Men's Hoops To Host Stony Brook Friday Night

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina continues non-conference action when it hosts Stony Brook on Friday evening at Colonial Life Arena.  The matchup is part of the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament, and is set for a 7 p.m. tip-off.

STARTING FIVE
> South Carolina will host a pair of matchups in Columbia that are part of the Naismith Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament, beginning with Friday’s contest vs. Stony Brook.  The meeting will mark the first all-time between the two programs.
> Rookie forward Keyshawn Bryant began his Gamecock career with an impressive 21-point, seven-rebound effort in Carolina’s victory over USC Upstate.  Bryant also dished an assist and collected a block in 21 minutes of action.
> Senior forward Chris Silva posted the 16th double-double of his career with 13 points and 11 rebounds vs. USC Upstate.  It marked his fourth-consecutive game with a double-double dating back to last season.  Silva has garnered several preseason accolades, including Preaseason All-SEC First Team honors by the media and coaches, while he was also named to the Karl Malone Award Preseason Watch List, the Naismith Trophy Watch List and the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watch List.
> The Gamecocks return 64.6 percent of their scoring from last season, just 37.9 percent of made 3-point baskets and 75.8 percent of rebounds.
> Junior forward Maik Kotsar collected three steals in the win over the Spartans on Tuesday, one shy of matching his career high.

SCOUTING THE SEAWOLVES
> Stony Brook is 1-0 on the year after overcoming a 22-point deficit to post a 77-74 overtime win at George Washington on Tuesday night.  It was the biggest come-from-behind win in Seawolf history.
> Stony Brook is led by head coach Jeff Boals in his third season.  Prior to his time on the sidelines with the Seawolves, he was an assistant at Ohio State under Thad Matta, and interestingly enough, he was an assistant alongside Dave Dickerson, USC Upstate’s head coach, at OSU as well.
> Stony Brook was selected fourth in the preseason America East poll. Junior Akwasi Yeboah was named to the America East Preseason All-Conference Team after leading Stony Brook in scoring and rebounding as an All-Conference Second Team selection in 2017-18. The 2018 America East Rookie of the Year, Elijah Olaniyi is also back for the Seawolves after playing in all 32 games and averaging 7.8 points and 3.8 rebounds. Jaron Cornish is the lone senior on the roster, he led the team in assists and finished second in scoring in his first season with the Seawolves last year.

SILVA GARNERS PRESEASON ACCOLADES
> Following a standout junior season, senior forward Chris Silva has garnered numerous preseason accolades entering the 2018-19 campaign.  The Libreville, Gabon, native was named to the Preseason All-SEC First Team by the media and league coaches, while also being named to the Karl Malone Award Watch List, as well as the Naismith  Trophy Watch List and the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watch List as well.  For his career, Silva has 16 double-doubles, 56 double-figure scoring games and 39 games with two or more blocks. 

KEY STAT
> Senior forward Chris Silva had 12 attempts at the foul line in Tuesday night’s season opener vs. USC Upstate, including 10 in the first half.  It marked his 20th career game with double-digit attempts at the free throw line – he had 14 games last season with 10 or more attempts, including a career-high 20 vs. Ole Miss in the SEC Tournament (3/7/18).  Silva concluded last season ranked second nationally in free throw attempts (283) and sixth nationally in free throws made (213).

A CAROLINA WIN WOULD…
> Improve Carolina to 2-0 to start the season for the fourth-straight campaign
> Improve the Gamecocks’ record vs. current members of the America East to 5-1
> Improve South Carolina’s record to 15-1 in home non-conference contests dating back to the start of the 2016-17 campaign