Most teams that played us tried to attack Chris, get him in foul trouble and their thought process was ‘If Chris is out of the game we have a chance to win the game.’ Last year there was a lot of that with Maik. “That was really the case the last two years. “We have Alanzo, Wildens, Jalyn and Ja’Von Benson, size and depth to where you can do it collectively as opposed to relying on just Maik or Chris,” Martin said. Iriel no longer with the basketball program | SEC announces men's conference basketball schedule The height in the frontcourt comes from Leveque, who stands at 6-11. Benson stands at 6-7 and weighs 251 pounds. Ja'Von Benson joins the room and stands alone as the only freshman on the team after fellow local signee Patrick Iriel abruptly decided to leave the program early into preseason practices. McCreary had bright spots in 17 SEC games played off the bench and overall, in 27 games played, averaged 11.5 points, 4.1 points and 2.7 rebounds. At the start of preseason camp, head coach Frank Martin singled out McCreary when asked about an under the radar player who is capable of being a known commodity by the end of the season. Leveque started eight games a year ago and averaged 2.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.5 blocks in 9.8 minutes per contest. I’m excited for him and excited we have him.”įrink is joined down low by sophomores Wildens Leveque and Jalyn McCreary. As a junior, I give him credit in that he’s worked really hard to get in the best shape of his life and I think now you’re starting to see his talent: his hands, feet and decision making. In the past he’s shown flashes and would just get fatigued or youth and inexperience would take over. His challenges in the past have been being in shape so he can sustain two or three good possessions. "He has a really good understanding for the game. "Zo has really good hands and really good footwork," Martin said. He’s the most experienced frontcourt option the Gamecocks have, but has never been the focal point of paint play. It holds true to my thoughts on the depth (of this team).”Īlanzo Frink, a junior, has played in 54 games over two seasons, but only has 12 career starts. “This year we may have to do it by committee, especially early on. “In the past we were able to do it with one or two guys, with Chris and Maik,” Martin said. Gamecocks assistant coach Chuck Martin says the Gamecocks frontcourt is undetermined as the season approaches, but does not necessarily consider that a weakness. With Kotsar gone after taking over the All-SEC reins Silva held as a junior and senior, it’s time for a new forward to emerge in Columbia. If you remember back to that season, it was the year after All-SEC forward Michael Carrera departed the program and the Gamecocks had to rely on sophomore Chris Silva and freshman Maik Kotsar while leaning on guard experience from Sindarius Thornwell, PJ Dozier and Duane Notice.įor each of the past three seasons, there has been an established frontcourt player in garnet and black opposing teams would have to game plan for. This is really the first season since the Final Four campaign in 2016-17 that the Gamecocks frontcourt is wide open in terms of pecking order. When the South Carolina men’s basketball team takes the court this season it’ll mark the first time in a few years multi-year experience is displayed more so in the backcourt than closer to the rim.
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