Game preview: Gamecock men host Georgia to close homestand

South Carolina (16-11, 8-6 SEC) vs. Georgia (14-13, 4-10)

Start time: 6:30 p.m.

TV: SEC Network

Radio: 107.5 The Game

Last game

The LSU Tigers needed to bust a slump in which they’d lost their past two games and four out of five. The Gamecocks needed to keep pressing an advantage after winning eight games out of 10 and looking like a possible late NCAA Tournament addition despite a slip at Mississippi State. Unfortunately, South Carolina put forth a too-little-too-late effort in a failed attempt to overcome a 19-point deficit in the second half, and the Bayou Bengals left Columbia with an 86-80 victory. Jermaine Couisnard, Keyshawn Bryant, and Jair Bolden each had 15 points for USC, with A.J. Lawson adding 13 and Maik Kostar chipping in 10.

What to watch for

The Gamecocks handled the Bulldogs earlier this year in Athens, coming away with a 75-59 win in a dominating defensive performance that saw UGA score just 20 points in the first half and shoot 35% from the field. Georgia is 1-6 on the road this season, with the lone victory coming this past weekend on a buzzer-beater at Vanderbilt. Freshman standout Anthony Edwards leads the Dawgs with 18.9 points per game, but was held to 16 in the previous meeting (with half of those coming from the charity stripe). The availability of USC forward Jayln McCreary, who missed action against Mississippi State and played sparingly against LSU, is something to keep an eye on as the Gamecocks go for their eighth straight victory over UGA. South Carolina is a longest of longshots to make the Big Dance, but more wins are still required for that to be on the map of possibility.