IM RUNNING AT 10-5 THIS WEEK BUT CANT FIND MUCH INFO ON EITHER OF THESE GAMES TONIGHT....I KNOW S.C. WON NIT LAST YEAR, BUT DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY INSIGHT OR ANALYSIS ON EITHER GAME.....THANKS
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UAA could make some waves in Shootout
TOUGH: NIT champion Gamecocks are the first hurdle for the Seawolves.
By VAN WILLIAMS
Anchorage Daily News
Heavyweights are noticeably absent from this year's Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout. There are no ranked teams, no perennial powers, no household names.
But what the tournament lacks in big-name draws, it makes up for in balance. With no clear-cut favorite, it's anybody's tournament. And with ESPN cameras here to broadcast four games in four days, one team is about to make its name.
Could it be the hometown Seawolves?
The UAA men's basketball team is the hottest team entering the tournament. The Division II Seawolves (4-1) have their best team in years and are on a roll after beating Nebraska-Omaha last week to claim third place in the Disney Tip-Off Classic in Orlando. Nebraska-Omaha ended last season the No. 13 ranked team in Division II.
Optimism is higher than normal this year that UAA could pull off some surprises because the Shootout lacks a top-25 ranked Division I team for the first time since 1991. At the same time, though, nobody in a Seawolf uniform is suffering overconfidence.
"We're not putting them on too high of a pedestal," said UAA senior Aaron Lawrence. "Of course, we realize they're a little more athletic and a little more skilled, but we feel we have a legitimate chance to win."
Unfortunately for the Seawolves, they're first-round opponent is arguably the best team in the Shootout.
South Carolina returns four starters from last season's team that went 20-13 and captured the NIT Tournament championship. The Gamecocks started this season with convincing victories over Western Carolina and Toledo and are coached by Dave Odom, who is shooting for his fourth 20-win campaign in five seasons on campus.
Odom knows plenty about the Seawolves. In 1993, UAA beat his heavily favored Wake Forest Demon Deacons 70-68 in Tim Duncan's collegiate debut. Odom no longer has Duncan, but he does have senior Tarence Kinsey.
Kinsey was the hero of last season's NIT final, draining the winning three-pointer with 1.3 seconds left in a 60-57 win over Saint Joseph's. He started this season by pouring in a career-high 24 points against Toledo.
In theory, anybody could win the tournament. But frontrunners South Carolina, Southern Illinois, Oral Roberts and Marquette look strongest on paper.
Southern Illinois is one of the country's best mid-major programs. The Salukis received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament last season for the fourth year in a row. Of the 21 teams to accomplish that feat in 2005, the only other mid-major was Gonzaga.
Southern Illinois (1-0) is led by a trio of juniors in Jamaal Tatum, Tony Young and Mike Dale, who combined to score 41 points in a 65-47 season-opening win over Louisiana-Lafayette. The Salukis are a young squad, though, with no seniors on scholarship.
Oral Roberts will return four starters and eight letterwinners from last season's team that captured the school's first outright Mid-Continent Conference regular-season title while posting a 25-8 record and advancing to the NIT.
Oral Roberts (1-0) may have the Shootout's best player in 6-foot-8 junior Caleb Green, the 2004-05 Mid-Con Player of the Year and a two-time first team all-conference selection. Green finished in the top 10 in his conference in scoring (19.4), rebounding (9.3), field goal percentage (.552) and free throw percentage (.753).
Oral Roberts has the most intriguing first-round game against Southern California, which is led by first-year coach Tim Floyd, who formerly coached the NBA's Chicago and New Orleans franchises.
Former NCAA champion Marquette won the 2001 Shootout title behind Dwayne Wade and Travis Diener. This year, the Golden Eagles (1-1) feature 6-foot-10 marksman Steve Novak, who last season ranked sixth nationally in three-point percentage (.461) and second in Conference USA in free throw percentage (.905).
But most eyes will likely be on UAA, which has a history for slaying D-I giants in its backyard. The Seawolves have collected 26 Shootout victories in 27 years, most recently High Point (last year), Texas State and Canisius (2003), and Montana (2002).
