Actually, it was a scrimmage, but they actually played Sunday afternoon at CLA. I found an article from an Illinois website that talks about the matchup, it was published Sunday morning. It discusses both teams equally, and I think I might have to pull for Illinois this season as well (standout quotes I put in bold):
What Illinois can expect from South Carolina in closed scrimmage
Brad Underwood is taking his team to Columbia, S.C. this weekend to do battle with the Gamecocks and his old friend Frank Martin in a closed scrimmage.
Road tests are coming right out of the gate for the Illini this season. This first one isn’t going to count in the standings, but it is going to test Illinois’ toughness, physicality and ability to play well on the road.
That’s important with games at Grand Canyon and No. 21 Arizona within the first week of the regular season kickoff.
“The one thing I have so much respect for the Michigan States, the Michigans and the Purdues over the last few years is there becomes that toughness and that expectation to not just win at home but to win on the road. And that’s where we have to get to,” Underwood said at Big Ten Media Day earlier this month. “We have to have that mentality that I keep lookin’ for… To be able to move your program to another level, and to do that you have to win on the road.”
Underwood added that he’s made a concerted effort to “create a little stress, a little adversity” in the preseason to prepare his team for those early road trips. Going against a tough and physical South Carolina squad might be the best preparation the Illini will get.
While expectations are high for Illinois basketball in Underwood’s third season, South Carolina is feeling a little disrespected. Martin’s teams have finished in the top four of the SEC standings in three of the last four years. But this month, the Gamecocks were picked 10th in the league’s preseason poll.
Martin sees it differently.
“It’s the most balanced team I’ve had (at South Carolina),” he said at SEC Media Day.
Defensively, the Illini should know what to expect against a Martin-led unit. Ball pressure, relentless effort and a lot of contact. Sound familiar? Underwood and Martin’s teams have both finished in the 300s in defensive free throw rate the last three seasons. Underwood’s team has forced more turnovers the last two years at Illinois. But Martin’s has been much, much better at defending the rim and getting stops overall.
South Carolina’s defense took a bit of a step back last season — ranking 71st in the country in defensive efficiency. In the four seasons prior, the Gamecocks finished in the top 40 each year. They were third in the nation when they reached the Final Four in the 2016-17 season.
In the preseason, Martin has mentioned that his offense might be further ahead than his defense. That angered him after a practice earlier this month, but after watching the tape, Martin told reporters that his offense just might be that good.
“We’re so fast. We get up and down, and defensively, it’s hard to defend,” Martin said. “I’m not ready to sit here and say we’re a great defensive team. But we’re not as bad as I thought we were initially (after practice).”
Ayo Dosunmu’s first ‘prove it’ moment for lottery pick status next summer is likely going to come in Tucson next month against Nico Mannion and Arizona.
Mannion is a McDonald’s All-American guard, and both players have frequented the lottery range in mock drafts heading into the season. But Dosunmu is going to square off with a first-round talent on Sunday in South Carolina sophomore A.J. Lawson.
The 6-foot-6 combo guard from Canada was named to the All-SEC freshman team last year after averaging 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Lawson, like Dosunmu, can get hot from three but more consistency is needed for the next level. Both players shot just below 36 percent from three as freshmen.
Dosunmu had a higher assist rate and fewer turnovers of the two. But Lawson has the advantage in explosiveness. He can elevate and throw down some big slams in transition. Lawson brings quite a bit length and athleticism as a combo guard, and he played a decent amount of point last year.
Most rankings give Dosunmu the edge. CBS Sports released their top 30 draft prospects late last month. Dosunmu was slotted at 10th and Lawson was No. 30. But in ESPN’s latest mock draft, Lawson (No. 28) is one spot ahead of Dosunmu (No. 29) late in the first round.
The loss of Chris Silva is a key cause for questions with this South Carolina team. He was the Gamecocks’ leading scorer (15.2 ppg), rebounder (7.6 rpg) and shot-blocker (1.9 bpg) last year, and the year before.
South Carolina does get back 6-foot-11 senior Maik Kotsar, who put up 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game last season. But outside of that, the Gamecocks are going to rely on new and mostly inexperienced pieces in the frontcourt.
There are early expectations for 6-foot-7, 225-pound freshman Jalyn McCreary. He is an athletic and physical combo forward, who can score through contact, rebound and put the ball on the floor a little bit. And the Gamecocks really need Tennessee Tech grad transfer Micaiah Henry to step up. He has a similar build to Silva at 6-foot-9, 235 pounds with strength and length, but how does he translate from the OVC to the SEC?
Even given South Carolina’s down-low inexperience, it will be interesting to see how Giorgi Bezhanishvili and Kofi Cockburn handle the expected level of physicality. Cockburn has been dominant at times in practice this fall. Can he play without being plagued by foul trouble?
On the wing, the Gamecocks have Keyshawn Bryant and Justin Minaya, who were both Illini recruiting targets at one time. Bryant is a freak athlete at 6-foot-5, and he did some good things as a freshman last season. Minaya played just five games as a sophomore last year before going down with an injury. His return is big as an outside shot-maker.
South Carolina has a number of young pieces in the backcourt, in addition to Lawson. The Gamecocks are particularly excited about in-state freshman Trae Hannibal and redshirt freshman Jermaine Couisnard. Both were big-time scorers at the high school level. George Washington transfer Jair Bolden is one to watch as well. He averaged double figures and led his team in three-pointers made as a sophomore at GW.
