Link to the most recent post: South Carolina MBB Resume (11/28/20)
Quick explanation: This is a post I started doing last year and had alot of fun with. I typically try to keep it as a running update throughout the year after every game. The way this posts usually works is that I break down our current resume, then I go in oppo-by-oppo for those that have a shot at moving up or down a quadrant, then I talk about our next opponent.
SEC Standings Note: Not applicable
Bracketology Note: Latest Lunardi Bracketology (11/24/20) - Gamecocks not mentioned. He has 5 SEC teams included (LSU, Tennessee, Florida, Alabama, Kentucky) and two mentioned (Ole Miss, Arkansas). This is not shocking as, though the Gamecocks were/are finally getting love from media, they are still in the "prove it" stage.
NET Note: The NET rankings have not been released yet so I will be using KenPom's own rankings. I x'ed out the references to NET below because that all refers to the prior year.
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**For teams that we play twice I will denote the road game with an "@" symbol
**Remember, NET has not been updated so I am using KenPom (KP) for the below Quadrant
For us:
Quadrant 1: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
Quadrant 2: (0-0)
Wins: Tulsa (KP #100)
Losses:
Quadrant 3: (0-1)
Wins:
Losses: Liberty (KP #126)
Quadrant 4: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
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**To start the season, I'll cover all of our teams, but as the year goes I am only going to highlight teams that have chance to move up or down in the bubble. Some teams are either destined for Quadrant 4 regardless of results at this point and some become sandwiched into one of the other quads with little hope of movement the later the season goes on.
**if a highlight is green -> I think he means they COULD move up, not that I think they will. Red -> COULD move down, not that I think they will.
Notes on teams we've played:
**I have linked the school's name directly to the Instant Analysis by @Collyn Taylor for the latest game- figured this would be nice to add
Tulsa (Last year's NET #78, Current year KenPom #100) - As Collyn states in his Instant Analysis, this is a good win against a team that, barring a bad conference showing, should end up being NET 50-100 which is a Quad 2 win on a neutral court. Obviously, Quad 1 wins is what you want, but Quad 2 wins are the next best thing. I'll let you take a look at Collyn's Instant Analysis for more! Tulsa has a pretty difficult non-con schedule coming up so I would not be shocked to see them dip into Quad 3, but as conference play starts they should firmly cement themselves in Quad 2.
Liberty University (Last year's NET #69, Current year KenPom #126, up two spots since last post) - Still not a loss we want on our schedule, but Liberty somehow almost won the Hall of Fame tournament after playing 4 games in 5 days. They took TCU down to the wire in an exciting final minute. They had a chance for a game winning shot but a careless turnover cost them that opportunity. As I mentioned in the last post, this is a team that should easily compete for a conference title and a return bid to the big dance. We should know by late January if this true because the Top 3 ASUN teams (Lipscomb, Stetson, Liberty) will all play each other (twice) very early in the conference schedule. In terms of Quads, they were a borderline Quad 1 team last year, they will start as a Quad 3 this year (based on KenPom), but I think they will end as a Quad 2 this year after conference play is done.
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**For teams that we play twice I will denote the road game with an "@" symbol
My Projection:
Quadrant 1: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
Quadrant 2: (0-1)
Wins: Tulsa
Losses: Liberty
Quadrant 3: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
Quadrant 4: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
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Next Opponent: Houston (KenPom #10, AP #17) - That AP ranking for Houston will definitely be going up after they defeated #14 Texas Tech last night. This is a scary good team with loads of talent and experience. Basically, it is the exact same team that took us to the woodshed last year minus Fabian White who is out for the season with injury. The good news for South Carolina is that they tend to play up to good competition in the same way they play down to lesser competition. The perfect example of this is our defeat of Virginia followed by a subsequent loss to Stetson. Both South Carolina and Houston have similar makeups - guard heavy teams who rely on their bigs to get boards and distribute the ball outwards (especially after losing White), but the key difference is tempo. It's only a couple of games in but Houston is playing at the 318th pace while South Carolina is playing at the 37th. It'll be interesting to see if we make Houston play to our tempo by knocking down some early shots or if they control the possessions with stout play on both sides of the ball (currently 11th in Offense and 19th in Defense). They have not proven to be a team capable of scoring consistently in the paint in three games so it will be crucial for our frontcourt to not commit silly fouls so that we can keep them operating on the perimeter. They are a fine 3-ball team, but teams can get hot or cold at any time from behind the arc so I would prefer teams operating offense from back there as opposed to under the basket. Rebounding will also be key. Houston appears to be spacing out the defense very well which is giving their big a 1-v-1 battle under the basket for rebounds while also allowing their guards to crash the boards. Luckily, we have been no slouch on the boards ourselves so it will be interesting to see our guys try to win their battles. Ultimately, this Houston team is very good as their ranking indicates, but they are not unbeatable. A likely result is a double-digit loss for the Gamecocks (Houston did just beat #14 Texas Tech by 11), but we've been known to be scrappy against better competition.
