Odom Era Ending With A Whimper
posted by Scott Hood on Thursday, February 28, 2008
March 13 is the first day of the SEC Men’s basketball Tournament at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, and if last night’s dreadful 62-55 loss to an undistinguished LSU team is any indication, USC’s stay in Atlanta will be very brief.
I covered both the baseball and basketball games yesterday. I was stunned by the lack of energy in the building throughout the hoops game – both from the players and the fans.
Frankly, it might have been the most docile crowd I’ve ever witnessed at a Gamecock sporting event. I could have easily conducted a phone conversation without having to yell at the person on the other end. Typically, that’s not the case.
But I can’t blame the fans at this point. All of the losing, especially the frustrating defeats to Vanderbilt and Mississippi State, has zapped the enthusiasm from the USC fanbase.
It’s apparent that by this point most fans are ready for the Dave Odom Era to end. Count me in on that.
But I was surprised a little bit to see the lack of passion on the part of the players. They’re getting a free college education to play basketball and that’s what they should do.
Have the players, like the fans, seemingly packed it in as well? Hopefully not, but it appears it’s heading in that direction.
Good or bad (it all depends on your perspective), Dave Odom's seven-year tenure as head coach is ending with a whimper.
USC was miserable again shooting the ball. After hitting just 30 percent of its shots in the Mississippi State debacle, the Gamecocks “improved” to 34.4 percent last night. They were just 4 of 22 from 3-point range.
But, again, they were outrebounded by a wide margin. I think this gimmickry “small” lineup that Odom has relied upon for the last few weeks has finally run its course.
If I were Odom, I would start Mike Holmes and/or Sam Muldrow at one of the forward spots just to see what they can do. Holmes has played well recently.
USC is 12-15 overall, 4-9 in the league, and have lost five of six starting with the last-second loss to Vanderbilt. They have three regular season games left.
One of the remaining games is next Wednesday’s home contest against Kentucky, the final one of the Odom Era. I could stand here and give a fiery speech about USC fans needing to pack the arena and creating a vibrant atmosphere.
But I won’t. In that regard, it’s a lost cause.
At some point in the second half of last night’s game, they announced that tickets were still available for the Kentucky game.
I can assure you UK fans smell blood.
The upper bowl at the Colonial Center will likely be packed with Wildcat fans wearing blue. I’m expecting it will be a “blue-out” of nightmarish proportions for USC fans.
The USC baseball team is playing Charlotte – the same club it defeated in the NCAA Regional last June - the same night at the same time over at Sarge Frye Field.
Will there be more USC fans at the baseball game or the basketball game? Good question.
Covering both games yesterday was an interesting experience because I felt far more energy and electricity from 1,000 fans sitting in freezing temperatures at the mid-afternoon baseball game then I did at the basketball game.
With games remaining against Auburn, Kentucky and Tennessee, it’s possible USC could limp home with eight losses in their final nine games and finish with a 12-18 mark.
Frankly, USC has more talent than Auburn, but a road victory over the Tigers is hardly a sure thing after Wednesday night’s dismal performance against LSU.
Here’s the kicker: the SEC West is so bad that four clubs are currently tied with 4-9 conference marks. Alabama, a team USC beat 12 days ago, sits in third place.
Thanks to Georgia, USC will probably finish in fifth place in the SEC East. That means they get to face the No. 4 seed in the West. No matter who it is, we know it’s going to be a terrible team.
Could USC actually win its first-round game in the SEC Tournament? You bet.
That possibility leads, of course, to a crucial question.
Will you be able to withstand 24 more hours of Gamecock basketball?
- Permalink, Discuss, Blog Home
Two weeks from today, the 2007-2008 college basketball season will likely come to an end for South Carolina.
March 13 is the first day of the SEC Men’s basketball Tournament at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, and if last night’s dreadful 62-55 loss to an undistinguished LSU team is any indication, USC’s stay in Atlanta will be very brief.
I covered both the baseball and basketball games yesterday. I was stunned by the lack of energy in the building throughout the hoops game – both from the players and the fans.
Frankly, it might have been the most docile crowd I’ve ever witnessed at a Gamecock sporting event. I could have easily conducted a phone conversation without having to yell at the person on the other end. Typically, that’s not the case.
But I can’t blame the fans at this point. All of the losing, especially the frustrating defeats to Vanderbilt and Mississippi State, has zapped the enthusiasm from the USC fanbase.
It’s apparent that by this point most fans are ready for the Dave Odom Era to end. Count me in on that.
But I was surprised a little bit to see the lack of passion on the part of the players. They’re getting a free college education to play basketball and that’s what they should do.
Have the players, like the fans, seemingly packed it in as well? Hopefully not, but it appears it’s heading in that direction.
Good or bad (it all depends on your perspective), Dave Odom's seven-year tenure as head coach is ending with a whimper.
USC was miserable again shooting the ball. After hitting just 30 percent of its shots in the Mississippi State debacle, the Gamecocks “improved” to 34.4 percent last night. They were just 4 of 22 from 3-point range.
But, again, they were outrebounded by a wide margin. I think this gimmickry “small” lineup that Odom has relied upon for the last few weeks has finally run its course.
If I were Odom, I would start Mike Holmes and/or Sam Muldrow at one of the forward spots just to see what they can do. Holmes has played well recently.
USC is 12-15 overall, 4-9 in the league, and have lost five of six starting with the last-second loss to Vanderbilt. They have three regular season games left.
One of the remaining games is next Wednesday’s home contest against Kentucky, the final one of the Odom Era. I could stand here and give a fiery speech about USC fans needing to pack the arena and creating a vibrant atmosphere.
But I won’t. In that regard, it’s a lost cause.
At some point in the second half of last night’s game, they announced that tickets were still available for the Kentucky game.
I can assure you UK fans smell blood.
The upper bowl at the Colonial Center will likely be packed with Wildcat fans wearing blue. I’m expecting it will be a “blue-out” of nightmarish proportions for USC fans.
The USC baseball team is playing Charlotte – the same club it defeated in the NCAA Regional last June - the same night at the same time over at Sarge Frye Field.
Will there be more USC fans at the baseball game or the basketball game? Good question.
Covering both games yesterday was an interesting experience because I felt far more energy and electricity from 1,000 fans sitting in freezing temperatures at the mid-afternoon baseball game then I did at the basketball game.
With games remaining against Auburn, Kentucky and Tennessee, it’s possible USC could limp home with eight losses in their final nine games and finish with a 12-18 mark.
Frankly, USC has more talent than Auburn, but a road victory over the Tigers is hardly a sure thing after Wednesday night’s dismal performance against LSU.
Here’s the kicker: the SEC West is so bad that four clubs are currently tied with 4-9 conference marks. Alabama, a team USC beat 12 days ago, sits in third place.
Thanks to Georgia, USC will probably finish in fifth place in the SEC East. That means they get to face the No. 4 seed in the West. No matter who it is, we know it’s going to be a terrible team.
Could USC actually win its first-round game in the SEC Tournament? You bet.
That possibility leads, of course, to a crucial question.
Will you be able to withstand 24 more hours of Gamecock basketball?
- Permalink, Discuss, Blog Home
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Scott Hood. Since February of 2005, Scott has covered the South Carolina football, men's basketball and baseball programs for GamecockCentral. He may be reached by email at scottblog(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.