Men's Basketball . November 24, 2017

Gamecocks Back In Action At FIU Monday Night

Nov. 24, 2017

South Carolina at FIU

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina travels to FIU on Monday, beginning a stretch of two games on the road next week. The matchup will mark the first time that Gamecock head coach Frank Martin has coached at his alma mater. The Gamecocks own a 4-1 record entering Monday’s contest at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center, after wins over Wofford, a pair of wins over Western Michigan and a victory over UTEP to begin the 2017-18 campaign.

STARTING FIVE

> After beginning the season with five games in a span of 10 days, the Gamecocks travel to FIU on Monday, marking their first game since the Nov. 19 win over Western Michigan on the final day of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at Myrtle Beach.
> Monday’s game at FIU marks Carolina’s fifth game away from home already this season (at Wofford, three games at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at Myrtle Beach), however, it is Carolina’s first game of the season out of the state of South Carolina.
> Gamecock head coach Frank Martin will face his alma mater, FIU, on the road for the first time as a head coach on Monday. He is 2-0 all-time against the Panthers, with both of those contests having been played in Columbia.
> Carolina newcomers currently average 44.4 points per game, 59.2 percent of Gamecock scoring thus far. Graduate transfer guard Frank Booker leads the charge with 10.8 points per outing.
> At least four Gamecocks have scored in double-figures in every game this season, except in the Illinois State contest, when only three scored 10 points each.

HEADLINES

> South Carolina is in its 110th season of varsity basketball in 2017-18.
> South Carolina advanced to its first Final Four in 2016-17, which included posting its first NCAA Tournament win since the 1973 campaign when it tallied a 93-73 win over Marquette in the First Round.
> The Gamecocks finished the 2016-17 campaign with a 26-11 overall record. The 26 wins were a program record.
> Among active Division I head coaches, South Carolina’s Frank Martin holds the sixth-highest NCAA Tournament winning percentage (.667) behind only Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina’s Roy Williams, Kentucky’s John Calipari, Michigan State’s Tom Izzo and Kansas’ Bill Self.
> Over the course of the last three seasons (2015-16-present), the Gamecocks are 23-15 (.605) combined in games played away from home (away/neutral).
> South Carolina compiled 51 wins over the course of the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons.
> Entering the 2017-18 campaign, Frank Martin has led his team to at least 20 wins in seven of 10 seasons.
> Following the game at FIU and the contest versus Temple at MSG on Nov. 30, the Gamecocks will return home to play six of their next eight games in the friendly confines of Colonial Life Arena.
> Gamecock freshmen, Felipe Haase (Miami Christian School) and Ibrahim Famouke Doumbia (Miami Country Day) both played their high school basketball in Florida, with both earning postseason accolades for their outstanding prep careers.

SCOUTING THE GAMECOCKS

> South Carolina is 4-1 on the year after posting a 2-1 mark at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at Myrtle Beach, Nov. 16-19. The Gamecocks began tournament play with a loss to Illinois State, before rebounding with wins over UTEP and Western Michigan.
> South Carolina is currently in the midst of a stretch when the squad will play six of its first seven games away from home.
> Junior forward Chris Silva – Carolina’s top returning scorer, rebounder, shot blocker and field goal percent leader – currently leads the Gamecocks in all of those categories, as the Libreville, Gabon, native is averaging team highs of 11.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.6 blocks and has hit 50.0% (12-24) from the field early this season.
> Frank Martin teams are known for their defense, and this season the squad is playing solid D. Carolina opponents are averaging just 39.0% from the field, and just 32.2% from 3-point range.
> South Carolina forced UTEP (23) and Western Michigan (Nov. 19/22) into over 20 turnovers each. Last season, Carolina forced eight opponents to at least 20 turnovers in a contest.
> In the SEC statistics (games through Nov. 23), South Carolina ranks second in scoring defense (60.6), and fourth in turnover margin (+2.6). Individually, Hassani Gravett‘s 5.0 assists per game ranks tied for second in the league, and Maik Kotsar‘s 1.8 steals per game rank tied for fifth.

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS

> FIU is led by head coach Anthony Evans in his fifth season.
> Monday’s game vs. Carolina will mark FIU’s first since posting a 77-67 win over Concordia-St. Paul at the Black and Gold Shootout in Milwaukee on Nov. 19.
> Junior guard Eric Lockett paces the team with 16.4 points per game, while his 2.2 steals per game are also a team best.
> The Panthers have wins this season over Florida Memorial and Concordia-St. Paul, and have suffered losses to Stetson, Elon (3OT) and Milwaukee.
> FIU was 6-9 in home games last season.

BY THE NUMBERS

3 – Grad transfer guard Frank Booker has 13 3s on the year, which is a team high. He has hit three 3s in four of Carolina’s five games this season.
6-3 – South Carolina was 6-3 last season in games against opponents ranked in the top 25.
6.4% – South Carolina returns just 6.4% of its made 3-point baskets from last season.
23 – The Gamecocks forced 23 UTEP turnovers, marking the most turnovers in a game by a Carolina opponent since Alabama had 24 turnovers in the 4OT contest last season at Colonial Life Arena (Feb. 7, 2017).
36 – The Gamecocks tallied 36 points in the paint in the Nov. 19 win over Western Michigan, a season high. Carolina is currently posting 26.4 points in the paint per game.
83 – Junior Kory Holden is just 83 points away from reaching 1,000 for his career. He tallied 892 points in just two seasons at Delaware.

UP NEXT

> South Carolina travels to New York City on Nov. 30 for the Second Annual Under Armour Reunion at Madison Square Garden. The Gamecocks will face Temple, which just captured the Charleston Classic title with wins over Old Dominion, Auburn and Clemson. Tip off for that contest is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET, with the matchup set to be broadcast on ESPNU with Doug Sherman (play-by-play) and Brooke Weisbrod (analyst) on the call.