Quick explanation: This is a post I started doing last year and had alot of fun with. I typically try to keep it as a running update throughout the year after every game. The way this posts usually works is that I break down our current resume, then I go in oppo-by-oppo for those that have a shot at moving up or down a quadrant, then I talk about our next opponent.
SEC Standings Note: Not applicable
Bracketology Note: Latest Lunardi Bracketology (11/24/20) - Gamecocks not mentioned. He has 5 SEC teams included (LSU, Tennessee, Florida, Alabama, Kentucky) and two mentioned (Ole Miss, Arkansas). This is not shocking as, though the Gamecocks were/are finally getting love from media, they are still in the "prove it" stage.
NET Note: The NET rankings have not been released yet so I will be using KenPom's own rankings. I x'ed out the references to NET below because that all refers to the prior year.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**For teams that we play twice I will denote the road game with an "@" symbol
**Remember, NET has not been updated so I am using KenPom (KP) for the below Quadrant
For us:
Quadrant 1: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
Quadrant 2: (0-0)
Wins: Tulsa (KP #100)
Losses:
Quadrant 3: (0-1)
Wins:
Losses: Liberty (KP #126)
Quadrant 4: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**To start the season, I'll cover all of our teams, but as the year goes I am only going to highlight teams that have chance to move up or down in the bubble. Some teams are either destined for Quadrant 4 regardless of results at this point and some become sandwiched into one of the other quads with little hope of movement the later the season goes on.
**if a highlight is green -> I think he means they COULD move up, not that I think they will. Red -> COULD move down, not that I think they will.
Notes on teams we've played:
**I have linked the school's name directly to the Instant Analysis by @Collyn Taylor for the latest game- figured this would be nice to add
Tulsa (Last year's NET #78, Current year KenPom #100) - As Collyn states in his Instant Analysis, this is a good win against a team that, barring a bad conference showing, should end up being NET 50-100 which is a Quad 2 win on a neutral court. Obviously, Quad 1 wins is what you want, but Quad 2 wins are the next best thing. I'll let you take a look at Collyn's Instant Analysis for more! Tulsa has a pretty difficult non-con schedule coming up so I would not be shocked to see them dip into Quad 3, but as conference play starts they should firmly cement themselves in Quad 2.
Liberty University (Last year's NET #69, Current year KenPom #126, up two spots since last post) - Still not a loss we want on our schedule, but Liberty somehow almost won the Hall of Fame tournament after playing 4 games in 5 days. They took TCU down to the wire in an exciting final minute. They had a chance for a game winning shot but a careless turnover cost them that opportunity. As I mentioned in the last post, this is a team that should easily compete for a conference title and a return bid to the big dance. We should know by late January if this true because the Top 3 ASUN teams (Lipscomb, Stetson, Liberty) will all play each other (twice) very early in the conference schedule. In terms of Quads, they were a borderline Quad 1 team last year, they will start as a Quad 3 this year (based on KenPom), but I think they will end as a Quad 2 this year after conference play is done.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**For teams that we play twice I will denote the road game with an "@" symbol
My Projection:
Quadrant 1: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
Quadrant 2: (0-1)
Wins: Tulsa
Losses: Liberty
Quadrant 3: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
Quadrant 4: (0-0)
Wins:
Losses:
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Next Opponent: Houston (KenPom #10, AP #17) - That AP ranking for Houston will definitely be going up after they defeated #14 Texas Tech last night. This is a scary good team with loads of talent and experience. Basically, it is the exact same team that took us to the woodshed last year minus Fabian White who is out for the season with injury. The good news for South Carolina is that they tend to play up to good competition in the same way they play down to lesser competition. The perfect example of this is our defeat of Virginia followed by a subsequent loss to Stetson. Both South Carolina and Houston have similar makeups - guard heavy teams who rely on their bigs to get boards and distribute the ball outwards (especially after losing White), but the key difference is tempo. It's only a couple of games in but Houston is playing at the 318th pace while South Carolina is playing at the 37th. It'll be interesting to see if we make Houston play to our tempo by knocking down some early shots or if they control the possessions with stout play on both sides of the ball (currently 11th in Offense and 19th in Defense). They have not proven to be a team capable of scoring consistently in the paint in three games so it will be crucial for our frontcourt to not commit silly fouls so that we can keep them operating on the perimeter. They are a fine 3-ball team, but teams can get hot or cold at any time from behind the arc so I would prefer teams operating offense from back there as opposed to under the basket. Rebounding will also be key. Houston appears to be spacing out the defense very well which is giving their big a 1-v-1 battle under the basket for rebounds while also allowing their guards to crash the boards. Luckily, we have been no slouch on the boards ourselves so it will be interesting to see our guys try to win their battles. Ultimately, this Houston team is very good as their ranking indicates, but they are not unbeatable. A likely result is a double-digit loss for the Gamecocks (Houston did just beat #14 Texas Tech by 11), but we've been known to be scrappy against better competition.
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