South Carolina Basketball vs. No. 16 Auburn Game Preview

South Carolina (9-8, 4-1) hosts No. 16 Auburn (13-4, 2-2 SEC) Tuesday evening after falling on the road to LSU on Saturday. The Gamecocks are currently 6-4 at home this season and look to win its fourth straight win at home.

When: January 22, 2019, @ 6:30 PM

TV: SEC Network

Location: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, South Carolina 

SERIES HISTORY

According to the game notes provided by South Carolina, the Gamecocks head coach Frank Martin is 4-5 against the Auburn Tigers since taking over seven years ago. As for Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, he holds 14-5 against the Gamecocks.

Auburn leads the overall series 24-18 along with an 11-7 record in Columbia. However, Carolina has won three of the previous five meeting. The last meeting between the two teams was on March 3, 2018. Auburn defeated the Gamecocks at home 79-70.

Scouting Auburn

Auburn holds a 13-3 overall and a 2-2 conference record. The two SEC wins came against Georgia and Texas A&M. However, the two losses came against Ole Miss and Kentucky.

Three Tigers average double-digits each game. Bryce Brown leads the way averaging 16.9 points a game. Jared Harper averages 15.2 a game and Austin Wiley with 10.8.

Brown paces the team in three-point percentage making 40 percent of his shots. He has hit 60 of 155 this season.

Harper averages 6.6 assists per game which ranks 11th nationally and first in the SEC. He also ranks 23rd in the country in assist to turnover ration with 3.0.

Auburn ranks second in the SEC in scoring offense averaging 84.2 points per game.

Three Things Carolina Must do to Upset Auburn

1: Get Lawson Hot and Keep Offense Productive.

The Gamecocks need to get their freshman guard, A.J. Lawson hot and early Tuesday evening. He recorded double figures three games in a row. Lawson scored 18 at LSU, 24 at Vanderbilt, and 11 against Missouri.

South Carolina went on a five-game win streak before falling to LSU on Saturday. Lawson who is one of three Gamecocks who average double-digits per game. He leads the team with 13.9 points per game followed by Chris Silva who averages 11.9 and Hassani Gravett averaging 11.5 per outing.

If Lawson can continue this hot streak, the Tigers may have a hard time containing him, especially in front of the home crowd.

According to South Carolina’s game notes, The Gamecocks recently went on a five-game win streak. The key to Carolina’s success was its high powered offense that averaged 82.8 points. There were four Gamecocks averaging double figures in those games as well.

Gravett led the way averaging 14.8, followed by Lawson with 13.8, Silva with 13.2 and Keyshawn Bryant who averaged 12.4 a game. Carolina may have a chance if the offense continues this trend and forgets about the LSU loss.

2: Contain Brown

One of Auburn’s biggest threats is Brown. He ranks No. 3 in the SEC in points per game with 16.9. Brown can hurt a defense in a hurry and from anywhere on the court.

The Gamecocks need to make him uncomfortable and quickly. If Brown can settle in and get hot, the Tigers may run away with it. He can put up a lot of points and force turnovers as he has 18 steals on the season.

South Carolina should designate their best defender for Brown and make him stay on him the entire game. The more uncomfortable the Carolina defenders can make him, the better.

3:  Avoid Foul Trouble

South Carolina has struggled with foul trouble this season. Silva fouled out in eight minutes against LSU and in 13 minutes against Vanderbilt. He now has three foul-outs on the season.

He is the Gamecocks second-leading scorer this season, and Carolina will need him Tuesday evening. Silva needs to be careful with being so aggressive on the court and focus on playing smart.

If the Gamecocks can play smart, they’ll likely be sent to the free throw line by the Tigers anyway. In the four SEC games the Tigers have played in, opponents have attempted 120 free throws.

Both teams have their fair share of foul issues, so whichever team has fewer fouls on the night could end up getting the win.

SL’s Game Prediction:

Auburn 85- South Carolina 69

Up Next for the South Carolina Basketball

South Carolina heads to Stillwater to face off with Oklahoma State in one of the many Big12/SEC Challenge games occurring on Saturday. The game begins at 2 p.m. ET on ESPNU.