South Carolina Basketball: 3 thumbs up, 3 thumbs down from Vanderbilt win

South Carolina Basketball vs. Vanderbilt Commodores
Thumbs Down 1: Dynamic Scorers Struggled

The three most dynamic scorers on the South Carolina basketball roster are MiLaysia Fulwiley, Te-Hina Paopao, and Chloe Kitts. Sure, Kamilla Cardoso, Raven Johnson, and Bree Hall can score and often outscore those players, but in terms of having a "go-get-a-bucket" offensive game, those three players lead the charge. On Sunday, though, they struggled.

The trio combined to shoot 8-28 from the field and 3-16 from 3-point land. They also shot just 2 total free throws (2 makes from Fulwiley).

A positive hidden within this negative is that the Gamecocks were able to score 91 points and shoot over 50% as a group without getting their typical numbers from Paopao, Kitts, and Fulwiley. That is a scary reality for opposing teams.

South Carolina Basketball vs. Vanderbilt Commodores
Thumbs Down 2: Rebounding

South Carolina didn't do as well on the boards as they should have on Sunday. Vanderbilt played just 23 total minutes of basketball in which a player over 6'2" was on the floor (16 for Justine Pissott and 7 for Aiyana Mitchll). The Gamecocks got 83 minutes combined from Kamilla Cardoso, Chloe Kitts, Ashlyn Watkins, and Sania Feagin, and they only won the rebounding battle by 2.

Considering the number of missed shots for each team, Vanderbilt actually had a higher defensive rebounding percentage in the game than the Gamecocks did. USC also gave up several effort rebounds to 5'8" Iyana Moore.

Cleaning up the rebounding effort will need to be a priority moving forward. After the 1st half against LSU, things improved, but there was another dip in performance on the glass on Sunday.

South Carolina Basketball vs. Vanderbilt Commodores
Thumbs Down 3: Losing Track of Aga Makurat

Aga Makurat is a 6'2" freshman wing from Poland, and her stature and bright blonde hair make her hard to miss on the court. Somehow, though, the Gamecocks kept losing track of the Sierakowice native. She banged home four 3-pointers and was wide-open on all four of them, and she took one of the most open layups in the game after getting away from her defender.

Despite being on the perimeter for much of the game, Makurat had 3 offensive rebounds, as well. The Polish shooter just kept eluding the eyes of the Gamecocks on the court. It was reminiscent (in a smaller fashion) to what happened at times with Alissa Pili during the Utah game earlier this year. While the Gamecocks were never in danger of losing to Vanderbilt, they were in a tight one with Utah. Hopefully the Carolina defense won't misplace any other dynamic scorers down the stretch.