Well hopefully the Alabama Crimson Tide basketball team will suffer the same fate as their football program did against South Carolina this past fall. That means a loss for those in the dark. The Gamecocks will have their hands full tonight as the Tide is riding a six game winning streak. But the Gamecocks are coming in off a great victory over Vanderbilt in overtime. The Gamecocks (10-4) are ranked at #108 in the RPI and the Crimson Tide (9-6) are ranked lower at #158. Loser of this SEC clash will move to 1-1 in conference play.
Game is on CSS and will come on at 9pm on the east coast.
For South Carolina to win, three things must be done….
1. Contain the Tide Inside Game — The Crimson Tide have a strong inside presence with JaMychal Green, who leads the team with 14.9 points per game and grabs 7.5 rebounds per contest, and Tony Mitchell, who averages 14.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest. For USC to win they must limit the Tide’s ability to score easy buckets. Also the Gamecocks must win the rebound war.
2. Gamecocks must get their offense going — Bama prides itself on their defense which holds opposing teams to 56 points. For USC to win, they must score. They need Ellington, Jackson and Muldrow each to have 12+ points. For USC to win, they must score 70 points.
3. USC must force turnovers and limit their own — The Tide average 14 turnovers a game. I think USC needs to force 17+ to win this game. In that same breath, USC can not squander the chance for the win by turning the ball over.
Here is a comparison…
| PPG | FG% | FT% | 3P% | RPG | ORPG | DRPG | APG | TPG | SPG | BPG | FPG | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Bama | 68.3 | 46.1 | 70.6 | 32.4 | 38.8 | 12.5 | 26.3 | 14.3 | 14.7 | 9.6 | 5.3 | 18.6 |
 |
USC | 73.6 | 43.2 | 61.6 | 36.4 | 40.6 | 14.4 | 26.1 | 12.7 | 14.7 | 7.4 | 6.6 | 18.1 |
|
Bama Opps | 56.5 | 35.9 | 65.2 | 29.5 | 33.5 | 12.3 | 21.3 | 9.5 | 15.7 | 6.0 | 3.5 | 14.4 |
 |
USC Opps | 68.0 | 40.1 | 67.0 | 32.6 | 37.6 | 12.9 | 24.8 | 13.7 | 15.5 | 6.3 | 3.1 | 16.8 |
The road hasn’t been kind to the Gamecocks under Horn, who is 5-11 in the SEC since 2008-09 away from Columbia. The Crimson Tide is a perfect 8-0 inside Coleman Coliseum this season.
Last year, the Gamecocks put up a record of 0-2 on the Crimson Tide, losing by an average margin of 7. Over the last four seasons, South Carolina is 2-3 against Alabama, including 1-1 at Coleman Coliseum.
Don’t get me wrong by reading those three keys as it sounds like USC is likely to lose. That is not the case, as I feel they will win this game but it will take the execution of those three keys. If Carolina does not win the rebounding war, allows Bama’s inside to have their way or not forcing Bama to give up the ball….then SC will lose. I predict a win, 73-66 SC.
USC needs the win as it will move them to 2-0 and with a young team like Coach Horn has, building off wins boosts confidence.
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