Wake Forest has already logged two exhibition games, and the early picture is mixed at best. The Demon Deacons dropped both outings, falling 94-77 to Georgetown at the Joel before losing 78-69 to South Carolina in Rock Hill. One more closed-door scrimmage remains against Elon before the games start counting for real on November 2.
The scoreboard has not been kind, but preseason basketball is more about discovery than results. For Wake, the most encouraging discovery so far has come from freshman brothers Gavin and Gallagher Placide.
Both have looked ready to handle high-major competition. Gavin scored 14 against Georgetown and followed that with 21 points against South Carolina, where he was perfect from the field at 6-for-6.
Gallagher added 13 points against the Hoyas and then seven more against the Gamecocks. That kind of production from two freshmen is hard to ignore, and it gives Wake fans something real to watch as the season approaches.
At the same time, one issue has surfaced quickly: the long ball just isn’t falling. Wake shot 7-of-29 from three against Georgetown and only 2-of-14 against South Carolina.
That’s a tough way to survive against good competition, and it raises the obvious question of where the perimeter scoring is going to come from. Justin Ray is expected to help there, but the rest of the rotation will need to answer too.
The Deacons have shown they can find points in spots, but they still seem to need more offensive punch overall. Kevair Kennedy was strong against Georgetown with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting, then had a quieter night against South Carolina. For Wake to get where it wants to go, he figures to be an important source of scoring.
There has also been an unexpected quiet start for Isaac Carr and Xander Pintelon. Carr, the lone returner to log minutes last season, had two points against Georgetown and was mostly quiet against South Carolina before finishing with seven.
Pintelon, the big-man transfer, has only scored two points across the two games and has not made a field goal yet. Carr’s late push could be a sign of more to come, but right now both players have been subdued on the offensive end.
In Other News...
South Carolina Fans Need To Plan Ahead For Tennessee At Williams-Brice
With Tennessee set to visit Williams-Brice Stadium at 3:35 p.m. on ESPN, South Carolina fans are being asked to plan a little differently for one of the bigger home dates on the schedule. The matchup arrives with the South Carolina State Fair creating altered traffic and parking arrangements around campus, so anyone heading in for the game will want to give themselves extra time before kickoff.
There will still be plenty to do once fans get there, with game day experiences and events, auctions, entertainment and merchandise sales all part of the lead-up around the stadium. Even with the logistics a little different than usual, it should still have the feel of a full Saturday in Columbia once the crowd settles in for Tennessee and the Gamecocks. [Read more 🡒]
South Carolina Returns To A Pivotal Home Test With Momentum
South Carolina is back in Williams-Brice Stadium on Oct. 24 with a chance to build on the kind of momentum that had been missing during a three-game skid. The Gamecocks snapped that slide with a win over Florida, and now they get an SEC home test against Tennessee in front of a crowd that will expect the same edge and urgency.
Tennessee arrives with its own confidence after beating Alabama, which gives this matchup a little more weight than a typical midseason league game. South Carolina will lean on quarterback LaNorris Sellers to help steady the offense, while the Volunteers can turn to running back Desean Bishop as part of the challenge the Gamecocks must handle if they want to keep their turnaround going. [Read more 🡒]
South Carolinas Rebuilt Lineup Just Gave Fans Real Reason For Optimism
South Carolinas revamped mens basketball roster offered an encouraging first look in a 78-69 exhibition win over Wake Forest, and the most noticeable part was how quickly the new pieces seemed to fit together. Four transfers were in the starting lineup, and Jakub Neas set the tone with 22 points while freshman Marcus Johnson added 13 in his debut, giving the Gamecocks a mix of proven production and early promise.
For a team trying to rebuild around a fresh core, that kind of opener matters more than the final score alone. The Gamecocks still have another exhibition on the schedule before the regular season begins, which should provide another chance to sort out rotations and see how much of this early chemistry can carry forward once the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]