USC MBB drops season-opening game to North Florida. Three observations from the loss

North Florida defeated South Carolina men’s basketball, 74-71, on Monday night in USC’s season opener at Colonial Life Arena.

It was Lamont Paris’ first season-opening loss as South Carolina’s coach. The Gamecocks are in year three under Paris and are coming off an NCAA Tournament appearance.

“We were outplayed overall, in a lot of different ways,” said Paris, who is 5-3 overall as a head coach in season openers. “It’s OK to not play well. That’s going to happen from time to time. But as competitors, they dominated us.”

The game was closely contested from start to finish. The Gamecocks’ largest lead was eight points. Every time they tried to pull away, the Ospreys fought back with a run of their own.

The Gamecocks couldn’t execute on the defensive side of the ball down the stretch. They couldn’t get stops, couldn’t rebound, committed late fouls — all culminating to blowing a lead with five minutes left.

North Florida knocked two 3-pointers with just under two minutes left in the game. On the next trip down the court, the Ospreys missed multiple shots but came away with two offensive rebounds and a putback moments later.

Following that, USC’s Collin Murray-Boyles fouled Nate Lliteras on a 3-point attempt, much to the dismay of Paris.

“You would not believe how much we talk about not fouling a 3-point shooter, and we fouled a 3-point shooter,” Paris said. “I’d like to have those points back.”

An and-one layup with less than 10 seconds left from UNF’s Jaylen Smith sealed Monday’s game.

Murray-Boyles was the leading scorer for USC with 17 points, to go with seven rebounds and four blocks. Junior Zachary Davis scored 12 points with six rebounds. Senior Jamarii Thomas also had 12 points, four rebounds and two steals. Senior Jacobi Wright had 12 points and six assists.

South Carolina paid North Florida $95,000 as part of the contract to come to Columbia and play the game. The Gamecocks (0-1) host S.C. State on Friday.

Here are three observations from the loss to North Florida:

All hands on deck

Murray-Boyles led the Gamecocks early, with nine of his 17 points coming in the first half — but not without some bumps. He shot just 3-of-8 from the field before the break, missing several close-range shots, which opened the door for other players to play a role.

Every Gamecock who played in the first half got on the board except redshirt freshman Arden Conyers. Before the break, Wright added six points and freshman Cam Scott had five off the bench, while Thomas and Davis each chipped in four before halftime.

Wright also stepped up as a facilitator, handling point guard duties alongside Thomas and dishing out a career-high six assists.

Physicality rules the day

The Gamecocks tested North Florida’s ability to keep up with their length and athleticism throughout the game. The Ospreys countered with intense physicality on defense and aggressive drives on offense, scoring on three straight possessions to start the second half.

The physical play was a factor in both teams’ shooting struggles: USC finished shooting 46.4% from the field, while North Florida shot 42%.

USC seemed to be OK with that, as it leaned into a paint-focused approach. They moved the ball around often and made a concerted effort to get the ball down low to Murray-Boyles and Nick Pringle.

The Gamecocks scored 38 points down low. They also dialed it back on 3-pointers, making five on 16 attempts from beyond the arc after launching 36 in their exhibition against Wooster. The shift made some sense, given the slow start in the previous game.

North Florida, meanwhile, shot 29 3-pointers and made 10 of them. The Ospreys led the country in 3-pointers attempted last season (33.2 per game).

What about the new guys?

Thomas, who transferred to USC from Norfolk State, scoring eight of his 12 points in the second half. USC outscored UNF by three points with Thomas on the court.

Pringle, who joined the roster by way of Alabama, scored three points in his Gamecock debut, all from free throws. He added nine rebounds and had three blocks. The most glaring issue with his performance was the free-throw shooting. He went 3-of-8 from the charity stripe, missing his first three attempts.

That was one of the biggest issues overall Monday night, as USC shot 14 of 25 from the free-throw line.

“I always tell them, ‘When your name gets called at the free throw line, whenever that is, you gotta stand up,’ ” Paris said. “They call your name. Referee gives you the ball. Stand up and make them. We didn’t do that, and it seemed to be contagious.”

Scott, Conyers and sophomore Jordan Butler (Missouri transfer) did not do much when it comes to counting stats. They shot a combined 3-of-7 from the field for eight points, and only scored one point in the second half — a free throw by Scott.

Next four South Carolina MBB games

• Nov. 8: vs. SC State, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
  
  

• Nov. 12: vs. Towson, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

• Nov. 16: at Indiana, 3 p.m. (Peacock)

• Nov. 21: vs Mercer, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)