Jan. 21, 2013

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina travels to face the Missouri Tigers for the first time ever on Tuesday, continuing SEC play in Columbia, Mo. The opponent will be familiar to Frank Martin and his staff, as the group faced the Tigers 10 times, posting a 6-4 mark in those games, during Martin’s time at Kansas State in Big 12 contests. The game will be televised on ESPNU at 7 p.m. ET with Dari Nowkhah (play-by-play) and Dino Gaudio (analyst) on the call. Fans can also listen on the Gamecock IMG Sports Network via GamecocksOnline.com and on 107.5 The Game in Columbia with Andy Demetra (play-by-play) and Casey Manning (analyst).

OPENING TIP
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013
Tipoff: 7 p.m. ET
Location: Columbia, Mo.
Arena: Mizzou Arena (15,061)
Series: First Meeting
Last Meeting: None
Television: ESPNU
Talent: Dari Nowkhah (pxp), Dino Gaudio (analyst)
Radio: Gamecock IMG Radio Network
Sirius: None; XM: None
Talent: Andy Demetra (pxp), Casey Manning (analyst)
Tickets | @GamecockMBB | | ESPN3 | Game Notes

Carolina Quick Hits
– South Carolina is in its 105th season of basketball.
– The Gamecocks are led by first-year head coach Frank Martin. His associate head coach is Brad Underwood and his assistant coaches are Matt Figger and Lamont Evans. Andy Assaley is the director of basketball operations.
– The Gamecocks are in their 22nd season of competition in the Southeastern Conference in 2013. Carolina owns a 130-210 (.382) all-time record in SEC play.
– Tuesday’s contest at Missouri marks the first for the Gamecocks this season versus a ranked opponent.
– South Carolina most recently suffered a 58-51 loss at home to Vanderbilt on Saturday. The Gamecocks hit just 14-of-59 (23.7%) attempts from the field, including just 5-of-29 (17.2%) during the opening half. Carolina’s 19-of-25 (76.0%) effort from the free throw line kept the Gamecocks within at least 10 points of the Commodores throughout the contest, but Vandy finished the contest hitting 10-of-16 from the free throw line over the final five minutes of play to secure the seven-point win.
– Junior guard Brenton Williams was the only Gamecock to hit double-digit points vs. the Commodores with 16. It marked the second game in a row that Williams contributed 16 points off the bench for the Gamecocks. During that stretch he has hit a stellar 16-of-18 (88.9%) attempts from the free throw line.
– Senior forward Lakeem Jackson collected the 500th rebound of his career with a team high 10 boards vs. Vandy. Jackson ranks ninth in the SEC with 7.4 rebounds per game.
– South Carolina earned the first SEC win for head coach Frank Martin at LSU on Jan. 16 in an 82-73 overtime decision. Carolina was once again stellar in overtime, hitting 9-of-10 attempts in the extra session from the free throw line. Freshman forward Michael Carrera posted 23 points in 24 minutes off the bench to pace the Gamecocks in the contest.
– Carrera (23 points, 10 rebounds) and senior forward Lakeem Jackson (11 points, 11 rebounds) both collected double-doubles in the contest at LSU, marking the first time that two Gamecocks have had a double-double in the same game for the first time since the 2008 campaign.
– Carrera’s 23 points scored vs. LSU were the most by a Gamecock this season, and the most by a Gamecock freshman since then-freshman Bruce Ellington also posted 23 at Florida on Jan. 15, 2011.
– In three overtime wins this season, Carolina has hit an impressive 31-of-34 (91.1%) attempts from the free throw line during OT.
– The Gamecocks’ three SEC losses have occurred from a combined 12 points.
– Junior guard Brian Richardson posted career highs in several categories vs. Mississippi State, including posting a career best 20 points to lead the Gamecocks in the contest.
– Carolina’s 24 turnovers at Mississippi State on Jan. 12 marked the second-most in a game this season for the Gamecocks (25 vs. Missouri State).
– Senior guard LaShay Page, a post-graduate student from Dillon, S.C., will not compete with the South Carolina men’s basketball team for the remainder of the 2012-13 season due to an academic eligibility issue.

Scouting Missouri
The Tigers are ranked 17th in the AP poll and 16th in the coaches (Jan. 14 poll) and enter Tuesday’s contest with a 13-4 overall record, which includes a 2-2 mark in the Tigers’ first season competing in the SEC. Leading scorer, senior forward Laurence Bowers has missed the last three games due to a sprained MCL in his right knee. Sophomore guard Jabari Brown (14.2), junior guard Phil Pressey (12.2) and senior forward Alex Oriakhi (10.0) also contribute double-digits for the Tigers. Oriakhi’s 8.2 rebounds per contest rank third in the SEC and Pressey’s 7.2 assists per game are a league best, and rank eighth in the nation (games through 1/17). The Tigers lead the SEC in free throw percentage (72.5) and in rebounding margin (+9.1), and also in offensive rebounds per game (14.8). Missouri’s losses this season have come to then-No. 2 Louisville, UCLA, Ole Miss and No. 10 Florida. The Tigers are led by head coach Frank Haith in his second season.

By The Numbers
10 – Junior guard Bruce Ellington has 10 steals thus far in SEC play, an average of 2.5 per contest, which ties him for fifth in league games. Ellington has collected three steals in each of the last two games, at LSU and vs. Vandy.
7 – South Carolina committed a season low seven turnovers vs. Vanderbilt on Saturday. It was just the third time this season that the Gamecocks have committed single-digit turnovers in a game.
11 and 10 – Over the course of the last two games senior forward Lakeem Jackson has collected team highs with 11 rebounds vs. LSU and 10 against Vanderbilt on Saturday. It marked the first time in his career he has registered double-digit rebounds in back-to-back games in the same season. He finished his rookie campaign with 14 boards vs. Alabama in the SEC Tournament, and opened his sophomore campaign with 10 rebounds vs. Elon.
23.7% – The Gamecocks 23.7 percent (14-59) from the field vs. Vandy marked a season low in the category.
88.9% – Junior guard Brenton Williams and Alabama’s Tevor Releford both lead the SEC in league games with a stellar 88.9 percent from the free throw line, as both have hit 16-of-18 attempts in four conference games in 2013.
8 – Eight different Gamecocks average at least 20.0 minutes per game, led by Jackson with 31.9, which ranks, seventh in the SEC in overall games.

Trend Setting
Gamecock trends under Frank Martin …
– South Carolina is 6-3 when posting at least six made 3s in a game.
– The Gamecocks hit just four made 3s on 21 attempts vs. Vanderbilt, and hit just 2 on 14 attempts in the previous game vs. LSU.
– South Carolina is 7-1 when scoring more points in the paint than its opponent.
– Vanderbilt out-scored Carolina 20-18 in points in the paint in the contest on Saturday. The Gamecocks average 29.9 points in the paint per game, compared to 30.0 from opponents.
– South Carolina is 4-1 when Brenton Williams leads the team in scoring.
– Williams posted a game high 16 points vs. Vandy on Saturday.
– South Carolina is 8-3 when holding its opponents to under 45 percent from the field.
– Vanderbilt hit just 43.2 percent from the field, hitting a Gamecock opponent low 16 made field goals on another season low 37 shot attempts.

Up Next For The Gamecocks
South Carolina returns to Colonial Life Arena to host Arkansas on Saturday in a contest set to start at 1:47 p.m. ET on the SEC Network. Arkansas earned a 76-65 victory over the Gamecocks last season in Fayetteville.