Kentucky basketball: 3 keys vs South Carolina, prediction, TV/ radio/ live stream
By Drew Koch
1. Chris Silva
Sindarius Thornwell and PJ Dozier are not part of this year’s South Carolina basketball team. However, the Gamecocks’ Chris Silva, the team’s third leading scorer on last year’s team, has emerged as the leader for South Carolina this season. Silva is averaging 14.2 points and 7.9 rebounds through the Gamecocks’ 17 games. In SEC play, Silva has is scoring 17.8 points per game, including a 27 point outburst against Vanderbilt.
Silva does most of his damage in the paint, as he’s only taken 10 three-point shots this season. The UK basketball team is likely to employ its 2-3 zone defense, meaning PJ Washington, Wenyen Gabriel and Sacha Killeya-Jones are going to have their work cut out for them down low.
Silva is a beast on the offensive glass. An astounding 35% of his rebounds have come off his own team’s missed shots. UK must box out on the defensive glass and limit South Carolina’s second-chance opportunities.
South Carolina is a poor three-point shooting team. The Gamecocks are 8th in the conference at just over 30% shooting from downtown. Kentucky’s interior defense should be even more emphasized due to this fact. Aside from Frank Booker, the Cats should be able to sag off their responsibilities to help double-team Silva and crash the defensive glass.