"The kids really get jazzed about playing the big boys," UAA athletic director Steve Cobb said. "It wasn't too long ago we played a Michigan team that went on to win the (1989) NCAA championship, so I'm not willing to acknowledge we don't have a chance. Our kids take a lot of pride in these games."
TOUGH: NIT champion Gamecocks are the first hurdle for the Seawolves.
By VAN WILLIAMS
Anchorage Daily News
Heavyweights are noticeably absent from this year's Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout. There are no ranked teams, no perennial powers, no household names.
But what the tournament lacks in big-name draws, it makes up for in balance. With no clear-cut favorite, it's anybody's tournament. And with ESPN cameras here to broadcast four games in four days, one team is about to make its name.
Could it be the hometown Seawolves?
The UAA men's basketball team is the hottest team entering the tournament. The Division II Seawolves (4-1) have their best team in years and are on a roll after beating Nebraska-Omaha last week to claim third place in the Disney Tip-Off Classic in Orlando. Nebraska-Omaha ended last season the No. 13 ranked team in Division II.
Optimism is higher than normal this year that UAA could pull off some surprises because the Shootout lacks a top-25 ranked Division I team for the first time since 1991. At the same time, though, nobody in a Seawolf uniform is suffering overconfidence.
"We're not putting them on too high of a pedestal," said UAA senior Aaron Lawrence. "Of course, we realize they're a little more athletic and a little more skilled, but we feel we have a legitimate chance to win."
Unfortunately for the Seawolves, they're first-round opponent is arguably the best team in the Shootout.
South Carolina returns four starters from last season's team that went 20-13 and captured the NIT Tournament championship. The Gamecocks started this season with convincing victories over Western Carolina and Toledo and are coached by Dave Odom, who is shooting for his fourth 20-win campaign in five seasons on campus.
Odom knows plenty about the Seawolves. In 1993, UAA beat his heavily favored Wake Forest Demon Deacons 70-68 in Tim Duncan's collegiate debut. Odom no longer has Duncan, but he does have senior Tarence Kinsey.
Kinsey was the hero of last season's NIT final, draining the winning three-pointer with 1.3 seconds left in a 60-57 win over Saint Joseph's. He started this season by pouring in a career-high 24 points against Toledo.
In theory, anybody could win the tournament. But frontrunners South Carolina, Southern Illinois, Oral Roberts and Marquette look strongest on paper.
Southern Illinois is one of the country's best mid-major programs. The Salukis received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament last season for the fourth year in a row. Of the 21 teams to accomplish that feat in 2005, the only other mid-major was Gonzaga.
Southern Illinois (1-0) is led by a trio of juniors in Jamaal Tatum, Tony Young and Mike Dale, who combined to score 41 points in a 65-47 season-opening win over Louisiana-Lafayette. The Salukis are a young squad, though, with no seniors on scholarship.
Oral Roberts will return four starters and eight letterwinners from last season's team that captured the school's first outright Mid-Continent Conference regular-season title while posting a 25-8 record and advancing to the NIT.
Oral Roberts (1-0) may have the Shootout's best player in 6-foot-8 junior Caleb Green, the 2004-05 Mid-Con Player of the Year and a two-time first team all-conference selection. Green finished in the top 10 in his conference in scoring (19.4), rebounding (9.3), field goal percentage (.552) and free throw percentage (.753).
Oral Roberts has the most intriguing first-round game against Southern California, which is led by first-year coach Tim Floyd, who formerly coached the NBA's Chicago and New Orleans franchises.
Former NCAA champion Marquette won the 2001 Shootout title behind Dwayne Wade and Travis Diener. This year, the Golden Eagles (1-1) feature 6-foot-10 marksman Steve Novak, who last season ranked sixth nationally in three-point percentage (.461) and second in Conference USA in free throw percentage (.905).
