Nov. 30, 2014

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina travels to face Marshall for a non-conference matchup on Monday night, marking the first true road contest of the season for the Gamecocks. The meeting between the Gamecocks and Thundering Herd is the seventh all-time, and the first in Huntington since a 116-85 Marshall victory on Dec. 1, 1980. Monday’s contest will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network with Brent Stover and Bob Wentzel on the call.

GAME INFORMATION
Game Date: Monday, Dec. 1, 2014
Game Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Arena: Cam Henderson Center (9,043)
Broadcast: CBS Sports Network
Talent: Brent Stover (pxp), Bob Wentzel (analyst)
Radio: Gamecock Radio Network
Talent: Andy Demetra (pxp), Casey Manning (analyst)
Sirius: N/A; XM: N/A
Series: South Carolina leads 4-2
Last Meeting: 92-65, Carolina win, on Dec. 30, 2013, in Columbia, S.C.

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GAME STORYLINES
– South Carolina is in its 107th season of varsity basketball in 2014-15.
– The Gamecocks are led by third-year head coach Frank Martin. His associate head coach is Matt Figger, his assistant coaches are Perry Clark and Lamont Evans, and his director of operations is Andy Assaley.
– South Carolina snapped a two-game losing streak with an 89-75 victory over UNC Asheville on Nov. 26, at Colonial Life Arena. The Gamecocks posted solid offensive numbers in the game, hitting 31-of-60 attempts from the floor for a season high 51.7 percent. Junior forward Laimonas Chatkevicius led five Gamecocks in double-figures with a career high 17 points. Asheville hit just 36.5 percent from the floor, but guard Andrew Rowsey tallied 30 points, hitting 10 attempts, including six 3s.
– Chatkevicius posted his first-career double-double vs. the Bulldogs last Wednesday, leading the Gamecocks in points (17), rebounds (13) and also in blocks (3). Hit point and rebound totals were both career highs, and his blocks matched a career high.
– South Carolina ranks 45th in the nation in free throw percent (74.4%) and 39th in rebound margin (+8.7).
– Carolina’s game vs. Asheville marked its fifth game in the previous nine days – Baylor (Nov. 18), Cornell (Nov. 20), Charlotte (Nov. 21), Akron (Nov. 23), Asheville (Nov. 26).
– The Gamecocks battled back from a 10-point first-half deficit to tie the contest vs. Akron late in the second half, but the Zips used solid free throw shooting down the stretch to claim a 68-63 victory for third place at the Charleston Classic on Nov. 23. South Carolina had three in double-figures, Thornwell with 13, Notice with 12 and Chatkevicius the top scorer off the bench with 11, but a poor shooting performance in the early part of the first half – the Gamecocks hit just one of their first 13 attempts from the floor – saw Akron lead for the majority of the contest.
– Despite 20 points from Thornwell, the Gamecocks dropped a 65-63 decision to Charlotte on Nov. 22 in the semifinals at the Charleston Classic. Thornwell had a chance from 3 at the buzzer, but the shot hit the rim and didn’t fall. Thornwell also led the Gamecocks with eight rebounds and two steals in 34 minutes played.
– South Carolina easily defeated Cornell on Nov. 20 in the quarterfinal round of the 2014 Charleston Classic at TD Arena on the campus of the College of Charleston. The Gamecocks held the Big Red to just 26.9 percent from the field, which ties for the second-lowest field goal percentage by a Carolina opponent under the direction of head coach Frank Martin. South Carolina also struggled from the floor, hitting just 37.9 percent (22-58).
– Thornwell finished with 14 points to lead Carolina vs. Cornell. He scored 13 of those points in the first half, including 10 of the Gamecocks’ first 12 points in the game.
– Despite a career high 21 points from Johnson and four Gamecocks in double figures, Baylor held on to a slight lead at the end of regulation and point guard Kenny Chery hit two free throws with one second remaining to secure a 69-65 victory for the Bears on Nov. 18 at Colonial Life Arena. The game featured six ties and six lead changes, with both teams shooting poor from 3-point range, as Baylor hit just 33.3 percent (6-18) and the Gamecocks 23.8 percent (5-21).
– The Gamecocks tipped off their season with a solid 81-56 victory over North Florida on Nov. 14, led by nine different Gamecocks posting at least six points in the win, led Henry and Johnson with 12 points each. The win pushed head coach Frank Martin’s all-time record in season openers to 8-0 for his career.
– After the Nov. 14 win over North Florida in the 2014-15 season opener, Carolina owns a 78-29 (.728) all-time record in season lidlifters, including a perfect 10-0 record in the last 10 seasons. The last season-opening loss for the Gamecocks came against the Ohio Valley’s Tennessee Tech during the 2000-01 season, as the Golden Eagles edged the Gamecocks, 73-67.
– South Carolina returns 11 letterwinners from last season’s 14-20 team, including starters, sophomore guard Sindarius Thornwell, junior forward Michael Carrera, junior forward Mindaguas Kacinas and sophomore forward Demetrius Henry. Senior guard Tyrone Johnson started nine games before being sidelined with an injury as well.
– The Gamecocks return 71.3 percent (1,658/2,323) of their scoring from last season. The biggest void was left by the graduation of senior guard Brenton Williams who tallied 505 points.
– South Carolina posted a 92-47 victory over Benedict in the team’s lone exhibition game this season. Johnson led the Gamecocks with 23 points, six rebounds and six assists in the win. Carrera was huge on the boards, collecting 15 rebounds, while junior forward Laimonas Chatkevicius also pulled down double-digit rebounds with 12. Sophomore guard Duane Notice accounted for nine of Carolina’s 23 assists (on 32 made baskets) in the game.

