COLUMBIA, S.C. — Lamont Paris can point to several factors which lead him to believe his team is ready to improve upon last year's 12th place finish in the SEC standings.
Not only is his group have more experience but he has had a full season to implement his system. Throw in the summer trip to the Bahamas and the 10 allotted practices that came with that and the head coach says his group is far ahead of where it was at this stage in 2022.
On Wednesday night at the Colonial Life Arena, Paris and the Gamecocks gave fans a preview of the upcoming season with the second annual Garnet & Black Madness. An intra-squad scrimmage allowed the guys to hit the court in a relaxed atmosphere, That 20 minute workout was followed by a shooting contest involving players and USC students, a dunk contest and an autograph session.
The Gamecocks will hold a charity exhibition on Wednesday, Nov. 1 against Wofford with proceeds benefitting the Maui Strong Fund. The regular season tips off on November 6 against USC Upstate.
*** Personnel Update ***
Former A.C. Flora standout Collin Murray-Boyles was not at Wednesday's event. Paris says CMB has been "ill" and that illness has caused him to miss the last few days. Wofford transfer B.J. Mack is not 100% due to a knee injury so he has been limited.