But most eyes will likely be on UAA, which has a history for slaying D-I giants in its backyard. The Seawolves have collected 26 Shootout victories in 27 years, most recently High Point (last year), Texas State and Canisius (2003), and Montana (2002).
"The kids really get jazzed about playing the big boys," UAA athletic director Steve Cobb said. "It wasn't too long ago we played a Michigan team that went on to win the (1989) NCAA championship, so I'm not willing to acknowledge we don't have a chance. Our kids take a lot of pride in these games."
Salukis to make their inaugural appearance today vs. Monmouth
By Paul Klee
The Southern
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The Klondike gold rush of 1898 took place a few hundred miles west of here, near the rugged mountain town of Skagway.
Anchorage waited until 1978 to strike college basketball gold with the initial Sea Wolf Classic, now coined the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout.
SIU will make its first appearance in the prestigious holiday tournament at 11 p.m. against Monmouth inside 8,700-seat Sullivan Arena.
"It's a tournament that not many teams at our level or in our league get a chance to go to," said SIU head coach Chris Lowery. "It's something that's a great experience for our kids."
In its 28th year, the Great Alaska Shootout remains a premier early-season showcase for some of the nation's top programs.
The list of recent participants reads like a who's who in major college basketball: Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Indiana, Michigan State, Louisville, Syracuse. All of those teams competed in the Shootout in the past six years.
And how's this for name-dropping? Tim Duncan, Patrick Ewing, Joe Dumars, Ray Allen and Elton Brand led teams into the Shootout. In a testament to the tournament's competitive history, all of them lost at least one game. No wonder Alaskan winters are not for the faint of heart.
The field this year lacks the North Carolinas and Dwyane Wades of the past. But play should be no less competitive.
Oral Roberts faced Southern California late Wednesday to begin the four-day event. SIU joins programs from the Southeastern Conference (South Carolina), the Big East (Marquette) and the Pacific-10 (USC) in the eight-team field.
Each team is guaranteed three contests. The championship game is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. Saturday (ESPN2).
"If we go 2-1 in this tournament, that will be saying something," said Monmouth head coach Dave Calloway. "I think the field is strong across the board."
The history of the Great Alaska Shootout wasn't lost on several of the coaches. One of them, Oral Roberts head coach Scott Sutton has a unique view. Sutton is the eldest son of legendary Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton, who holds a particular affinity for the Great Alaska Shootout.
Eddie Sutton, whose Cowboys ousted the Salukis from the NCAA tournament in March, has taken five teams to the Shootout.
"I'm excited. I've been up there with my dad's teams at Arkansas (in 1980 and 1983)," Scott Sutton said. "It's one of the neatest experiences I had growing up. I know our players will enjoy it. Besides Maui (Invitational), I think it's the best tournament going."
Scheduling difficulties for teams outside the power conferences have been well-documented. While SIU has reached the NCAA tournament each of the past four years, the Salukis still have trouble getting a Marquette or South Carolina on their home floor.
Oral Roberts (Mid-Continent Conference), Monmouth (Northeast Conference) and Eastern Washington (Big Sky Conference) face similar scheduling troubles, upping the ante in a tournament like the Shootout.
"The only way I think a program like ours to get into the top 25 is to go win a Great Alaska Shootout or go to Oklahoma to win a game like that," Sutton said. "If we're going to get to play a power conference team, it's most likely going to be on their floor with their officials. Unless you're a whole lot better than their team, it's a tough task to win."
Though it is played in the pre-conference season, an appearance in the Shootout has helped teams reach the postseason. Nine of the past 16 participants reached the NCAA or NIT tournaments.
"It's the kind of tournament you want to get you prepared for the NCAA," SIU guard Jamaal Tatum said. "I'm pleased with the competition that's going to be there. From us to the next team, it's going to be great competition in each game."
Shootout officials admit the field this year is a drop-off from tournaments past.
"It's the first year in I don't know how long we don't have a team ranked in the top 25," said longtime University of Alaska-Anchorage sports information director Nate Sagen, one of several UAA and community officials who runs the event.