SCOUTING MARSHALL
Marshall is led by Dan D’Antoni in his first season in Huntington. D’Antoni is the brother of former LA Lakers head coach Mike D’Antoni. Dan was a point guard for the Thundering Herd from 1966-70. Sophomore forward Ryan Taylor paces Marshall with 16.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. Those figures rank fouth and second, respectively, in Conference USA. Taylor’s 10.3 rebounds rank 18th in the nation. He also paces the team with 4.0 assists per game. Marshall has played five of six games at home this season, with victories over Jacksonville State, Savannah State, and WVU Tech, and losses at Louisville, and vs. Morehead State and most recently Cleveland State. Senior forward Shawn Smith is the only other Marshall player in double figures with 12.0 points per game, but Smith did not play vs. Cleveland State due to injury.

MARSHALL SERIES
South Carolina’s owns a 4-2 advantage in the all-time series vs. Marshall, but the Thundering Herd won the only previous meeting in Huntington, 116-95, on Dec. 1, 1980. Those 116 points are the second-most ever by a Gamecock opponent. The series dates back to a 46-15 Marshall win in Columbia on Feb. 2, 1938. In their four wins in the series, the Gamecocks have won by an average of 25.5 points per game.

BY THE #’S
4.3 – Rookie point guard Marcus Stroman leads the Gamecocks, averaging 4.3 assists per game this season. He ranks sixth overall in the SEC, and among freshmen in the league, Stroman ranks third.
21 – South Carolina’s 21 assists vs. UNC Asheville are the second-most by Carolina under the direction of Frank Martin, and the most in a contest since the Gamecocks posted 20 in last season’s win over Akron in Columbia on Dec. 28, 2013.
74.4% – South Carolina’s 74.4% from the free throw line ranks third in the SEC.
10 – South Carolina’s 10 blocks vs. Asheville – three each from Henry and Chatkevicius – marked an all-time high under the direction of head coach Frank Martin. Carolina’s 5.0 blocks per game this season rank fifth in the SEC and 51st nationally.
15 – Sophomore forward Demetrius Henry posted a career high 15 points vs. UNC Asheville. It marked his fifth-career double-figure scoring game and second this season.
7 – Junior forward Laimonas Chatkevicius had a career day vs. UNC Asheville, with career highs of 17 points and 13 rebounds. His seven offensive rebounds were also a career high. Carolina scored seven points off of his offensive rebounds vs. the Bulldogs, including four of those points from Chatkevicius, a tip-in and two makes at the foul line.
27-20 – South Carolina is 27-20 all-time against schools currently in Conference USA. Of those games, Carolina is just 3-13 in road matchups.

UP NEXT
South Carolina returns to Columbia to host Oklahoma State on Dec. 6, in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. The meeting vs. the Cowboys marks the third all-time and the first in Columbia since the very first meeting in the series on Dec. 23, 1975. South Carolina head coach Frank Martin is 4-4 all-time vs. Oklahoma State. The Cowboys earned a 79-52 home win over the Gamecocks last season in the Challenge.