The South Carolina basketball team travels north this weekend as they prepare to participate in the first annual Asheville Championship Tournament. The Gamecocks will open with a first round matchup versus Princeton tonight. Western Kentucky and Minnesota are are also in the field, and they’ll face off against one another prior to the South Carolina game.
The Gamecocks got off to a good start on the year, taking down USC Upstate to move to 1-0 in their season opener. Frank Martin’s squad showed great defensive effort in the 78-60 victory but the competition gets a bit stiffer on Friday.
South Carolina will take on a Princeton team that’s fresh off of a 94-28 win over Rutgers-Camden. In that midweek matchup, the Tigers shot 54% from the field, recorded 20 steals, and forced 32 turnovers to cruise to a stress-free opening victory. The Gamecocks will need to limit Princeton’s scoring attack and take care of the ball after being a bit sloppy on offense Tuesday night.
This will be the seventh all-time meeting between the two programs, with each team taking three games apiece in the first six matchups. The Gamecocks won the last contest 84-58 way back in the 2008 campaign.
South Carolina Gamecocks vs. Princeton Odds: Line, Spread, Over/Under
The latest WynnBET odds list the Gamecocks as being a 6.5 point favorite in this matchup. Princeton enters with +225 moneyline odds while South Carolina has -300 odds to win outright. The over/under total has been set at 148.5.
South Carolina Gamecocks vs. Princeton Prediction Tonight
It’s early in the year and both teams played opponents that were overmatched in their respective season openers, so it’s hard to tell just what to take from those blowout performances. The Gamecocks showed great defensive prowess, and they’ll need that to continue when facing a Princeton attack that looks like it can score some points.
This has been the type of game that the Gamecocks have struggled with in the past as they usually drop an early season matchup to someone they shouldn’t (Liberty last year, Boston and Stetson in ’19, and the list goes on). Hopefully, South Carolina will avoid their typical early season slumps and advance to the championship round on Sunday.
We believe that this one will be a little bit lower scoring than the experts think, and it’ll be a little closer, too. With our garnet colored glasses on, we’ll predict that the Gamecocks leave with a hard fought victory over the Tigers to stay undefeated, but it certainly isn’t a gimme.
Final Score
South Carolina – 72
Princeton – 68
Make your pick now on WynnBET.
What channel is the South Carolina game on tonight?
The game will be aired on ESPNEWS tonight with tip off scheduled for 9:30 PM.
South Carolina Gamecocks vs. Princeton live stream
You can also live stream the contest on Fubo TV.