2019–20 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team

The 2019–20 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team represented the University of South Carolina during the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team's head coach, Frank Martin, was in his eighth season at South Carolina. The team played its home games at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina as a member of the Southeastern Conference.[1] They finished the season 18–13, 10–8 in SEC play to finish in a tie for sixth place. They were set to take on Arkansas in the second round of the SEC tournament. However, the remainder of the SEC Tournament and all other postseason tournaments were cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

2019–20 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Record18–13 (10–8 SEC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaColonial Life Arena
Seasons
2019–20 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 8 Kentucky153 .833256 .806
No. 20 Auburn126 .667256 .806
LSU126 .6672110 .677
Mississippi State117 .6112011 .645
Florida117 .6111912 .613
South Carolina108 .5561813 .581
Texas A&M108 .5561614 .533
Tennessee99 .5001714 .548
Alabama810 .4441615 .516
Arkansas711 .3892012 .625
Missouri711 .3891516 .484
Ole Miss612 .3331517 .469
Georgia513 .2781616 .500
Vanderbilt315 .1671121 .344
Note: The 2020 SEC tournament was canceled after the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

The Gamecocks finished the 2018–19 season finished the season 16–16, 11–7 in SEC play to finish in a tie for 4th place. As a No. 4 seed in the SEC tournament, they lost in the quarterfinals to Ole Miss.

Offseason

Departures

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownReason for departure
Hassani Gravett2G6'1"188RS SeniorVilla Rica, GAGraduated
Tre Campbell4G6'2"183GS SeniorWashington, D.C.Graduated
Felipe Haase13F6'9"253SophomoreOsorno, ChileTransferred to Mercer
Evan Hinston23G6'4"240JuniorDeltona, FLLeft the team for personal reasons
Chris Silva30F6'9"234SeniorLibreville, GabonGraduated/Undrafted in 2019 NBA draft
Jason Cudd33F7'1"263SophomoreMyrtle Beach, SCTransferred

Incoming transfers

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious School
Micaiah Henry13C6'9"235RS SeniorDecatur, GATennessee Tech
Seventh Woods25G6'2"185SeniorColumbia, SCNorth Carolina

2019 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
NameHometownHigh school / collegeHeightWeightCommit date
Wildens Leveque
C
Brockton, MAGould Academy6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)210 lb (95 kg)Oct 12, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Trey Anderson
SF
San Diego, CAMater Dei Catholic High School6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)180 lb (82 kg)Nov 21, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Jalyn McCreary
SF
Kennesaw, GALegacy Early College High School6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)185 lb (84 kg)Oct 12, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPNN/A
Trae Hannibal
SG
Hartsville, SCHartsville High School6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)204 lb (93 kg)Jun 1, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPNN/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "South Carolina 2019 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 19, 2019.
  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 19, 2019.

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2020 recruits
NameHometownHigh school / collegeHeightWeightCommit date
Patrick Iriel
C
Columbia, SCA. C. Flora High School6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)235 lb (107 kg)Aug 6, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Preseason

SEC media poll

The SEC media poll was released on October 15, 2019.[2]

Media poll
Predicted finishTeam
1Kentucky
2Florida
3LSU
4Auburn
5Tennessee
6Alabama
7Mississippi State
8Ole Miss
9Georgia
10South Carolina
11Arkansas
12Texas A&M
13Missouri
14Vanderbilt