The Great Alaska Shootout remains the 49th state's highest-profile sporting event, though "the people at the Iditarod might disagree with me," Sagen said.
Attendance at Sullivan Arena should remain high, officials said. As of late last week, an average of about 6,500 tickets per session had been sold. Sagen said fans fly in from all over the state, though Anchorage residents are the largest supporters.
But regardless of who or how many, whether it is Rony Seikaly or Matt Shaw, the Shootout and its history is like gold for the teams involved.
"We saw it as a tremendous opportunity for our program," Lowery said. "I mean, there have been some great, great teams that have played there."
By Paul Klee
The Southern
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The Klondike gold rush of 1898 took place a few hundred miles west of here, near the rugged mountain town of Skagway.
Anchorage waited until 1978 to strike college basketball gold with the initial Sea Wolf Classic, now coined the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout.
SIU will make its first appearance in the prestigious holiday tournament at 11 p.m. against Monmouth inside 8,700-seat Sullivan Arena.
"It's a tournament that not many teams at our level or in our league get a chance to go to," said SIU head coach Chris Lowery. "It's something that's a great experience for our kids."
In its 28th year, the Great Alaska Shootout remains a premier early-season showcase for some of the nation's top programs.
The list of recent participants reads like a who's who in major college basketball: Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Indiana, Michigan State, Louisville, Syracuse. All of those teams competed in the Shootout in the past six years.
And how's this for name-dropping? Tim Duncan, Patrick Ewing, Joe Dumars, Ray Allen and Elton Brand led teams into the Shootout. In a testament to the tournament's competitive history, all of them lost at least one game. No wonder Alaskan winters are not for the faint of heart.
The field this year lacks the North Carolinas and Dwyane Wades of the past. But play should be no less competitive.
Oral Roberts faced Southern California late Wednesday to begin the four-day event. SIU joins programs from the Southeastern Conference (South Carolina), the Big East (Marquette) and the Pacific-10 (USC) in the eight-team field.
Each team is guaranteed three contests. The championship game is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. Saturday (ESPN2).
"If we go 2-1 in this tournament, that will be saying something," said Monmouth head coach Dave Calloway. "I think the field is strong across the board."
The history of the Great Alaska Shootout wasn't lost on several of the coaches. One of them, Oral Roberts head coach Scott Sutton has a unique view. Sutton is the eldest son of legendary Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton, who holds a particular affinity for the Great Alaska Shootout.
Eddie Sutton, whose Cowboys ousted the Salukis from the NCAA tournament in March, has taken five teams to the Shootout.
"I'm excited. I've been up there with my dad's teams at Arkansas (in 1980 and 1983)," Scott Sutton said. "It's one of the neatest experiences I had growing up. I know our players will enjoy it. Besides Maui (Invitational), I think it's the best tournament going."
Scheduling difficulties for teams outside the power conferences have been well-documented. While SIU has reached the NCAA tournament each of the past four years, the Salukis still have trouble getting a Marquette or South Carolina on their home floor.
Oral Roberts (Mid-Continent Conference), Monmouth (Northeast Conference) and Eastern Washington (Big Sky Conference) face similar scheduling troubles, upping the ante in a tournament like the Shootout.
"The only way I think a program like ours to get into the top 25 is to go win a Great Alaska Shootout or go to Oklahoma to win a game like that," Sutton said. "If we're going to get to play a power conference team, it's most likely going to be on their floor with their officials. Unless you're a whole lot better than their team, it's a tough task to win."
Though it is played in the pre-conference season, an appearance in the Shootout has helped teams reach the postseason. Nine of the past 16 participants reached the NCAA or NIT tournaments.
"It's the kind of tournament you want to get you prepared for the NCAA," SIU guard Jamaal Tatum said. "I'm pleased with the competition that's going to be there. From us to the next team, it's going to be great competition in each game."
Shootout officials admit the field this year is a drop-off from tournaments past.
"It's the first year in I don't know how long we don't have a team ranked in the top 25," said longtime University of Alaska-Anchorage sports information director Nate Sagen, one of several UAA and community officials who runs the event.
