Kentucky vs South Carolina.....Preview 2

Lwcat
WT Administrator

Kentucky vs South Carolina...(Preview 2)
2/25/10 Thursday at 9PMEST/8PMCST (ESPN2)

South Carolina

Location-Columbia, SC
Enrollment-25,077
Arena-18,000

Head Coach-Darrin Horn
Career Record-132-58- (69.5%) 6 seasons
At South Carolina-21-10 (67.7%) 1 season

2008-09 Record-21-10
2008-09 SEC Record-10-6
2008-09 Postseason-0-1 NIT-1st Round

2009-10 Record-14-12
2009-10 SEC Record-5-7

South Carolina 88 Alabama A&M 50
South Carolina 90 Georgia Southern 66
South Carolina 78 LaSalle 68
South Carolina 69 South Florida 66
Miami, Fl. 85 South Carolina 70
South Carolina 97 Jacksonville 93
South Carolina 74 Western Ky. 56
Clemson 72 South Carolina 61
South Carolina 76 Richmond 58
Wofford 68 South Carolina 61
South Carolina 81 Furman 57
Boston College 85 South Carolina 76
Baylor 85 South Carolina 74
South Carolina 88 Longwood 58
South Carolina 80 Auburn 71
South Carolina 67 LSU 58
Vanderbilt 89 South Carolina 79
Ole Miss 66 South Carolina57
Florida 58 South Carolina 56
South Carolina 68 Kentucky 62
South Carolina 78 Georgia 77
Tennessee 79 South Carolina 53
South Carolina 77 Florida 71
Georgia 66 South Carolina 61
Arkansas 92 South Carolina 79
Tennessee 63 South Carolina 55

South Carolina Stats / UK Stats

PPG-72.8 / 80.4
FG%-41.7% / 48.0%
3 Point%-32.8% / 36.0%
FT%-64.9% / 67.3%
Rebounds-35.5 / 42.3
Assists-9.9 / 15.3
TO’s-12.5 / 15.1
Steals-8.7 / 7.2
Blocks-6.4 / 7.1

Probable Starting Lineup

Lakeem Jackson F-6’5” Fr. (PPG-6.7)
Evaldas Baniulis F-6’7” Sr. (PPG-2.6)
Sam Muldrow F 6’9” Jr. (PPG-9.9)
Devan Downey G-5’9”” Sr. (PPG-22.7)
Brandis Raley-Ross G 6’2” Sr. (PPG-11.4)

Other Key Players

Ramon Galloway G-6’2” Fr. (PPG-7.1)
Stephen Spinella G-6’5” Fr. (PPG-1.5)
Austin Steed F-6’8” Jr. (PPG-3.3)
Johndre Jefferson F-6’9” Jr. (PPG-2.3)

South Carolina which suffered an early season embarrassing loss to Wofford….did catch lighting in a bottle once this season..….when they upset #1 ranked and undefeated UK at Columbia. That’s pretty much all the Gamecocks have had to cheer about all season. After defeating UK, South Carolina has lost 4-6 SEC games and are barely above .500 with a 14-12 overall record.

In fairness to coach Darin Horn, who is a solid coach, the Gamecocks lost senior 6’7” Dominque Archie to a early season ending injury. Archie was the 2nd leading scorer and leading rebounder….plus 6’7” junior Mike Holmes was dismissed from the team. Still, the Gamecocks start three seniors and a junior….plus they have the SEC’s leading scorer in guard Devan Downey who is averaging 22.7 PPG. The 5’9”Downey is a quick and clever guard with a great ability to get to the basket or get open for a shot. Downey has taken an incredible 491 FG attempts thus far this season which is 19 per game. In contrast, UK’s John Wall, who leads the Cats in FG attempts, has taken only 307 or 184 fewer shots. Needless to say, the Gamecocks heavily depend on Downey’s scoring. In addition, Downey’s 167 FT attempts is evidence that he is very successful at drawing fouls while penetrating to the basket….and importantly, Downey is a superb FT shooter hitting 83.2% while also leading the team in assists at 3.5 PG.

