South Carolina basketball: Gamecocks gear up for battle with Houston

South Carolina basketball faces top 10 opponent on Saturday.

The South Carolina basketball team will travel to the Lone Star State this weekend as they gear up for a matchup with No. 10 Houston.

South Carolina (1-1) is coming off of a 69-58 win over Tulsa in the Hall of Fame Classic, where they held the Golden Hurricane to just 40.4% shooting, including a 23.5% mark from beyond the three-point line.

The Gamecocks looked much better on the defensive side of the ball versus Tulsa than they did in its season opening loss to Liberty. They’ll need to keep that intensity up if they want to pull the upset.

Houston (3-0) enters the game ranked inside the top ten nationally, having won their first three games of the season against Lamar, Boise State, and No. 14 Texas Tech. Each of those matchups has been decided by double digits, as the Cougars are outscoring their opponents by an average mark of 74 to 52.

Houston, too, relies on stiff defense, holding their first three opponents to just 36.7% shooting and forcing nearly 18 turnovers a game. Gamecock guards AJ Lawson, Seventh Woods, and Jermaine Couisnard will need to attack the Cougar defense and create easier scoring opportunities for their teammates.

Couisnard has led the team from his point guard position thus far, averaging 15 points and 2.5 assists a contest, while sophomore Marcus Sasser paces the Cougars at 17.3 points an outing.

The Gamecocks were 2-0 last year against teams that entered ranked in the top ten, taking down No. 9 Virginia and No. 10 Kentucky in a two-week stretch. Can they keep that trend going in their first opportunity of 2020? If so, it will avenge last season’s 76-56 loss to the Cougars in Colonial Life Arena.

The game is set to tip off at 6:00 PM EST, and will be aired on the ESPN app.