The Great Alaska Shootout remains the 49th state's highest-profile sporting event, though "the people at the Iditarod might disagree with me," Sagen said.
Attendance at Sullivan Arena should remain high, officials said. As of late last week, an average of about 6,500 tickets per session had been sold. Sagen said fans fly in from all over the state, though Anchorage residents are the largest supporters.
But regardless of who or how many, whether it is Rony Seikaly or Matt Shaw, the Shootout and its history is like gold for the teams involved.
"We saw it as a tremendous opportunity for our program," Lowery said. "I mean, there have been some great, great teams that have played there."
'Business first' Salukis set for Hawks
By Paul Klee
The Southern
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - This wintry wonderland holds few similarities to Randal Falker's hometown of St. Louis. Sightseeing, however, has taken a backseat to his mission this week at the Great Alaska Shootout.
"I want to win the tournament, plain and simple," the Salukis' 6-foot-7 sophomore said. "It will be nice to go up there. But I want to win the tournament."
SIU begins that quest with its inaugural appearance in the prestigious Shootout at 11 p.m. tonight against Monmouth University at Sullivan Arena. The contest is not televised.
The Salukis haven't minced words on their goal: Three wins in three days. Up first is Monmouth, a team from West Long Branch, N.J., that has played and beaten more-heralded programs before.
In recent years, the Hawks have faced Gonzaga, Maryland, Notre Dame and Seton Hall. They beat Vanderbilt in a holiday tournament in Hawaii. Head coach Dave Calloway said he "wasn't hesitant" about joining the Shootout field.
"We've been in tournaments like this before," said Calloway, whose team won the Northeast Conference last season.
Monmouth lost its season opener at San Francisco, 70-66, on Monday.
"We've got six guys back that have played a lot of minutes in their careers, including a couple of starters that played a ton of minutes. But they were role players," Calloway said. "Between the nucleus of the guys we have coming back and the newcomers, we're kind of excited about the year."
Perhaps Monmouth's most dangerous player is 6-4 junior forward Marques Alston, who hit three game-winning buzzer-beaters as a sophomore. Alston averaged a team-high 5.2 rebounds, while 6-6 junior guard Dejan Delic poured in 28 points on Monday.
"Marques is just an all-round good player," Calloway said. "He's just one of those guys you stick out on the floor and you're not even sure what position he plays and what he does. He just helps you win a lot of basketball games."
Monmouth's slow-down style of play will present a unique challenge for SIU, head coach Chris Lowery said. Monmouth mimics Princeton's famed offense, which can exploit a defense on backdoor cuts and open 3-pointers.
SIU defended a similar style in a 67-53 rout of Vanderbilt last season.
"You have to pay attention to details, especially in the scouting report," junior guard Jamaal Tatum said. "You know what's coming, but you have to be that much more focused. There are so many more distractions during a game that can take your focus away. It's the small stuff, the details, that you have to be focused on. It can be that one play that beats you."
SIU has also prepared for Monmouth's matchup zone, a defense that "looks like man but it's really a zone," Lowery said.
"They guard the man that's in their area," the coach said.
Louisiana-Lafayette presented a zone against SIU in the season opener, but the Salukis excelled with their motion offense in a 65-47 win.
"You can't give them second shots, because they do run a lot of clock," Lowery said. "They do play a great matchup zone. We do have to be consistent on both ends of the floor."
Preferably for three wins, the Salukis hope.
"It's business first," said Falker, who had a career-high 12 rebounds in the season opener. "If we win the tournament, maybe we'll get a leisure day or something. Then we can chill out. It's just about taking care of business."
By Paul Klee
The Southern
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - This wintry wonderland holds few similarities to Randal Falker's hometown of St. Louis. Sightseeing, however, has taken a backseat to his mission this week at the Great Alaska Shootout.
"I want to win the tournament, plain and simple," the Salukis' 6-foot-7 sophomore said. "It will be nice to go up there. But I want to win the tournament."
