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***2020-21 #5/4 South Carolina (6-1) @ Alabama (8-0) Game Thread***

ConwayGamecock

ConwayGamecock

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#5/4 SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS (6-1, 1-0) AT ALABAMA (8-0, 1-0)​



#5/4 SOUTH CAROLINA (6-1, 1-0 SEC) AT ALABAMA (8-0, 1-0 SEC)
7 P.M. ET  |  TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA  |  COLEMAN COLISEUM

South Carolina Game Notes (PDF) | WATCH: SEC Network | LISTEN: 107.5 FM | Live Stats | Media Availability

Tuscaloosa, AL - The #5/4-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks go on the road Monday for their 2nd SEC contest against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa. The game is slated to tip off at 7:00 PM ET, and will be televised on the SEC Network. The Gamecocks are coming off of a 75-59 win in their SEC opener against Florida. Alabama also won their conference opener, a 74-59 road win at Missouri. Tonight's game will be the first of three games the Gamecocks have scheduled for this week, as they return to host Georgia this Thursday at Colonial Life Arena, then return to the road to square off against 13th-ranked Kentucky in Lexington.

ABOUT THIS GAME

  • The Gamecocks and Crimson Tide are meeting in the second SEC game of the season for the second-straight season with both games being in Tuscaloosa.
  • South Carolina has won its last 16 games against Alabama, which is every game of the Dawn Staley era.
  • The Gamecocks are looking to start the SEC campaign 2-0 for the eighth straight season.
https://gamecocksonline.com/news/2021/1/3/womens-basketball-gamecocks-at-alabama-monday-night.aspx

 
This game along with UGA and UK makes a pretty competitive week of games for the Gamecocks - those 3 opponents combined are 26-2 on the season. UK is 13th ranked, while UA and UGA are unranked with 8-0 and 9-1 records respectively. This may be because both teams have not played a very strong schedule thus far.

Alabama is led by a talented trio in Jasmine Walker (21.1 ppg, 9.6 rpg), Ariyah Copeland (16.6 ppg, 7.3 rpg), and Jordan Lewis (15.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg). They have strong offense thus far in the early season, but then again they've played a softer schedule. They currently have the 31st ranked RPI at 8-0, but would've been higher if not for the 172nd-ranked strength of schedule they got those 8 wins against - for comparison USC is 6-1, with the 3rd-ranked RPI against the 4th-ranked SOS, nationally.

Defensively the Tide does not have the greatest rankings, which should concern them since - again - they've played such a weaker schedule thus far. They are 11th in the SEC in Scoring Defense, 12th in FG % Defense and 11th in 3-pt. FG % Defense (USC is 5th, 4th, and 2nd respectively in those categories). They are 10th in the league in Rebounds per Game, 13th in Turnovers Forced, 13th in Steals per Game, and 13th in Blocks per Game. One would think they would have padded those defensive stats against their non-conference slate, but they didn't. The Gamecocks are not strong in forcing turnovers either - we are dead last in the league right now - and are 12th in steals per gm, but lead the SEC currently in rebounds and blocks per game. This was against the 4th toughest schedule strength, thus far.

They ARE strong in Free Throw shooting, have not turned the ball over and have not fouled much thus far.

Walker and Copeland are not only major scorers for Alabama but also major rebounders for them. The question remains if they've played against much size yet this season, or have done so against smaller opposing lineups. Aliyah Boston, Victaria Saxton, and Laeticia Amihere will need to have strong post games tonight to keep those players off the boards. The Gamecocks also lead the SEC in Defensive Rebounds per Game, and are 8th in the nation (Alabama is out of the top 30 ranking) and are 4th nationally in Rebound Margin (the Tide are 67th) so we have the chance to perform well here.

 
Well 3 conference games in one week is certainly one way to knock off any residual "rust".

 
FurmanCock said:
Well 3 conference games in one week is certainly one way to knock off any residual "rust".
Click to expand...
I think there are three things:

1)  Both NCST and UF have out-muscled us in the paint and that's in the girls' heads.

2)  We're still trying to figure out how to fill the void left by Ty Harris.

3)  Overachievers liked to be stroked and the home crowd has been there to do that.

Positive repetitions as the season plays out will correct those problems.

 
Gamecocks surge in the 2nd Quarter to take a 37-26 lead into the halftime stop. Alabama called for a rash of fouls in that period. Destanni Henderson leading the team with 11 pts after taking a break in scoring in the last game with Florida. Zia Cooke is 2nd with 7 pts, so we're seeing a game with both guards having strong offenses through one half at least....

 
Looks like we're playing our own individual games than having any scripted plays.

 
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Gamecocks score final 5 pts of the quarter off of a 3-ptr from Henderson and a layup at the buzzer from Saxton, to make a poor 3rd quarter look better and maintain a 59-45 lead over Alabama. The Tide shot 7-12 (58%) for that period to mount a surge, but thanks to that fast 5 pts at the end the Gamecocks actually extend their lead in the game....

 
Gamecocks win over Alabama 77-60. They improve to 7-1, 2-0, while dropping the Tide with their first loss on the season to 8-1, 1-1. The final score was decent considering the Gamecocks shot poorly for the game, and horribly at the FT line, leaving at least 10 more cheap points on the floor at the charity stripe. On to the next game.

 
Dawn tends to let the girls play their own games to build confidence, but UConn would make short work of this team right now.

 
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