Jan. 5, 2007

South Carolina, 10-2, hosts No. 9 Kansas, 12-2, on Sun., Jan. 7 at 4:30 pm on CBS. In the two team’s only other meeting in Lawrence on Dec. 18, 2004, No. 2 Kansas scratched its way to a 64-60 win after Carolina opened the contest on a 12-0 run. USC’s top three scorers in that game, Carlos Powell (13), Josh Gonner (12) and Tarence Kinsey (11) have all finished their eligibility with Kinsey playing for the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies. KU, the Big 12 preseason favorite, is the highest ranked non-conference team ever to play in the Colonial Center.

Less than 1200 tickets remain for the Kansas game.

USC has won its last six games, including a 67-53 thumping of Western Carolina on Jan. 3 when Bryce Sheldon dumped in 20 PT and Brandis Raley-Ross bounced off the bench to score a career-high 18 PT. Kansas, also riding a six-game winning streak, defeated Rhode Island 80-69 in its last game on Dec. 30. Kansas has only played one away game this year falling 64-57 at DePaul on Dec. 2, but five of its next eight contests are out of Lawrence.

USC is in the fifth game of playing seven of eight games at the Colonial Center. Its one contest outside of Columbia during the stretch will be the SEC regular season opener at UGA. This year USC opened the season with three of the first five on the road (3-1)and Carolina is 7-1 at home.

CBS on tap

CBS will broadcast the USC-KU game with an expected tip of 4:35 pm on national tv. CBS’s Kevin Harlan and Bill Raftery will call the action. USC might have a sparkling record on ESPN the last few years (11-3 in the past two years on ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU), but CBS isn’t the home of these Gamecocks as USC has lost five straight on the network. USC is 0-3 on CBS the last two years, including falling 49-47 in the final seconds of the 2006 SEC Tournament Championship game to eventual NCAA champion Florida. USC is 9-14 on CBS all-time with its last winning coming on Feb. 27, 1999 (70-66 over Georgia).

SIRIUS Radio will carry the game on channel No. 153. The game can be heard on the Gamecock Radio Network with Mike Morgan (play-by-play) and Casey Manning (color analyst). It can also be picked up via the internet at www.uscsports.com and finally the game can also be seen on Gamecock All-Access the next day at www.uscsports.com.

Top 10 win streak on tap Dating back to Feb. 15, 2005 USC has a three-game winning streak against the nation’s top 10 teams. The last time USC did that: Feb. 4 – March 2, 1997. The next time USC faced a top-10 team it fell 91-70 on Jan. 13, 1998 to No. 6 Kentucky.

See results below.

Current Winning Streak over Top 10 teams: 3 Straight Wins

Date USC Opp. Opponent Results, Score Site

Feb. 8, 2006 – 6 Florida W 71-67 Gainesville, Fla.

Jan. 25, 2006 – 5 Florida W 68-62 Columbia, S.C

Feb. 15, 2005 – 3 Kentucky W 73-61 Columbia, S.C..

Last time USC had 3 Straight Wins over Top 10 Teams

Date USC Opp. Opponent Results, Score Site

March 2, 1997 6 3 Kentucky W 72-66 Lexington, Ky.

Feb. 15, 1997 12 8 Cincinnati W 97-83 Cincinnati, Ohio

Feb. 4, 1997 19 3 Kentucky W 84-79 OT Columbia, S.C.

The highest ranked team USC has defeated: No. 2 UNC on Feb. 14, 1969, 68-66 (at Charlotte). USC was ranked No. 19. Later that month, No. 2 UNC defeated No. 8 USC?68-62 in Columbia. They have defeated two No. 3’s (UK in 1997 and UK in 2005).

Now you need a brag fact on Kansas

Kansas’ 82-80 OT win over top-ranked Florida (Nov. 25, 2006) marked the sixth time since 1950 that KU has defeated the No. 1 team in the country.

Counting?

Including the regular season finale last season at Auburn, USC has won 19 of its last 22 games. This streak includes last season’s wins at Florida State, at Cincinnati, against Michigan and Louisville at Madison Square Garden and this season victories at Southern California, at Baylor in Waco, and at home against College of Charleston. The three losses came against NCAA Champion Florida in the SEC title game and losses this season at UC-Irvine and vs. Clemson, now ranked No. 18 at 15-0.

Without him, With them

Without Tre’ Kelley on the court for the first time in his career against WCU, Carolina had three different players post 10+ or more points with Dwayne Day dishing a career-high seven assists. Kelley has led the Gamecocks in scoring in six of 12 games this season.

Leading the way for USC in the 67-53 win over WCU was senior Bryce Sheldon. Sheldon sparked USC with his 20 points. He was 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and 6-of-7 at the free throw line. It was the first time in his Carolina career that he led the Gamecocks in scoring. This season, Carolina has had five different players to lead in scoring. It was the Gamecocks fourth different leading scorer in the past six games.

The Gamecocks have been led by three seniors this season; Kelley, Brandon Wallace and Sheldon. The trio are averaging 37.7 of the 66 points per game for the Gamecocks (57%). All three have had at least two 20+ games this season. Kelley leads the team in points per game and assists per game; Wallace is the team leader in rebounds and blocks per game and Sheldon is shooting a team high 47% from beyond the arc.

PPG

USC has held seven of its 12 opponents to 59 points or less, including five of the last six games. In its 10 wins, USC is winning by an average of 9.5 ppg. In its two losses, at UC-Irvine and vs. Clemson, it lost by an average of 18 ppg.

vs. Big 12, Common

South Carolina is 8-8 vs. current Big 12 Conference teams and has a 64-59 win at Baylor Dec. 9 under its belt against the Big 12 already this season.

South Carolina and Kansas have just one common opponent thus far this season and it’s the ‘other USC’. USC won 80-74 in OT at Southern California on Nov. 16, 2006 while Kanas defeated the Trojans 72-62 at home on Dec. 4.

Who approved this schedule?

Want to see some of the country’s finest historically? Look NO further than the Colonial Center over the next few weeks in what may turn out to be the toughest stretch in the country this January. South Carolina’s next four opponents have all brought home at least one NCAA title since 1988 and all told, the foursome has a combined 11 NCAA titles to its credit.

The next four HOME opponents, the 2007 schedule and the year’s they won the NCAA title:

Kansas (Jan. 3) – 1952, 1988

Florida (Jan. 13) – 2006

Kentucky (Jan. 16) – 1948, 49, 51, 58, 78, 96, 98

Arkansas (Jan. 24) – 1994

Even crazier? Each has also been the NCAA runner-up at least once since 1991 as well, with the four knotching seven runner-up trophies all told:

Kansas – 1957, 1991

Kentucky – 1966, 1975, 1997

Arkansas – 1995

Florida – 2000

In addition to their power on the national scene, the foursome has also combined to win 102 conference titles.

Out for Catamount count, up in the air for Kansas

Tre’ Kelley, the team’s leading scorer, did not play in the Western Carolina game after spraining his left knee in the Jacksonville game on Dec. 29. He continues to rehab the knee and his status for the Kansas game will be re-evaluated prior to the game as he works out on Friday and Saturday at practice.

Kelley is averaging a team-leading 16.8 ppg and is tied for fourth in the SEC. He is second in the SEC in assists with a team-leading 5.27 apg. He led the SEC in assists last year. This season Kelley is on pace to set a number of school records including the Carolina school records for career assists and career games played.