SIU begins that quest with its inaugural appearance in the prestigious Shootout at 11 p.m. tonight against Monmouth University at Sullivan Arena. The contest is not televised.
The Salukis haven't minced words on their goal: Three wins in three days. Up first is Monmouth, a team from West Long Branch, N.J., that has played and beaten more-heralded programs before.
In recent years, the Hawks have faced Gonzaga, Maryland, Notre Dame and Seton Hall. They beat Vanderbilt in a holiday tournament in Hawaii. Head coach Dave Calloway said he "wasn't hesitant" about joining the Shootout field.
"We've been in tournaments like this before," said Calloway, whose team won the Northeast Conference last season.
Monmouth lost its season opener at San Francisco, 70-66, on Monday.
"We've got six guys back that have played a lot of minutes in their careers, including a couple of starters that played a ton of minutes. But they were role players," Calloway said. "Between the nucleus of the guys we have coming back and the newcomers, we're kind of excited about the year."
Perhaps Monmouth's most dangerous player is 6-4 junior forward Marques Alston, who hit three game-winning buzzer-beaters as a sophomore. Alston averaged a team-high 5.2 rebounds, while 6-6 junior guard Dejan Delic poured in 28 points on Monday.
"Marques is just an all-round good player," Calloway said. "He's just one of those guys you stick out on the floor and you're not even sure what position he plays and what he does. He just helps you win a lot of basketball games."
Monmouth's slow-down style of play will present a unique challenge for SIU, head coach Chris Lowery said. Monmouth mimics Princeton's famed offense, which can exploit a defense on backdoor cuts and open 3-pointers.
SIU defended a similar style in a 67-53 rout of Vanderbilt last season.
"You have to pay attention to details, especially in the scouting report," junior guard Jamaal Tatum said. "You know what's coming, but you have to be that much more focused. There are so many more distractions during a game that can take your focus away. It's the small stuff, the details, that you have to be focused on. It can be that one play that beats you."
SIU has also prepared for Monmouth's matchup zone, a defense that "looks like man but it's really a zone," Lowery said.
"They guard the man that's in their area," the coach said.
Louisiana-Lafayette presented a zone against SIU in the season opener, but the Salukis excelled with their motion offense in a 65-47 win.
"You can't give them second shots, because they do run a lot of clock," Lowery said. "They do play a great matchup zone. We do have to be consistent on both ends of the floor."
Preferably for three wins, the Salukis hope.
"It's business first," said Falker, who had a career-high 12 rebounds in the season opener. "If we win the tournament, maybe we'll get a leisure day or something. Then we can chill out. It's just about taking care of business."
Gamecocks' Odom knows host is no pushover
COLUMBIA - The last time Dave Odom took a basketball team to the Great Alaska Shootout, he had three future NBA players on his roster, including one named Tim Duncan.
In Wake Forest's first game of the 1993 tournament, Odom's Demon Deacons lost to host Alaska-Anchorage, a Division II team. Duncan, playing his first collegiate game, went scoreless, had three rebounds and two blocked shots in a 70-68 loss.
So as South Carolina prepares to face the Seawolves at 10 o'clock Thanksgiving night (ESPN2) Odom has no doubt warned his Gamecocks of the possible pitfall.
"I know the potential poison of that game," Odom said. ""Tim Duncan's first game and we're playing the only non-Division I team I've ever played, and we lose. ? They can be dangerous."
Point guard Tre Kelley said the Gamecocks are well aware of the situation, and have only one thing on their mind, and that is to continue their winning ways.
"Our focus is to go up there and win three games and come back as champions," said Kelley.
The Gamecocks might be considered one of the favorites among the eight-team field, which also includes Marquette, Southern Cal, Monmouth, Southern Illinois, Oral Roberts and Eastern Washington.
USC opened its season with an 87-62 win at Western Carolina on Friday, then took a 26-point lead before settling for an 85-73 win over Toledo on Sunday.
Building on the momentum of those two wins is one of USC's goals, but there are others, Odom said.
One is to make sure that the Gamecocks return to Columbia a better team than when they left. The other is to return to Columbia a more closely-knit team.
