South Carolina Gamecocks at Clemson Tigers Free Pick & Preview 12/15/19

December 15th, 2019 By: Mike McDermott

The Clemson Tigers (5-4) take on the South Carolina Gamecocks (6-4) at Littlejohn Coliseum. The game can be seen on ESPN2 at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, December 15, 2019.

South Carolina Gamecocks at Clemson Tigers Free Prediction

In the Gamecocks’ last game, they were blown out by the Houston Cougars, 76-56. Houston’s free throw rate was their biggest strength over South Carolina. The Cougars had a rate of 0.288 (above their season average of 0.263), while the Gamecocks posted a mark of 0.161 (below their season average of 0.202). Maik Kotsar was South Carolina’s high scorer with 12 points on 5-for-12 shooting.

The Tigers lost big to the No. 17 Florida State Seminoles in their last matchup, 72-53. Florida State’s 0.602 effective field goal percentage was their largest advantage over Clemson, who had a rate of 0.443. The Seminoles’ mark was above their season average of 0.510, while the Tigers’ was below their season average of 0.521. With 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting, Tevin Mack led Clemson in scoring.

The Tigers won the sole contest against the Gamecocks last season, 78-68. Clemson had a much better effective field goal percentage (0.652 vs. 0.397). South Carolina, on the other hand, had a much better turnover percentage (15.7 vs. 26.9).

The offense of South Carolina will battle against the elite defense of Clemson. Dating back to the 2018-19 season, the Gamecocks rank 201st in offensive efficiency, while the Tigers are 77th in defensive efficiency. The Tigers figure to have the advantage on that side of the ball.