South-Carolina
Five things that must change for South Carolina basketball to go on an SEC Tournament run
South Carolina basketball finished the 2024-2025 regular season with a 12-19 overall record and a 2-16 mark in SEC play. However, that doesn’t mean that the Gamecocks are done playing basketball just yet. The SEC Tournament begins on Wednesday, March 13th, and USC could advance to the NCAA Tournament with a (miraculous?) championship run in Nashville.
South Carolina received a bit of a favorable draw through the early rounds. Arkansas–a team USC whipped just a week ago–is up first, and then, Ole Miss would be next. As far as hoping for an improbable run, that’s a good start. So, what else needs to change for the Gamecocks to shock the Southeastern Conference?
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Playing Defense
Let’s get this one out of the way. Unlike last season, South Carolina is not a great defensive team this year. However, the Gamecocks have the potential to limit opponents to low scoring outputs thanks to a slower-than-average pace of play and physical play. For Lamont Paris’ team to overcome its league-worst offense and win games, they have to keep the numbers on the scoreboard low.
For that to be possible, Carolina needs starting bigs Collin Murray-Boyles and Nick Pringle to lock down the paint. Murray-Boyles is one of the best overall defenders in the conference, and Pringle has higher potential on that end of the floor than his numbers might indicate. When reserves Jordan Butler and Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk play, they have to hold their own, as well.
The most important part of the Gamecocks’ defensive effort, though, might be their 3-point defense. This season, South Carolina ranks 14th in the SEC in 3-point field goal percentage allowed. Giving up easy looks from outside can’t happen in Nashville, or it will be a short stay in the Volunteer State.
Valuing the Basketball
On offense, South Carolina struggles. Perhaps the team’s biggest issue on that end of the floor is that they don’t value the basketball. The Gamecocks turn the ball over at the fourth-worst rate per game in the SEC. They also drop too many rebounds at times (not resulting in turnovers but losing a possession, nonetheless) and fumble passes that could have resulted in open shot attempts.
In South Carolina’s two SEC wins this year, the Gamecocks have averaged just 9.5 turnovers. In their 16 losses, that number is over 13 per game. Considering USC lost six SEC games this season by just one or two possessions and nine SEC games by 10 points or fewer, that 3.5-turnover average difference was impactful. Improving ball security should be a major priority this week.
Running the Offense
South Carolina’s point guard play has been a major point of conversation all this season. Neither Jamarii Thomas nor Jacobi Wright are traditional point guards but have been forced into starting duties on the perimeter this year. Whether it is Thomas or Wright stepping up as facilitators or secondary distributors like Collin Murray-Boyles or Zach Davis doing so, the Gamecock playmakers need to do a good job of running their offense and setting up their teammates.
In stark contrast to the Ta’Lon Cooper-led offense of a season ago, this year’s Gamecocks rank 14th in the SEC in total assists and barely have a positive assist-turnover ratio.
Carolina hasn’t won a game this year in which they have had fewer than 12 assists. They also are 7-3 in games in which they’ve dished out at least 15 dimes. That’s an impressive number for a team that has just 12 wins all year. Copying that blueprint will be essential if South Carolina has any shot at making an unexpected run this week.
Earning Confidence
To win five games at the SEC Tournament, South Carolina will have to play with more confidence than they have all year. The Gamecocks could earn some of that needed confidence in the tourney’s early rounds.
A week ago, South Carolina smacked the Arkansas Razorbacks around to the tune of a 72-53 win. The game also wasn’t nearly as close as the score indicated. Perhaps that could serve as a springboard into better play. Plus, if the Gamecocks pick up a pair of wins on Wednesday (Arkansas) and Thursday (Ole Miss), that would be the team’s first two-game winning streak since December.
What might South Carolina be able to accomplish if they consistently play with confidence for the first time in months?
Getting a Little Lucky
Frankly, unless a team is dominant (and South Carolina is not that), tournament runs require a little bit of luck. So far this season, the Gamecocks have not been very lucky.
In fact, according to hoops analytics guru Ken Pomeroy, USC ranks 343rd nationally in luck. That means that only 21 teams in the country have had a worse ratio of positive play to positive results this season. Essentially, Carolina has deserved to win several games this year that they wound up losing.
For an SEC Tournament run to happen for the men in garnet and black, the Gamecocks likely need Lady Luck to be on their side more than she has been.
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South Carolina’s SEC Tournament road starts on Wednesday. The No. 16-seed Gamecocks’ matchup with the No. 9-seed Arkansas Razorbacks will tip at Noon. SEC Network will broadcast the game, while the ESPN app makes it available via streaming.
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WPDE) — One person was critically injured in a motorcycle crash in the Longs area on Thursday afternoon, according to Horry County Fire Rescue (HCFR).
Just before 2:00 p.m., crews responded to the area of Old Highway 31 near Hidden River Road.
MORE: 1 critically injured in vehicle rollover near International Dr.
One person was transported to the hospital as a result of the motorcycle crash, HCFR said.
Officials ask that drivers avoid the area as lanes of traffic are currently blocked.
The incident is under investigation by the South Carolina Highway Patrol with assistance from the Horry County Police Department.
