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Home > SECWB News & More! > SEC Teams > Auburn > Gamecocks Travel to Auburn
Gamecocks Travel to Auburn
by Marilyn McManus, SECWB.com
Posted: February 17th, 2008 @ 12:23am
The South Carolina Gamecocks travel to Auburn, Alabama for their next Southeastern Conference matchup. Last season, the teams met twice and the Gamecocks won twice. The Tigers are pretty much the same team as last season, having lost only 1 letter-winner and no starters; the Gamecocks are a different story, having lost 7 senior players from last year’s team.
An experienced core returns, but the Gamecocks are also forced to rely on some very young players who are still adjusting to SEC play.
The Auburn Tigers have got a lot going for them. They return all 5 starters from last season and a total of 11 letter-winners. That, along with last year’s 21-13 record and a quick start (9-0) this season, must have been what prompted the national polls to include Auburn at around the #15 spot early in the 2007-2008 season. However, by Week 12, they had dropped completely out of the rankings. Why? Must have been inconsistency, because their record is not all that bad at 17-7. Their early losses were not exactly devastating: after the 9-0 start, they slipped to 3-3 over the next 6 games. They lost to Texas A & M in Texas, to St. Joe’s in Philadelphia and to George Washington, at home. Both the Aggies and Colonials were worthy opponents–did I mention that all three of those losses were by 2 points apiece? Then the SEC season started and whatever has plagued the Tigers continued. The Tigers are now 5-4 in the SEC. It is not particularly noteworthy that they lost to Tennessee by 30 or LSU by 20. Somewhat more troubling are the losses to Kentucky (by 7) and Florida (by 6); both losses were on their opponents’ home courts, which is a bit more understandable. But combine that with a 30-point win over Georgia and you’ve just got to wonder what is going on there? It will be interesting to see the results of the rematch with Georgia (at Athens, a week from Sunday.) Is Auburn that good? Is Georgia that bad? Who knows?
The Tigers may have a motivational and psychological edge on the Gamecocks, as their conference record (to date) means that they are still very much in the running for postseason consideration, not to mention a good seeding for the SEC Tournament. They cannot afford a letdown and expect to stay in the running for either. The Tigers are led by DeWanna Bonner, the leading scorer, rebounder and team workhorse. She has a fine supporting cast: Sherrell Hobbs (11.4 points per game), Tamela McCorvey (9.1 ppg), and Jordan Greenleaf with 5.2 ppg and 5.2 rpg (along with 44 blocked shots) last season. KeKe Carrier is a huge inside presence who lacks the stamina to play a lot of minures, but is solid off the bench. She had 7.8 ppg and 4.9 rpg and led the team in blocked shots, last year, with 61.
The Gamecocks are led by freshman Jordan Jones (12.2 ppg), Demetress Adams (11.1 ppg) and Brionna Dickerson (10.6 ppg.) Senior center Ilona Burgrova contributes a solid 9.8 points per game, along with 6.8 rebounds per game. Adams leads the team in rebounding with 9 per game and in blocked shots, with 44 for the season.
The Tigers don’t lose many home games, but the Gamecocks will give it a try. On paper, this looks like a tough assignment for the South Carolina team. Auburn outscores their opponents by an average of 12 points per game–the Gamecocks average a margin of 4 points. In many other categories, the teams are quite close. Both Auburn’s overall record and home-court advantage suggest that they have the edge in this game–but as I recall, they were expected to win both games against South Carolina, last season, too.
Tipoff at the Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum is at 2 pm Central Time (3 pm Eastern time.)
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