"This is one of the only times of the year where we'll have them for 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Odom said. "You have them. You have their minds, you have their bodies. And they have each other. And that may be the most important thing right now, is to get them to come together this week."
Odom said he hopes to get South Carolina's newcomers some more experience, as well. Junior college transfer Bryce Sheldon has played the most - 16 minutes - among first-year players in USC's first two games and has a pair of 3-pointers. Keving Palacios, a 6-foot-8, 278-pound junior transfer forward, has 14 minutes to his credit, while sophomore Ousmane Konate, still recovering from offseason foot surgery, has yet to play other than in the Gamecocks' exhibition against USC Aiken on Nov. 10. Odom said he does plan to play Konate, a native of Pikine, Senegal, this week.
"Ousmane, we need to get him moved along a little bit," Odom said. "Keving needs to play more, Bryce needs to play more. This is a time to get better."
Senior Tarence Kinsey leads the Gamecocks in scoring at 19 points per game and is coming off a 24-point afternoon against Toledo. Junior guard Tre Kelley has scored 30 points in two games. Three other USC players - Dwayne Day, Renaldo Balkman and Antoine Tisby - are averaging double figures, as well.
South Carolina has made one previous appearance in the Great Alaska Shootout. USC went 2-1 in the 1990 tournament, beating Nevada Reno and Alaska Anchorage while losing to eventual champion Virginia.
COLUMBIA - The last time Dave Odom took a basketball team to the Great Alaska Shootout, he had three future NBA players on his roster, including one named Tim Duncan.
In Wake Forest's first game of the 1993 tournament, Odom's Demon Deacons lost to host Alaska-Anchorage, a Division II team. Duncan, playing his first collegiate game, went scoreless, had three rebounds and two blocked shots in a 70-68 loss.
So as South Carolina prepares to face the Seawolves at 10 o'clock Thanksgiving night (ESPN2) Odom has no doubt warned his Gamecocks of the possible pitfall.
"I know the potential poison of that game," Odom said. ""Tim Duncan's first game and we're playing the only non-Division I team I've ever played, and we lose. ? They can be dangerous."
Point guard Tre Kelley said the Gamecocks are well aware of the situation, and have only one thing on their mind, and that is to continue their winning ways.
"Our focus is to go up there and win three games and come back as champions," said Kelley.
The Gamecocks might be considered one of the favorites among the eight-team field, which also includes Marquette, Southern Cal, Monmouth, Southern Illinois, Oral Roberts and Eastern Washington.
USC opened its season with an 87-62 win at Western Carolina on Friday, then took a 26-point lead before settling for an 85-73 win over Toledo on Sunday.
Building on the momentum of those two wins is one of USC's goals, but there are others, Odom said.
One is to make sure that the Gamecocks return to Columbia a better team than when they left. The other is to return to Columbia a more closely-knit team.
"This is one of the only times of the year where we'll have them for 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Odom said. "You have them. You have their minds, you have their bodies. And they have each other. And that may be the most important thing right now, is to get them to come together this week."
Odom said he hopes to get South Carolina's newcomers some more experience, as well. Junior college transfer Bryce Sheldon has played the most - 16 minutes - among first-year players in USC's first two games and has a pair of 3-pointers. Keving Palacios, a 6-foot-8, 278-pound junior transfer forward, has 14 minutes to his credit, while sophomore Ousmane Konate, still recovering from offseason foot surgery, has yet to play other than in the Gamecocks' exhibition against USC Aiken on Nov. 10. Odom said he does plan to play Konate, a native of Pikine, Senegal, this week.
"Ousmane, we need to get him moved along a little bit," Odom said. "Keving needs to play more, Bryce needs to play more. This is a time to get better."
Senior Tarence Kinsey leads the Gamecocks in scoring at 19 points per game and is coming off a 24-point afternoon against Toledo. Junior guard Tre Kelley has scored 30 points in two games. Three other USC players - Dwayne Day, Renaldo Balkman and Antoine Tisby - are averaging double figures, as well.
