There was nothing the defender could do but hack and hope. PJ Dozier left him flailing with a nifty stutter-step drive into the lane, and the South Carolina point guard elevated through the foul for an easy basket that pushed the Gamecocks? lead to into double digits.
It was an aggressive, confident move of the kind USC saw too few of last season, as Dozier struggled through a rocky freshman campaign. And it?s the kind of move the 19th-ranked Gamecocks need more of now as they go on without leading scorer Sindarius Thornwell, under indefinite suspension for an undisclosed violation of athletic department policy.
?He?s starting to spread his wings a little bit,? head coach Frank Martin said of Dozier, now a sophomore, ?so it?s going to put more responsibility on his plate.?
He certainly seems capable of handling it. Dozier heads into USC?s game Monday against Seton Hall in Madison Square Garden having put up a career-high 21 against Vermont, and then 20 against Florida International in USC?s first game without Thornwell. Dozier is now South Carolina?s second-leading scorer, his 12.8 points per game ranking behind Thornwell?s 18.7.
But to hear Martin tell it, the former McDonald?s All-American has improved in more ways than just scoring ? he?s also become a better defender, leaving behind the plague of hand-check fouls that dogged him last season, and his confidence shows in moves to the basket like his and-one slash into the lane against Vermont.
?Making my offense out of defense, and staying aggressive,? Dozier said. ?Coach gets on me a lot about being aggressive. I?m just trying to have that aggressive mentality.?
As USC?s first McDonald?s All-American since 2000, expectations followed the 6-6 guard from Columbia?s Spring Valley High School to Colonial Life Arena. He started his first game as a freshman, made the Gamecocks? first basket of last season ? and then looked like a freshman, struggling with shot selection and confidence, repeatedly falling into foul trouble that forced him to wear a path back and forth to the bench.
?I rarely took him out because of basketball decisions,? Martin said. ?I took him out because of foul trouble or because of bad defensive assignments. That's probably the first time in his life that?s ever happened to him. So he had to figure out: ?Am I not good enough? Does this guy not like me?? That?s part of every player/coach relationship. ... To his credit, it showed me a lot about who he is. He never ran away from being coached.?
By the end of last season, with his minutes decreasing and Thornwell handling most point-guard duties, Dozier was just ready for it to be over. Being pulled out of games ?is always something that?s in the back of your head, even when you know you?re going to stay in,? he said. He and Martin had to come to an understanding of how to communicate, something the sophomore credits for his uptick in performance this year.
?I think it was on both ends,? Dozier said. ?He was trying to figure me out, and I was trying to to figure him out. Once we started to understand each other, it was very noticeable. I think you can see the difference between my play style and how much I?m playing at the same time.?
It?s helped that Dozier has improved as a defender, allowing Martin to leave him in games. Only Thornwell and Duane Notice are averaging more minutes this season for the Gamecocks (8-0) than Dozier, playing 26.1 per game entering the contest against Seton Hall (7-2). That?s a jump from the 19 minutes he averaged as a freshman, when he also ranked third on the team in fouls.
?He can stay in the game. It?s given him confidence,? Martin said. ?I understand him better. I think I?m doing a better job communicating with him, and at the end of the day, he?s a good player who?s learned to play hard. Now you?re starting to see some of his abilities and talents show their face a little bit.?
It was an aggressive, confident move of the kind USC saw too few of last season, as Dozier struggled through a rocky freshman campaign. And it?s the kind of move the 19th-ranked Gamecocks need more of now as they go on without leading scorer Sindarius Thornwell, under indefinite suspension for an undisclosed violation of athletic department policy.
?He?s starting to spread his wings a little bit,? head coach Frank Martin said of Dozier, now a sophomore, ?so it?s going to put more responsibility on his plate.?
He certainly seems capable of handling it. Dozier heads into USC?s game Monday against Seton Hall in Madison Square Garden having put up a career-high 21 against Vermont, and then 20 against Florida International in USC?s first game without Thornwell. Dozier is now South Carolina?s second-leading scorer, his 12.8 points per game ranking behind Thornwell?s 18.7.
But to hear Martin tell it, the former McDonald?s All-American has improved in more ways than just scoring ? he?s also become a better defender, leaving behind the plague of hand-check fouls that dogged him last season, and his confidence shows in moves to the basket like his and-one slash into the lane against Vermont.
?Making my offense out of defense, and staying aggressive,? Dozier said. ?Coach gets on me a lot about being aggressive. I?m just trying to have that aggressive mentality.?
As USC?s first McDonald?s All-American since 2000, expectations followed the 6-6 guard from Columbia?s Spring Valley High School to Colonial Life Arena. He started his first game as a freshman, made the Gamecocks? first basket of last season ? and then looked like a freshman, struggling with shot selection and confidence, repeatedly falling into foul trouble that forced him to wear a path back and forth to the bench.
?I rarely took him out because of basketball decisions,? Martin said. ?I took him out because of foul trouble or because of bad defensive assignments. That's probably the first time in his life that?s ever happened to him. So he had to figure out: ?Am I not good enough? Does this guy not like me?? That?s part of every player/coach relationship. ... To his credit, it showed me a lot about who he is. He never ran away from being coached.?
By the end of last season, with his minutes decreasing and Thornwell handling most point-guard duties, Dozier was just ready for it to be over. Being pulled out of games ?is always something that?s in the back of your head, even when you know you?re going to stay in,? he said. He and Martin had to come to an understanding of how to communicate, something the sophomore credits for his uptick in performance this year.
?I think it was on both ends,? Dozier said. ?He was trying to figure me out, and I was trying to to figure him out. Once we started to understand each other, it was very noticeable. I think you can see the difference between my play style and how much I?m playing at the same time.?
It?s helped that Dozier has improved as a defender, allowing Martin to leave him in games. Only Thornwell and Duane Notice are averaging more minutes this season for the Gamecocks (8-0) than Dozier, playing 26.1 per game entering the contest against Seton Hall (7-2). That?s a jump from the 19 minutes he averaged as a freshman, when he also ranked third on the team in fouls.
?He can stay in the game. It?s given him confidence,? Martin said. ?I understand him better. I think I?m doing a better job communicating with him, and at the end of the day, he?s a good player who?s learned to play hard. Now you?re starting to see some of his abilities and talents show their face a little bit.?