Although, Downey is South Carolina’s go to player and leading scorer….senior guard Brandis Raley-Ross is 2nd in scoring and the best perimeter shooter for the Gamecocks hitting 56-147 for a solid 38.6%. The other primary scorer is junior forward Sam Muldrow who leads the team in rebounds. Unquestionably, having two starting senior guards with the talent and experience of Downey and Raley-Ross is a huge plus for South Carolina, but the Gamecocks do not have a great frontline…especially after losing Archie….nor are they a deep team off the bench.

However, the fact is that these same Gamecocks have handed UK it’s only defeat of the season. Obviously, South Carolina would love to catch lighting in a bottle a second time, but there is a big difference in playing UK at Rupp arena vs in Columbia. Still, the Gamecocks will be sky high playing relaxed with nothing to lose…and they are still dangerous.

In contrast, UK is fresh off two huge victories on the road against a tough Mississippi St. team in Starkville and an equally tough Vandy team in Nashville. These were truly great wins at two of the most difficult away venue’s in the SEC. Importantly, the Cats played great defense in both games….and Patrick Patterson stepped up with two tremendous games. Against Miss. St., Patterson scored 19 points and had 10 rebounds….while against Vandy…Patterson had 13 points and 13 rebounds. However, the Cats not only struggled shooting in these two games, but overall in the past 5 games.

Against LSU….UK was 44.8% from the field…5-17 for 29.4% from 3 point range and 16-23 from the FT line for 69.6%.

Against Alabama….UK was 45.8% from the field…..3-16 for 18.8% from 3 point range and 19-31 from the FT line for 61.3%

Against Tennessee….UK was 44.4% from the field….7-19 from 3 point range and 18-30 from the FT line for 60.0%

Against Mississippi St…..UK was 42.4% from the field…. . 4-24 from 3 point range for 16.7% and 21-31 from the FT line for 67.7%

Against Vanderbilt….UK was 35.8% from the field….3-16 from the 3 point line for 18.8% and 17-30 from the FT line for 56.7%

The totals for these past 5 SEC games are as follows….FG%-42.7%....3 Point shots-22-92 for 23.9%......FT%-91-145 for 62.7%

These stats are not intended to take away from UK’s recent wins, but only to point out danger areas in shooting that must be significantly improved on if the Cats are to make a deep run in the NCAA. Although FG % is down 5% from the season’s average, it’s the 3 point shooting and FT shooting that are the most worrisome. In 3 of the 5 games, UK has shot under 20% from the perimeter and hitting only 23.9% in the recent 5 games is a horrible shooting percentage. As coach Cal has said, the Cats are much better 3 point shooters than they have recently shown….it’s a matter of good shot selection and confidence. Certainly, FT shooting is often critical in games and not infrequently determines the winner….the Cat’s are shooting a terrible 62.7% over the past 5 games including a dismal 56.7% against Vandy.

Yes, UK did get 5 important SEC wins, but it was due primarily to the Cats very solid defense, some very key plays and a great will to win…..but, shooting as poorly as the Cats have in the past 5 games means they are living on the edge.

In addition, the 3 position held by committee is also struggling offensively. Over the past 5 SEC games….Dodson is 2-15 from 3 point range….Miller 2-9……and Liggins 5-16 for a combined 9-40 or a very poor 22.5%.

Yes, the Cats are an amazing 26-1 and they have faced every team’s best effort and hostile sold out crowds on the road….and these young super talented Cats have prevailed except at South Carolina…..but, these recent stats should be a wakeup call for UK to really focus on improving their shooting from the field and FT line as much as possible.

UK is now down to their final 4 SEC games before the SEC tourney starting with South Carolina. Hopefully, the Cats will continue their vastly improved defense, work on reducing TO’s and increase their shooting percentages. Certainly, the Cats will be anxious to pay back the Gamecocks for the loss at Columbia. I look for a very focused UK team that takes the Gamecocks to the woodshed and wins by 12-15 points. GO CATS!