South Carolina has made one previous appearance in the Great Alaska Shootout. USC went 2-1 in the 1990 tournament, beating Nevada Reno and Alaska Anchorage while losing to eventual champion Virginia.
Men's pregame: USC at Alaska-Anchorage
COACHES: USC, Dave Odom (357-229 overall, 79-55 in fifth seasons at USC); Alaska-Anchorage, Rusty Osborne (15-17 overall, 15-17 in second season at Alaska-Anchorage)
WHAT TO WATCH: Guards Tre? Kelley and Tarence Kinsey said after Sunday?s victory against Toledo that their leadership would have to improve if the Gamecocks plan meet preseason expectations. Although USC won its first two games, neither came without difficulty. The most notable scare came Sunday against the Rockets, who nearly erased USC?s 26-point, first-half lead and climbed to within four points. Despite accepting part of the blame, Kelley and Kinsey have been the Gamecocks? top scoreres. Kelley has scored 15 points in each of USC?s games, and Kinsey had a career-high 24 against Toledo. The Gamecocks should be rested; they arrived in Anchorage on Monday afternoon and practiced three times in the next two days.
ABOUT THE SEAWOLVES: Alaska-Anchorage, despite being the Shootout?s only Division II team, might be the tournament?s hottest squad after finishing third in last week?s Disney Tip-Off Classic. That included a victory against Nebraska-Omaha, which finished No. 13 in last year?s Division II ranking. Anchorage guard Kemmy Burgess is shooting a career-high 49-percent from 3-point territory and is averaging 17 points. Alaska-Anchorage never has won the Shootout; it has finished fourth three times, most recently in 1991.
USC starters
F 6-6 Tarence Kinsey 19
F 6-10 Brandon Wallace 5
F 6-8 Renaldo Balkman 11
G 6-1 Tre? Kelley 15
G 6-3 Rocky Trice 7
Alaska-Anchorage starters
F 6-5 Brian Hills 10.4
F 6-5 James Hartman 9
F 6-6 Carl Arts 12.4
G 6-1 Kemmy Burgess 17
G 6-1 Aaron Lawrence 6
COACHES: USC, Dave Odom (357-229 overall, 79-55 in fifth seasons at USC); Alaska-Anchorage, Rusty Osborne (15-17 overall, 15-17 in second season at Alaska-Anchorage)
WHAT TO WATCH: Guards Tre? Kelley and Tarence Kinsey said after Sunday?s victory against Toledo that their leadership would have to improve if the Gamecocks plan meet preseason expectations. Although USC won its first two games, neither came without difficulty. The most notable scare came Sunday against the Rockets, who nearly erased USC?s 26-point, first-half lead and climbed to within four points. Despite accepting part of the blame, Kelley and Kinsey have been the Gamecocks? top scoreres. Kelley has scored 15 points in each of USC?s games, and Kinsey had a career-high 24 against Toledo. The Gamecocks should be rested; they arrived in Anchorage on Monday afternoon and practiced three times in the next two days.
ABOUT THE SEAWOLVES: Alaska-Anchorage, despite being the Shootout?s only Division II team, might be the tournament?s hottest squad after finishing third in last week?s Disney Tip-Off Classic. That included a victory against Nebraska-Omaha, which finished No. 13 in last year?s Division II ranking. Anchorage guard Kemmy Burgess is shooting a career-high 49-percent from 3-point territory and is averaging 17 points. Alaska-Anchorage never has won the Shootout; it has finished fourth three times, most recently in 1991.
USC starters
F 6-6 Tarence Kinsey 19
F 6-10 Brandon Wallace 5
F 6-8 Renaldo Balkman 11
G 6-1 Tre? Kelley 15
G 6-3 Rocky Trice 7
Alaska-Anchorage starters
F 6-5 Brian Hills 10.4
F 6-5 James Hartman 9
F 6-6 Carl Arts 12.4
G 6-1 Kemmy Burgess 17
G 6-1 Aaron Lawrence 6
