Jacksonville St. at South Carolina: A Quick Recap
by Gamecock Man on Dec 29, 2010 10:16 PM EST
in South Carolina Gamecocks Basketball
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PrintThe Gamecocks defeated the Gamecocks tonight (as in, the good guys won), but it was another sub-par performance for Carolina. We struggled to pull away from JSU and then allowed them back into the game late, and against a team that's currently 2-12 and that has failed to beat even the most unimposing opponents on its schedule, it's hard to call this a performance to hang our hat on. Stephen Hall led JSU with 13 points, while Ramon Galloway led Carolina with 15 and Sam Muldrow put in a double-double.
A few quick thoughts:
- Carolina was ice cold from the floor again in this one, and for a team that apparently intends to live and die by the three, that's bad news. This team really seems to struggle when Bruce Ellington and Brian Richardson aren't lighting it up. At least Galloway shot the ball well tonight.
- Turnovers were still a problem; we committed 19 and were -4 in ratio. I was hoping that we would be limiting our TO numbers by this point in the season, particularly against competition like JSU. We're going to be in big trouble in this regard when we start playing teams like Kentucky, Tennessee, and Vandy.
- Darrin Horn followed my advice and started Damontre Harris over Malik Cooke tonight. He also limited Cooke's overall minutes, preferring to go with a larger lineup that incorporated Harris, Johndre Jefferson, and R.J. Slawson more than we've seen in past weeks. The change didn't pay huge dividends tonight, obviously, but I like the move. I don't think we can win consistently in the SEC without a stronger inside presence, and while I like Cooke, I think that to get that inside presence we're going to have to use Cooke in more of a support role. (Cooke is actually well-suited to a sixth-man-like role.) I like Harris's game and physical tools a lot, by the way; he could turn out to be a very nice player if he puts on 20 pounds or so over the next couple of years.
That's a wrap for this one. Next up is a trip to Boston College. A win there would certainly be nice heading into conference play, wouldn't it?
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We looked really poor on offense tonight
Which really worries me about our season. I wasn’t really expecting much out of the Floor-cocks this year, but I was hoping for a little more.
Yeah...
I’m pretty disappointed in how we’re playing. I thought after the Clemson win that maybe we could put together an NIT run or so, but I’m beginning to think it’s looking like another losing season. We might pull of an upset or two, but we’ll also lose lots of games.
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by Gamecock Man on Dec 30, 2010 2:39 PM EST up reply actions
You bring up good points on
Cooke vs Harris. I am torn on the new starting line-up but certainly agree that a improved inside game, both in scoring and rebounding, is a must going forward. I too like Harris but also like Cooke. I guess I need to see Harris in another game before I am sold on what he can bring.
The Gamecocks need to work the ball inside more and take higher % shots….living and dying from the arch is not the way to go in SEC play.
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I like the move to start Harris...
But I also think we need to give Cooke more minutes than he got last night. Cooke would be a good guy to spell multiple positions off the bench. We should be using him to create matchup problems.
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by Gamecock Man on Dec 30, 2010 2:38 PM EST up reply actions
+1
Cooke’s all-around game is very useful, but better suited to coming off the bench. I like the size Harris brings to the lineup and I honestly think he has more post moves than Muldrow does. He doesn’t seem as hesitant around the rim and so he brings a little more of an inside presence to the table. He’s obviously raw right now, but he has a chance to be a great big for us, and possibly more of a true center than we’ve had in a while.
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