Sporting Life Arkansas

Arkansas Razorbacks vs South Carolina Gamecocks – By The Numbers

 

Arkansas Razorbacks vs South Carolina Gamecocks

Round: SEC Second Round

Date: Thursday, March 13, 2014

Time: 2:30 P.M. CT

City: Atlanta, Ga.

Site: Georgia Dome (26,000)

TV: SEC TV

Online Video: ESPN3 & WatchESPN

Talent: Brad Nessler (P-B-P) & Jimmy Dykes (Analyst)

Reporter: Shannon Spake

Audio: Razorback/IMG Sports Network

Talent: Chuck Barrett (P-B-P) & Rick Schaeffer (Analyst)

Satellite Radio: Sirius 108, XM 199

Live Stats: ArkansasRazorbacks.com or SECsports.com

Twitter: @RazorbackMBB

Hashtags: #BeSECMBB | #Fastest40 | #WeHOGS

Last 5 Games: 4-1 | Streak: L1

Last 10 Games: 8-2

At The SEC Tournament (App.): 20-21 (22) | Streak: L6

In Atlanta (App.): 14-9 (10) | Georgia Dome: 13-8

With A Win: #4 Tennessee – SEC Quarterfinals

Friday, March 14 – 2:30 P.M. CT

AT A GLANCE

After finishing with eight wins over its final 10 games, Arkansas enters the 2014 SEC Tournament as the No. 5 seed and will take on the winner of the first round game, the No. 13 seed South Carolina. The Razorbacks defeated both teams at Bud Walton Arena this season and will be looking to snap a six-game skid at the SEC Tournament on Thursday. Of Arkansas’ 20 wins in the SEC Tournament, 13 have come at the Georgia Dome, including the last five, highlighted by four victories in four days en route to the 2000 title. The tournament title in 2000 is the lone in program history while the Razorbacks were the first SEC team to play all four days and win the title after the league expanded in 1992.

Razorback FAST BREAK FACTS

OFFENSE

THE #FASTEST40

SEC TOURNAMENT #RAZORFACT

Arkansas has won at least one game at the SEC Tournament in 12 of its 22 appearances. The Razorbacks have made the NCAA Tournament each of those 12 years.

#RAZORRESUME

Arkansas’ recent run to March has it in the thick of the NCAA Tournament discussion. Take a look at the #RazorResume heading into the SEC Tournament.

RPI WATCH

ESPN – 53 (89)

ESPN (BPI) – 39 (60)

KENPOM.COM – 55 (94)

REAL TIME – 62 (82)

CBS – 62 (84)

SAGARIN – 40 (74) 

NCAA – 62

WITH A WIN…

STARTING 5 QUICK 5 HITS

#00 Rashad Madden (G)

#12 Fred Gulley III (G)

#24 Michael Qualls (G)

#04 Coty Clarke (F)

#10 Bobby Portis (F)

Here is a review of South Carolina’s thrashing of Auburn in the first round.

ATLANTA – For the first time since 2008, South Carolina (13-19, 5-13 SEC) left its first game with a win at the SEC Tournament tonight as freshman guard Duane Notice exploded for a career-high 23 points to lead the Gamecocks past Auburn (14-16, 6-12 SEC), 74-56, in the tournament’s opening game at the Georgia Dome.

Also in double figures for Carolina was senior guard Brenton Williams with 16, Laimonas Chatkevicius with 11 to go with nine rebounds, and freshman guard Sindarius Thornwellwho added 10. The Tigers were led by Chris Denson and KT Harrell who totaled 14 and 13 points, respectively.

Auburn pulled out to an early 11-7 lead after a deep 3-pointer from Harrell at the 13:43 mark. The Gamecocks came back though and scored the next five points after a dunk from Chatkevicius just over two minutes later, followed by an open 3 from Notice.

With the shot clock expiring, Notice hit another 3 with 9:36 on the clock to regain a one-point lead after an Auburn 3 from Dion Wade.  With 7:45 left in the half Notice hit his third from beyond the arc to give the Gamecocks a 21-16 lead and pass his previous career high from outside.

Holding a 25-21 lead with 5:05 left in the half, Williams took over, hitting one three after another. The senior scored 14 points, with four 3s in the final minutes as the Gamecocks took a 38-26 lead into the half.

The hot start from the beyond the arc continued for the Gamecocks as they opened with a pair of 3s from Carrera and Thornwell, pushing the lead to 44-26 just over two minutes into the half. After a six-plus minute drought from the field, with fouls and free throw attempts ending any flow to the game, Notice ended the stretch for the Gamecocks with a three-point play 10:50 remaining to maintain a 57-40 lead.

A 3 from Auburn’s Tahj Shamsid-Deen brought the Tigers’ deficit to 14, but that was as close as Auburn would get. The Gamecocks would extend the lead to 21 with 4:36 to go after a free throw from sophomore forward Michael Carrera, before ending the contest with an 18-point victory. It was Carolina’s second consecutive win away from home after ending the season with a win at Mississippi State.

Notice’s 4-of-4 from 3 helped South Carolina shoot a season-high 73.3 percent (11-of-15) as the Tigers shot only 33.3 percent (5-of-15) from the beyond the arc. The Gamecocks also controlled the boards, out-rebounding Auburn 39-25.

Sophomore forward Mindaugas Kacinas led the Gamecocks on the glass with 10 rebounds, but right behind him was Chatkevicius with nine and Notice eight.

The win moves Carolina into a second round matchup with Arkansas, with the game set to tip-off 25 minutes after the conclusion of the day’s first contest, which begins at 1 p.m. ET. The game will air on SECTV with Brad Nessler, Jimmy Dykes and Shannon Spake on the call.

Courtesy University of South Carolina Department of Athletics