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Sports Pulse
COLUMBIA, SC ― With the clock winding down and pressures of the Women’s NCAA Tournament rising, South Carolina senior guard Raven Johnson isn’t playing just to win. She plays in honor of a voice she can no longer hear – but that she still carries with her every time she steps onto the court.
That motivation was on full display Monday night, as the No. 1-seeded Gamecocks took down No. 9 USC to advance to the Sweet 16. Johnson earned her 1,000th career point ― what would prove to be her last point at Colonial Life Arena ― on a steal and fast-break layup that brought a roar from the crowd. The Gamecocks will face No. 4 Oklahoma Saturday in Sacramento, with another Elite Eight appearance on the line.
For Johnson, the moment symbolized something deeper – a career shaped by the memory of her late grandfather. Johnson’s family watched as she achieved the milestone, her mother, grandmother and twin brother. It was a full circle moment for a player whose journey took root in her grandparents’ home.
Her grandparents helped raise her and her twin brother, Richard Johnson. The family lived together and she often calls her grandmother “mother” and her grandfather “papa,” reflecting the impact they had on her upbringing.
“My grandparents did a really good job,” Johnson said. “We wouldn’t be playing sports if it wasn’t for them.”
The Boones introduced the twins to basketball through their church and spent countless hours training them, often pushing them past their limits. A sergeant first class in the Army Reserves, he supervised soldiers in his unit and brought that same discipline to his grandchildren on the court, being demanding, structured and determined.
“I remember being outside and he was training us and I thought it was so hard. I wanted to give up,” Johnson said. “I used to cry, and he would be like ‘You’re not going to cry in my face, and you’re not going to give up.’ It was little things like that that made me tough.”
The standard of grit, accountability and composure, is something Johnson carries today.
“She’s just a winner and she’s a great point guard,” said South Carolina senior guard Ta’Niya Latson, who also played with Johnson at Westlake High School in Atlanta. “When she’s confident, we’re confident. When she’s poised, we’re poised. It’s hard to have that type of personality and leadership on the court, but she carries it well.”
Rodrick Boone was diagnosed with stomach cancer in December 2012 and died in April 2013 while Johnson was at a tournament in New Orleans. She was 10 years old.
“I remember I shut down,” Johnson said. “My mind went blank. I was like ‘What?’ I thought he was untouchable.”
Months after her grandfather’s death, something shifted in her mindset.
“I think that’s my why,” Johnson said. “I keep going today because he is my why.”
As a child, Johnson didn’t even like basketball. She preferred T-ball and cheerleading and thought basketball wasn’t for girls, until she saw Notre Dame’s Skylar Diggins and began to see herself differently.
“She was so pretty to me and I remember asking ‘Can I be girly and hoop?’” Johnson said.
She was the only girl on her recreational team, earning the nickname “Killer” for her defensive intensity alongside her brother, nicknamed “Thriller” for his offensive ability. The boys tested Johnson by playing physical and trying to push her out of the sport.
“I used to be cooking them out there a little bit, and I think they didn’t like that,” Johnson said.
She said the boys trying to make it hard on her actually made her tougher both physically and mentally.
Her grandmother, Connie Boone, said her grandfather would be proud of what Johnson has become.
“He might be crying but he would be happy about it,” her grandmother said. “You start them young, but you never know what the outcome is going to be.”
Johnson imagines the conversations she’d be having with her papa if he was still here.
“He would still be on my butt riding me, he’ll tell me maybe I need to fix something,” Johnson said. “He’ll be happy and I think he’ll be like ‘All right let’s get back to the drawing board. Let’s get ready for the next opponent.’”
She knows her papa is always watching, and she talks to him a lot at night.
“I just want to tell him that I’m going to keep pushing through even when it gets tough,” Johnson said. “He’s always telling me to push through because nobody cares. Nobody cares if you’re at your lowest, nobody cares.”
On Monday, fans chanted “Raven, Raven, Raven” as she walked off the court for the final time at Colonial Life Arena, Johnson’s moment was bigger than the scoreboard.
It was about diligence, progress and a promise kept.
With another game ahead and the possibility of a deeper tournament run, she isn’t finished. She continues to push and play for the voice that gave her a reason to begin.
Alyssia Hamilton is a student in the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.
Rochester, N.Y. — An Orleans County man faces a peeping tom charge in South Carolina after a woman said he left an audio recording device in her home.
According to an incident report from the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office, an officer responded to the home Jan. 24 for a report of a possible peeping tom or voyeurism incident. The victim told the officer she had been in a relationship with Nicolas Vagg from May-October 2024 and said he traveled from New York to visit her in 2024.
The woman told the officer she found a small black rectangular device in her bedroom. She later determined it was a recording device. She said she connected the device to her phone and found audio recordings captured during her time with Vagg, as well as others from her interactions with another man after she and Vagg broke up.
Vagg, 32, of Albion turned himself in Tuesday, according to the report. He was charged with sex/ peeping tom, eavesdropping or peeping.
Georgetown County Detention Center records indicate Vagg was initially held on $2,000 bond and released later Tuesday.
The victim received a no-contact order of protection, according to the incident report. Vagg’s next court date is scheduled for May 28.
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