Darrin Horn's Gamecocks head to Greenville this evening to face off against the 7-2 Furman Paladins. Furman's previous two losses came against Kent St. in OT and to Penn St. in a blowout. Most of their wins have come against fairly lackluster competition.
Furman does not do anything particularly well. If the Gamecocks' two greatest weaknesses are turnover margin (owing to a young backcourt) and rebounding (owing to a small front line), Furman doesn't appear to be the team to take advantage. The Paladins have had TO problems of their own, ranking 219th and losing the battle by a -.7 margin. They're currently giving the ball up over 15 times per game. Their rebound margin is a little better but still not great. The Paladins have a little more presence down low than some of our other mid-major opponents have, but they're not another Ohio St.
This is all to say that this game should amount to a Gamecocks' victory. The potential for an upset is always there when you go on the road, especially when it's to play an in-state mid-major opponent that would love to make its season with a victory over Big State U. We're the better, more athletic team, though. Chat about the game in the open thread.