Roster

2018–19 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G00A. J. Lawson6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)178 lb (81 kg)SoGTA PrepMississauga, ON
G1T. J. Moss6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)195 lb (88 kg)SoFindlay PrepMemphis, TN
F2Trey Anderson6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)203 lb (92 kg)FrMater Dei CatholicSan Diego, CA
F4Jalyn McCreary6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)225 lb (102 kg)FrLegacy Early CollegeMarietta, GA
G5Jermaine Couisnard6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)211 lb (96 kg)RS FrMontverde AcademyEast Chicago, IN
F10Justin Minaya6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)215 lb (98 kg)RS SoNorthern Valley Regional HSOld Tappan, NJ
G12Trae Hannibal6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)217 lb (98 kg)FrHartsvilleHartsville, SC
F/C13Micaiah Henry6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)235 lb (107 kg)RS SrColumbia
Tennessee Tech
Decatur, GA
F14Nathan Nelson (W)6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)189 lb (86 kg)SoBlackman HSMurfreesboro, TN
F20Alanzo Frink6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)260 lb (118 kg)SoRoselle Catholic HSJersey City, NJ
F21Maik Kotsar6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)270 lb (122 kg)SrSunrise Christian AcademyTallinn, Estonia
G23Mike Green (W)6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)188 lb (85 kg)FrChristian Academy of Myrtle BeachMyrtle Beach, SC
F24Keyshawn Bryant6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)190 lb (86 kg)SoWinter Haven HSWinter Haven, FL
G25Seventh Woods  6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)189 lb (86 kg)SrHammond School
North Carolina
Columbia, SC
G52Jair Bolden6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)215 lb (98 kg)RS JrWesttown School
George Washington
Brooklyn, NY
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV
Rank#Opponent#ResultRecordHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsSite (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 30, 2019*
7:00 pm
Columbia InternationalW 87–50 
 23  Lawson  8  Frink  7  Lawson Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+
North AlabamaW 77–55 1–0
 17  Minaya  11  Minaya  4  Lawson Colonial Life Arena (11,927)
Columbia, SC
November 10, 2019*
12:00 pm, SECN
WyomingW 66–32 2–0
 12  Tied  7  Frink  3  Minaya Colonial Life Arena (10,255)
Columbia, SC
November 15, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+
Cleveland StateW 90–63 3–0
 28  Lawson  12  Kotsar  4  Tied Colonial Life Arena (10,083)
Columbia, SC
November 19, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+
Boston University
Cancún Challenge campus site game
L 70–78 3–1
 22  Lawson  7  Tied  5  Lawson Colonial Life Arena (10,113)
Columbia, SC
November 22, 2019*
7:00 pm, SECN+
Gardner–Webb
Cancún Challenge campus site game
W 74–69 4–1
 16  Tied  6  Kotsar  6  Couisnard Colonial Life Arena (10,022)
Columbia, SC
November 26, 2019*
6:00 pm, CBSSN
vs. Wichita State
Cancún Challenge semifinals
L 47–70 4–2
 12  Kotsar  8  Leveque  3  Kotsar Hard Rock Hotel Riviera (1,311)
Cancún, Mexico
November 27, 2019*
6:00 pm, CBSSN
vs. Northern Iowa
Cancún Challenge
L 72–78 4–3
 20  Lawson  5  Tied  3  Tied Hard Rock Hotel Riviera 
Cancún, Mexico
December 1, 2019*
2:00 pm, SECN+
George WashingtonW 74–65 5–3
 17  Kotsar  9  Kotsar  4  Tied Colonial Life Arena (9,843)
Columbia, SC
