South Carolina basketball coach Lamont Paris was not happy with his team following the Gamecocks' ugly loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa on Tuesday, and it's hard to blame him.
No one played particularly well for Coach Paris' squad. Ta'Lon Cooper and BJ Mack were good in the opening minutes, but Alabama figured out how to neutralize Cooper, and Mack really struggled most of the night. Meechie Johnson and Collin Murray-Boyles had some moments, but the overall showing was not good enough.
Carolina put up the stinker of all stinkers in the 2nd half against the 'Tide, getting outscored 44-18 after the intermission. What was a competitive 1st half that seemed to favor the Gamecocks based on style of play and pace quickly turned into a disaster as USC missed their first 10 shots of the 2nd half.
The defense was really good in the 1st half but not good in the 2nd, and the team's effort and composure were rattled when things went bad.
A loss in Tuscaloosa (where the Gamecocks almost never play well) is far from the end of the world, though. Before the year started, South Carolina basketball fans would have been outrageously pleased if you told them the Gamecocks would have a 13-2 (1-1) start to the season.
USC is still firmly in the NCAA Tournament picture, and as long as they don't fall into the cliche "letting the bad loss beat you twice," then the Gamecocks will have a bounce-back effort next time out against Missouri.
South Carolina Basketball vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
Thumbs Up 1: 1st Half Defense
Somewhat forgotten after how the game ended is the fact that South Carolina was really good in the 1st half on defense. They held Alabama to just 30 points (they average over 90 points per game), and other than Mark Sears, the 'Tide shot just 6-19 from the field and 3-11 from outside. The Gamecocks' effort was tremendous, and they controlled the pace and flow of the game.
Sears and Aaron Estrada kept 'Bama in the game, though, and gave them the lead late in the half, and they never looked back.
South Carolina Basketball vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
Thumbs Up 2: Offensive Rebounding
After the 1st half, nothing really went right for Lamont Paris' team, so finding three thumbs-up is difficult. However, Carolina had a good night on the offensive glass, grabbing 12 of their own misses, even with lackluster effort in the 2nd half. However, indicative of what the final score would become, the Gamecocks missed almost all of their second-chance opportunities, scoring just 5 points off of those 12 offensive rebounds.
South Carolina Basketball vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
Thumbs Up 3: Free Throw Shooting
There weren't very many positives on Tuesday night, but the Gamecocks did shoot 89% from the free throw line. Frankly, USC didn't get to the line enough (just 9 attempts), but they at least knocked down their freebies. The only miss came from big Josh Gray in garbage time, meaning that the Gamecocks didn't miss a free throw during the normal flow of the game.
Though the defense in the 2nd half was pretty bad, for the game, Carolina did not foul much, finishing the game with 13 personal fouls and allowing Alabama to shoot just 9 shots from the charity stripe.
South Carolina Basketball vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
Thumbs Down 1: 2nd Half Effort
The Gamecocks missed their first 10 shots of the 2nd half, and according to Lamont Paris' postgame comments, they allowed their offensive failures to ruin the rest of their game, as well. During the 2nd half swoon, the defense faltered, the effort wasn't consistent, and 'Bama owned the rebounding battle.
The ball screen defense was horrendous in the 2nd half, and the Crimson Tide's efficiency showed that fact. 52% shooting from the field and 50% shooting from behind the arc were the most obvious results, but Alabama also scored all of their 44 points in the 2nd half from layups/dunks, 3-point shots, and free throws.
South Carolina Basketball vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
Thumbs Down 2: Lack of Composure
As mentioned previously, the struggles shooting in the 2nd half contaminated the entirety of the Gamecocks' 2nd half effort. Dribble drives into heavy traffic, bad shot selection, and virtually no box out effort were direct results of players not handling the struggles well. There was also a small verbal exchange between Meechie Johnson and the Crimson Tide bench that resulted in off-setting technical fouls.
USC will have to be more mentally tough in the face of adversity to find themselves in the NCAA Tournament at season's end.
South Carolina Basketball vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
Thumbs Down 3: Struggling Starters
Only one Gamecock starter (Ta'Lon Cooper) had a decent overall game, and even he scored just 2 points after the first 4 minutes of the contest. Meechie Johnson had some good moments but also scored just 16 points on 18 shots and turned the ball over 4 times. Myles Stute and Stephen Clark were no-shows, scoring 0 points on 0-5 combined shooting and just 4 rebounds in 38 minutes.
BJ Mack continued his deep struggles. Since Thanksgiving, he has shot better than 50% just one time, and he scored less than 10 points in his last five games. Despite being the strongest player on the court at all times, he has just one game all year with double-digit rebounds and has averaged just over 5 per game in his last 5 contests. His game against Alabama was one of his worst as he shot 2-10 from the field (and 1-4 from outside), turned the ball over 4 times, and got beaten on defense over and over. He has to be better for the Gamecocks to win in SEC play.