March 2, 2010

The South Carolina men’s basketball team (14-14, 5-9 SEC) is set to host visiting Alabama (14-14, 4-10) on Wednesday at Colonial Life Arena. The night will serve as Senior Night for South Carolina’s five seniors, including Dominique Archie, Evaldas Baniulis, Devan Downey, Brandis Raley-Ross and Robert Wilder, and manager Trey Brown. The contest will tip off at 7 p.m. on ESPNU, with senior night festivities beginning at 6:40 p.m. Carter Blackburn and Litterial Green will have the call on ESPNU, while fans can also listen to Andy Demetra and Casey Manning on the Gamecock Radio Network.

GAME INFORMATION
2010 Senior Night

Date: Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Tipoff: 7 p.m.
Location: Columbia, S.C.
Arena: Colonial Life Arena (18,000)
Series: Alabama leads 19-12
Television: ESPNU
Talent: Carter Blackburn (pxp), Litterial Green (analyst)
Radio: Gamecock Radio Network
(107.5 FM – Columbia/GamecocksOnline.com)
Talent: Andy Demetra (pxp), Casey Manning (analyst)
Live Stats: GamecocksOnline.com
Multimedia: ESPN360.com
Tickets: Tickets are available via the Gamecock Ticket Office (1-800-4SC-FANS)

Carolina Quick Hits
– South Carolina is in its 102nd season of basketball.
– Gamecock seniors Dominique Archie, Evaldas Baniulis, Devan Downey, Brandis Raley-Ross and Robert Wilder will be honored in a Senior Night ceremony prior to Wednesday’s game.
– In Horn’s one-plus seasons at South Carolina, the Gamecocks are 12-10 in games following a loss.
– South Carolina ranks ninth in the nation in turnover margin (4.2 – March 1 NCAA stats).
– SEC Player of the Year and All-America candidate, Devan Downey has scored 20 or more points 16 times this season, and has tallied 30 or more in five SEC contests. He was just two points shy of his sixth 30-point effort of league play with 28 points at Arkansas on Feb. 17.
– Carolina is 11-5 this season in games in which it scores at least 70 points.
– Downey (22.5 ppg) leads the team and the SEC in scoring in overall games this season. He has led or shared the team lead in scoring 22 times, including 17 of the last 19 games. He ranks seventh in the nation in points per game (as of March 1 NCAA stats).
– Downey’s 2.8 steals per game lead the league and rank third in the nation.
– The backcourt duo of Downey and Raley-Ross average 38.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 3.5 steals per contest in league play.
– Carolina’s 6.3 blocked shots per game rank third in the SEC in overall games, behind Mississippi State’s 7.9 and Kentucky’s 7.1, and 11th in the nation. Junior forward Sam Muldrow paces the Gamecocks with 3.1 blocks per game, second in the SEC and 12th in the nation.
– Sam Muldrow’s 87 blocks are the third-most in a single-season in Carolina history and the most since Brandon Wallace had 86 blocks during the 2006-07 campaign. Only Danny Traylor during the 1971-72 (122) and the 1972-23 (113) seasons had more in a single-season.
– South Carolina owns an 80-71 (.529) record all-time in SEC homes games.
– Darrin Horn-led teams are 90-18 (.833) all-time in home games. South Carolina is 27-7 (.794) at Colonial Life Arena under Horn’s direction.
– South Carolina holds a +14.3 scoring margin in games it has won this season.
– The Gamecocks are in their 19th season of competition in the Southeastern Conference. Carolina owns a 121-181 (.401) all-time record in SEC play.
– Darrin Horn-led teams are 72-36 (.667) all-time in league play. Horn led Carolina to a 10-6 record in SEC action during his first year in Columbia.
– South Carolina is 93-109 (.460) in games played in the month of March. In those games, Carolina is 11-17 (.393) in SEC regular season games, 16-18 (.470) in SEC Tournament games, 4-9 in the NCAA Tournament and 21-9 in the NIT.
– The 2009-10 Gamecocks are three blocks shy of having the third-highest block total for a single season. The 2003-04 squad is currently third with 177 total blocks.
– South Carolina is 11-4 in games played at Colonial Life Arena this season, scoring 77.0 points per game in those contests. Downey paces Carolina with 22.4 points in home games.
– The Gamecocks are 4-3 in conference home games this season with wins over LSU, then-No. 1 Kentucky, Georgia and Florida.