What Illinois can expect from South Carolina in closed scrimmage
Brad Underwood is taking his team to Columbia, S.C. this weekend to do battle with the Gamecocks and his old friend Frank Martin in a closed scrimmage.
Road tests are coming right out of the gate for the Illini this season. This first one isn’t going to count in the standings, but it is going to test Illinois’ toughness, physicality and ability to play well on the road.
That’s important with games at Grand Canyon and No. 21 Arizona within the first week of the regular season kickoff.
“The one thing I have so much respect for the Michigan States, the Michigans and the Purdues over the last few years is there becomes that toughness and that expectation to not just win at home but to win on the road. And that’s where we have to get to,” Underwood said at Big Ten Media Day earlier this month. “We have to have that mentality that I keep lookin’ for… To be able to move your program to another level, and to do that you have to win on the road.”
Underwood added that he’s made a concerted effort to “create a little stress, a little adversity” in the preseason to prepare his team for those early road trips. Going against a tough and physical South Carolina squad might be the best preparation the Illini will get.
While expectations are high for Illinois basketball in Underwood’s third season, South Carolina is feeling a little disrespected. Martin’s teams have finished in the top four of the SEC standings in three of the last four years. But this month, the Gamecocks were picked 10th in the league’s preseason poll.
Martin sees it differently.
“It’s the most balanced team I’ve had (at South Carolina),” he said at SEC Media Day.
Defensively, the Illini should know what to expect against a Martin-led unit. Ball pressure, relentless effort and a lot of contact. Sound familiar? Underwood and Martin’s teams have both finished in the 300s in defensive free throw rate the last three seasons. Underwood’s team has forced more turnovers the last two years at Illinois. But Martin’s has been much, much better at defending the rim and getting stops overall.
South Carolina’s defense took a bit of a step back last season — ranking 71st in the country in defensive efficiency. In the four seasons prior, the Gamecocks finished in the top 40 each year. They were third in the nation when they reached the Final Four in the 2016-17 season.
In the preseason, Martin has mentioned that his offense might be further ahead than his defense. That angered him after a practice earlier this month, but after watching the tape, Martin told reporters that his offense just might be that good.
“We’re so fast. We get up and down, and defensively, it’s hard to defend,” Martin said. “I’m not ready to sit here and say we’re a great defensive team. But we’re not as bad as I thought we were initially (after practice).”
Ayo Dosunmu’s first ‘prove it’ moment for lottery pick status next summer is likely going to come in Tucson next month against Nico Mannion and Arizona.
Mannion is a McDonald’s All-American guard, and both players have frequented the lottery range in mock drafts heading into the season. But Dosunmu is going to square off with a first-round talent on Sunday in South Carolina sophomore A.J. Lawson.
The 6-foot-6 combo guard from Canada was named to the All-SEC freshman team last year after averaging 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Lawson, like Dosunmu, can get hot from three but more consistency is needed for the next level. Both players shot just below 36 percent from three as freshmen.
Dosunmu had a higher assist rate and fewer turnovers of the two. But Lawson has the advantage in explosiveness. He can elevate and throw down some big slams in transition. Lawson brings quite a bit length and athleticism as a combo guard, and he played a decent amount of point last year.
Most rankings give Dosunmu the edge. CBS Sports released their top 30 draft prospects late last month. Dosunmu was slotted at 10th and Lawson was No. 30. But in ESPN’s latest mock draft, Lawson (No. 28) is one spot ahead of Dosunmu (No. 29) late in the first round.
The loss of Chris Silva is a key cause for questions with this South Carolina team. He was the Gamecocks’ leading scorer (15.2 ppg), rebounder (7.6 rpg) and shot-blocker (1.9 bpg) last year, and the year before.
South Carolina does get back 6-foot-11 senior Maik Kotsar, who put up 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game last season. But outside of that, the Gamecocks are going to rely on new and mostly inexperienced pieces in the frontcourt.
There are early expectations for 6-foot-7, 225-pound freshman Jalyn McCreary. He is an athletic and physical combo forward, who can score through contact, rebound and put the ball on the floor a little bit. And the Gamecocks really need Tennessee Tech grad transfer Micaiah Henry to step up. He has a similar build to Silva at 6-foot-9, 235 pounds with strength and length, but how does he translate from the OVC to the SEC?
Even given South Carolina’s down-low inexperience, it will be interesting to see how Giorgi Bezhanishvili and Kofi Cockburn handle the expected level of physicality. Cockburn has been dominant at times in practice this fall. Can he play without being plagued by foul trouble?
On the wing, the Gamecocks have Keyshawn Bryant and Justin Minaya, who were both Illini recruiting targets at one time. Bryant is a freak athlete at 6-foot-5, and he did some good things as a freshman last season. Minaya played just five games as a sophomore last year before going down with an injury. His return is big as an outside shot-maker.
South Carolina has a number of young pieces in the backcourt, in addition to Lawson. The Gamecocks are particularly excited about in-state freshman Trae Hannibal and redshirt freshman Jermaine Couisnard. Both were big-time scorers at the high school level. George Washington transfer Jair Bolden is one to watch as well. He averaged double figures and led his team in three-pointers made as a sophomore at GW.