December 4, 2019*
7:00 pm, CBSSN
at UMassW 84–80 6–3
 24  Lawson  9  Kotsar  6  Couisnard Mullins Center (3,043)
Amherst, MA
December 8, 2019*
12:00 pm, ESPNU
Houston
American/SEC Alliance
L 56–76 6–4
 12  Kotsar  6  Minaya  4  Minaya Colonial Life Arena (11,164)
Columbia, SC
December 15, 2019*
5:00 pm, ESPN2
at Clemson
Rivalry
W 67–54 7–4
 20  Lawson  7  Kotsar  3  Tied Littlejohn Coliseum (6,394)
Clemson, SC
December 22, 2019*
3:00 pm, ABC
at No. 9 VirginiaW 70–59 8–4
 22  Bolden  4  Tied  4  Minaya John Paul Jones Arena (14,409)
Charlottesville, VA
December 30, 2019*
3:00 pm, SECN+
StetsonL 56–63 8–5
 11  Kotsar  9  Minaya  4  Couisnard Colonial Life Arena (10,985)
Columbia, SC
SEC regular season
January 7, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPNU
FloridaL 68–81 8–6
(0–1)
 18  Kotsar  10  Kotsar  3  Tied Colonial Life Arena (10,651)
Columbia, SC
January 11, 2020
1:00 pm, SECN
at TennesseeL 55–56 8–7
(0–2)
 17  Kotsar  10  Minaya  2  Tied Thompson–Boling Arena (19,603)
Knoxville, TN
January 15, 2020
6:30 pm, SECN
No. 10 KentuckyW 81–78 9–7
(1–2)
 26  Couisnard  6  Minaya  3  Tied Colonial Life Arena (18,000)
Columbia, SC
January 18, 2020
1:00 pm, SECN
at Texas A&MW 81–67 10–7
(2–2)
 19  Bolden  10  Kotsar  7  Kotsar Reed Arena (7,466)
College Station, TX
January 22, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPNU
at No. 16 AuburnL 67–80 10–8
(2–3)
 16  Couisnard  8  Kotsar  5  Kotsar Auburn Arena (8,430)
Auburn, AL
January 25, 2020
8:00 pm, SECN
VanderbiltW 90–64 11–8
(3–3)
 14  Tied  12  Minaya  5  Hannibal Colonial Life Arena (12,393)
Columbia, SC
January 29, 2020
8:30 pm, SECN
at ArkansasW 79–77 12–8
(4–3)
 19  Lawson  9  Kotsar  4  Couisnard Bud Walton Arena (14,085)
Fayetteville, AR
February 1, 2020
3:30 pm, SECN
MissouriW 76–54 13–8
(5–3)
 21  Kotsar  11  Kotsar  6  Couisnard Colonial Life Arena (14,678)
Columbia, SC
February 5, 2020
7:00 pm, SECN
at Ole MissL 70–84 13–9
(5–4)
 28  Couisnard  8  Kotsar  5  Moss The Pavilion at Ole Miss (6,990)
Oxford, MS
February 8, 2020
1:00 pm, SECN
Texas A&MW 74–54 14–9
(6–4)
 19  Couisnard  5  Tied  4  Kotsar Colonial Life Arena (13,388)
Columbia, SC
February 12, 2020
6:30 pm, SECN
at GeorgiaW 75–59 15–9
(7–4)
 20  Lawson  9  Frink  4  Couisnard Stegeman Coliseum (8,857)
Athens, GA
February 15, 2020
6:00 pm, SECN
TennesseeW 63–61 16–9
(8–4)
 13  Kotsar  8  Kotsar  2  Tied Colonial Life Arena (15,085)
Columbia, SC
February 19, 2020
9:00 pm, SECN
at Mississippi StateL 76–79 16–10
(8–5)
 24  Kotsar  7  Tied  4  Kotsar Humphrey Coliseum (6,281)
Starkville, MS
February 22, 2020
6:00 pm, ESPN2
LSUL 80–86 16–11
(8–6)
 15  Tied  10  Bryant  4  Coulsnard Colonial Life Arena (15,979)
Columbia, SC
February 26, 2020
6:30 pm, SECN
GeorgiaW 94–90 OT17–11
(9–6)
 22  Frink  10  Tied  4  4 tied Colonial Life Arena (11,613)
Columbia, SC
February 29, 2020
8:30 pm, SECN
at AlabamaL 86–90 17–12
(9–7)
 22  Bryant  13  Bryant  5  Couisnard Coleman Coliseum (11,112)
Tuscaloosa, AL
March 3, 2020
6:30 pm, SECN
Mississippi StateW 83–71 18–12
(10–7)
 20  Kotsar  7  Bryant  10  Couisnard Colonial Life Arena (10,889)
Columbia, SC
March 7, 2020
12:30 pm, SECN
at VanderbiltL 74–83 18–13
(10–8)
 13  Tied  7  Bryant  4  Kotsar Memorial Gymnasium (10,852)
Nashville, TN
SEC tournament
March 12, 2020
9:30 pm, SECN
(6)vs. (11) Arkansas
Second round
Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[3]Bridgestone Arena
Nashville, TN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Source: [4]

References