Senior Salute
– Five Gamecocks will participate in Senior Night festivities prior to tip off vs. Alabama on Wednesday. Below is a brief rundown of each.
– Dominique Archie – Archie became the 41st member of the Gamecock 1,000-point club last November, prior to a season-ending knee injury that sidelined him for the remainder of the 2009-10 campaign … Archie ranks among career leaders in blocked shots (10th, 90) and had started every game of his South Carolina career (98) prior to his injury … During his career in the Garnet and Black, Archie averages 10.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 0.9 blocks and 1.14 steals per game.
– Evaldas Baniulis – “Evka” ranks as one of the top 3-point shooters to ever play at South Carolina, as he currently ranks third in school history in 3-point field goal percentage and eighth all-time in 3-point field goals made … Baniulis enters Wednesday’s game averaging 4.6 points and 2.2 rebounds per game in his career … His best season in the Garnet and Black was during his junior campaign, when he averaged 6.4 points per game … Baniulis has started 26 career games.
– Devan Downey – Downey will conclude his career in the Garnet and Black as one of the most celebrated student-athletes in not only basketball, but all of South Carolina athletics … A two-time selection to the All-SEC First Team by the coaches and media, and a 2009 Associated Press Honorable Mention All-America honor, are among his many career accolades … Downey has led the team in scoring each of his three seasons at South Carolina, while also pacing the squad in assists, steals and minutes played.
– Brandis Raley-Ross – Raley-Ross is enjoying his best offensive season in the Garnet and Black in 2009-10, averaging 11.2 points per game (11.6 in SEC play) … In his career he has hit 37.9% of his 3-point attempts, which ranks sixth all-time entering Wednesday’s contest vs. Alabama … Raley-Ross has registered 41 career double-figure scoring games, including 18 this season.
– Robert Wilder – Wilder, a former walk-on who was awarded a scholarship in the summer of 2008, has been a key role player for South Carolina head coach Darrin Horn during his time in Columbia … A lifelong Gamecock fan, Wilder has played in 47 career games at South Carolina, averaging 4.5 minutes per contest.

By The Numbers
– 3 – Devan Downey needs just three steals to surpass Chuck Eidson (272) for the Gamecock record for career steals. Eidson played at South Carolina from 1999-03. He ranks 35th in Carolina history with 1,067 career points.
– 14 – Following a short four-minute performance at Kentucky, freshman guard Ramon Galloway shined bright in South Carolina’s contest vs. Mississippi State, posting an individual SEC-season high with 14 points in the contest. Galloway has tallied 10 double-figure scoring games thus far during his rookie season.
– 10.0 – Freshman guard Lakeem Jackson has reached double-figure points in four of his last five games and is averaging 10.0 points during the stretch. Jackson has hit double figures in three straight contests, including a solid 16 points in South Carolina’s matchup at Kentucky last Thursday. Jackson ranks eighth among SEC freshman in scoring (7.1), fifth in rebounding (4.5) and second in steals (1.5).
– 5 – Five Gamecocks registered double-digit points vs. Mississippi State, the most in double figures since a 74-56 win over Western Kentucky on Dec. 2 – a span of 22 games.

Alabama Series Information
– Alabama holds a 19-12 upperhand in the all-time series with South Carolina, however, Carolina owns an 8-5 advantage in games played in Columbia.
– South Carolina has won two straight, and three of the last four in the series. Carolina is 2-0 during the stretch in home games, collecting a 67-56 win over the Crimson Tide in 2006 and a 67-65 win in 2008.
– A Mike Holmes tip-in at the buzzer gave South Carolina a 75-73 win over Alabama in Tuscaloosa last season.