives the Gamecocks a good three point threat.
Player to Watch:
Ramon Galloway
Galloway has been outperforming starter Brian Richardson at the shooting guard position for the most part this year. If Horn leaves Richardson in the starting lineup, Galloway will continue to get chances to give the Gamecocks a spark from the bench. Before recording six points and five rebounds against Kentucky, Galloway scored 21 against Arkansas and was a big part of South Carolina's OT win. Look for Galloway to continue his solid play and give the Gamecocks a great option off the bench.
Next 3:
vs. Auburn (7-12, 0-5)
at LSU (10-9, 2-2)
at (19)Vanderbilt (14-4, 2-2)
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
South Carolina tops Arkansas in OT
Sam Muldrow recorded 20 points and nine rebounds while the Gamecocks outscored Arkansas 11-4 in overtime to get their third conference win of the year 81-74 Wednesday night.
The Gamecocks were coming in off of a huge road win over Florida and continued their success in conference play so far. South Carolina shot a combined 27-67 from the floor, good for 40.3%. Freshman guard Bruce Ellington struggled throughout the night, going 0-2 from behind the three point line and going only 3-10 from the field. Seven of his 13 points came from the foul stripe, including two big free throws late in the overtime period.
Ramon Galloway may have been the player of the game for the Gamecocks, going 7-15 from the field and hitting three of his five three point attempts. Galloway provided the highlight of the night as well with a slam dunk in the second half that lit a spark for the South Carolina offense.
Arkansas' Marshawn Powell led the way for the Razorbacks scoring 21, while guard Rotnei Clark was surprisingly cold from three point range, going only 1-5 on the night. The Razorbacks were haunted by bad shots and allowing second chance opportunities on the other end, as they surrendered a late five point lead.
The Gamecocks now have a 3-0 record in overtime this year while the Razorbacks are now 0-3 in extra time.
The Gamecocks will host (12)Kentucky Saturday night at 6pm on ESPN, looking to improve on their conference record and upset the Wildcats.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Gamecocks Travel to Gainesville
The South Carolina Gamecocks (10-5, 1-1) will travel to Gainesville, FL for the first time since winning the SEC Eastern division in football, to take on the Florida Gators (13-3, 2-0) on Saturday for a SEC Conference basketball game.
The Gamecocks come into the contest after a tough 10 point loss on the road at Alabama, 57-47, while the Gators come in off of a big road win against East powerhouse Tennessee.
South Carolina opened up conference play with a 83-75 home upset of then No. 22 Vanderbilt in overtime. Freshman guard Bruce Ellington led the way in points for the Gamecocks, scoring 22 points and going 6-12 from behind the three point line. Senior Sam Muldrow had the biggest night of anyone, however, recording only the second triple-double in South Carolina history, 16 points, 14 rebounds and 10 blocks.
The Gamecocks followed that effort with a disappointing loss to a mediocre Alabama squad on the road. Ellington failed to find his stroke until very late in the contest and only recorded only 10 points in his 27 minutes. Alabama's JaMycal Green dominated in the paint, finishing the night with 20 points and nine rebounds. Malik Cooke added 11 points for the Gamecocks in the losing effort.
If the Gamecocks wish to beat Florida, they will have to find a way to get some more points inside. The Gamecocks live and die on the jump shot, and that won't be enough to top the Gators. South Carolina will also need to slow down Florida guard Erving Walker who has averaged 14.4 points per game this season. Chandler Parsons leads the Gators in rebounds and assists.
If South Carolina can get Ellington going early and get an early lead, they may be able to keep this one close, otherwise, I see an easy Florida win.
Prediction:
South Carolina 65 Florida 77
The Gamecocks come into the contest after a tough 10 point loss on the road at Alabama, 57-47, while the Gators come in off of a big road win against East powerhouse Tennessee.
South Carolina opened up conference play with a 83-75 home upset of then No. 22 Vanderbilt in overtime. Freshman guard Bruce Ellington led the way in points for the Gamecocks, scoring 22 points and going 6-12 from behind the three point line. Senior Sam Muldrow had the biggest night of anyone, however, recording only the second triple-double in South Carolina history, 16 points, 14 rebounds and 10 blocks.
The Gamecocks followed that effort with a disappointing loss to a mediocre Alabama squad on the road. Ellington failed to find his stroke until very late in the contest and only recorded only 10 points in his 27 minutes. Alabama's JaMycal Green dominated in the paint, finishing the night with 20 points and nine rebounds. Malik Cooke added 11 points for the Gamecocks in the losing effort.
If the Gamecocks wish to beat Florida, they will have to find a way to get some more points inside. The Gamecocks live and die on the jump shot, and that won't be enough to top the Gators. South Carolina will also need to slow down Florida guard Erving Walker who has averaged 14.4 points per game this season. Chandler Parsons leads the Gators in rebounds and assists.
If South Carolina can get Ellington going early and get an early lead, they may be able to keep this one close, otherwise, I see an easy Florida win.
Prediction:
South Carolina 65 Florida 77
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