Off to its best start since winning the first eight games of the 2016-17 season, South Carolina plays its first true road game when it takes on Coastal Carolina on Wednesday night in Conway, S.C.
The Gamecocks (5-1) were at full strength for the first time this season when they finished a three-game homestand with a 65-58 win over Rider on Sunday.
Their leading returning scorer and rebounder, Keyshawn Bryant, made his season debut after serving a five-game suspension for violation of athletic department policy. He came off the bench to score a game-high 17 points and snagged five rebounds, second to teammate Wildens Leveque’s six for team honors. He also tallied three blocked shots and two steals in 21 minutes on the court.
“He’s an established, successful, high major college basketball player,” coach Frank Martin said of Bryant.
The Gamecocks trailed 28-25 at the half but took the lead for good with Bryant’s free throws at the 10:47 mark giving them a 38-36 lead.
Martin likes where his team is at this point.
“Any time you’re 5-1 in a month in our sport, you’re in a good place,” he said. “We’ve played some good teams.”
The Gamecocks’ only defeat is a 66-62 loss to Princeton in the Asheville Championship in Asheville, N.C.
The Chanticleers (2-2) come into the matchup after splitting two games in the Nassau Championship in the Bahamas. They opened with a 64-61 win over Valparaiso that gave coach Cliff Ellis his 800th career victory but lost the championship game 79-70 to Toledo after leading by 19 points in the game’s first 10 minutes.
“I’m glad we were able to get it and at least be done with this,” Ellis said of the attention his milestone win was getting. “It’s time to move on. But I’m really humbled by it.”
Essam Mostafa has averaged a double-double in the early going with marks of 18.5 points and 10.5 rebounds a game.
–Field Level Media
