Two Southeastern Conference rivals would like to nip their losing streaks in the bud when South Carolina visits Vanderbilt on Wednesday in Nashville, Tenn.
After the Commodores (13-3, 1-2 SEC) fell 75-66 at Missouri on Saturday, their second straight loss, ESPN moved them from “last four in” to “first four out” of the NCAA Tournament field in its latest bracketology update.
Coach Mark Byington, in his first year at Vanderbilt, spoke to the challenge of playing on the road in what’s considered the toughest conference in the country.
“I’m two SEC road games in, but I don’t need any more than that,” Byington said. “It’s tough. It’s really tough. Your team’s gotta be — you can’t make mistakes. You’ve gotta make the right plays. … It’s the best league in the country. Best league ever, from what the stats are saying.”
Vanderbilt still ranks No. 42 in the NET as of Tuesday, but the matchup against South Carolina — No. 93 in the NET, and therefore a Quad 3 opponent — is a potential pitfall.
The Gamecocks (10-6, 0-3) have a solid win over Clemson on their resume and narrowly missed upsetting Auburn, now ranked No. 1 in the country, Saturday in a 66-63 home loss. South Carolina led 63-62 with 5:18 to go but never scored again.
“I’m proud of the way our guys battled,” South Carolina coach Lamont Paris said. “We had to adjust without a couple of key contributors, but that’s part of the game. What I saw was a team that refused to back down, and that’s something to build on.”
One of those absent players was Myles Stute (5.4 ppg), who spent his first three seasons at Vanderbilt before transferring to South Carolina in 2023. Stute is out indefinitely with a blood clot in his lower leg. Jamarii Thomas (12.3) also missed Saturday’s game with a knee injury.
The Gamecocks’ best player is Collin Murray-Boyles, a potential first-round NBA pick who scored 25 points and grabbed seven rebounds in 36 minutes against Auburn’s powerful frontcourt. He leads the Gamecocks in scoring (15.8), rebounding (9.1) and blocks (1.2).
Six-foot-10 forward Nick Pringle (10.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg) could also present problems for a Vanderbilt team that lacks height and depth underneath.
Vanderbilt has several guards capable of big scoring nights, including Jason Edwards (17.3 ppg), AJ Hoggard (10.9) and Tyler Nickel (10.2).
Edwards took a knee to the thigh Jan. 4 against LSU and wasn’t himself the next time out, a 76-64 home loss to Mississippi State in which he went scoreless on eight shots in 11 minutes. Edwards rebounded for 20 points at Missouri.
–Field Level Media
