Meechie Johnson’s big night powers South Carolina past Notre Dame to 6-0 start

When coach Micah Shrewsberry brought his young Fighting Irish roster into Colonial Life Arena and watched the University of South Carolina student section pour in, he had one thought: “Oh, sh--.”

Over 15,000 fans piled in to watch South Carolina men’s basketball Tuesday, the largest home crowd of the season. They watched Meechie Johnson play hero ball for South Carolina and score 29 points in a 65-53 win over the Fighting Irish in the ACC/SEC Challenge and raise their record to 6-0.

Even USC head coach Lamont Paris, who claimed he rarely notices the crowd noise or the number of fans in seats, looked around throughout the game.

“There were just a couple of things, a couple of plays that happened that turned it up,” Paris said. “And there’s nothing that inspires players and energizes guys like a home crowd.”

Johnson has their back

In the previous five games, South Carolina had at least three players score 10-plus points. Against Notre Dame, USC had two players: BJ Mack and Johnson. While it’s no surprise Mack found his way to 10 points, Johnson’s first-half hot streak was the Gamecocks’ get-out-of-jail-free card for most of the game.

His efforts led to a career-high 29, topping his 26 points scored against Kentucky last season.

“I didn’t really notice it,” Johnson said. “I was just kind of hooping.”

Paris played his entire available roster, except Eli Sparkman, and few could sink a shot. Mack, who scored 27 against Grand Canyon in Arizona last week, finally amassed double digits with 10 minutes left in the game.

Paris earlier this season said Johnson had the capability to lead USC when the shots weren’t falling elsewhere. Tuesday night showcased just that. He had to balance the poor overall shooting night with Johnson’s hot streak, while also giving the guard a breather in the second half. Even as South Carolina pulled away, Paris didn’t sub Johnson out until the under-eight-minute timeout.

“I just wanted him to get a blow, get fresh,” Paris said, “and then you know, come back with a vengeance.”

Johnson had to play hero ball quite a bit last season alongside former Gamecock GG Jackson. On nights where the shots wouldn’t fall, it was hard for South Carolina to pick up wins down the stretch on the backs of just two players.

But this season, just six games in, USC found ways for Mack score big or have Ta’Lon Cooper or Myles Stute carry the load in addition to Johnson. It’s not just on the junior guard anymore.

But it was Tuesday, and Johnson stepped up.

“It’s a great feeling, where we keep feeding him energy,” Mack said. “We let him know, it’s your time to shine.”

Score in the paint

South Carolina’s Achilles heel this season has been scoring in the paint. The Fighting Irish took advantage of that.

For players not named Meechie Johnson, the Gamecocks were 10-for-35 from the field. Johnson, as impressive of a performance that he had, only had eight points in the paint. USC’s inability to score down low continues to plague the offense, despite the Gamecocks being bailed out by Johnson and some well-shot 3-pointers.

USC has floated around 37% shooting from the field this season, and South Carolina finished against Notre Dame shooting 38%. Johnson alone was 60% from the field.

Paris said there’s not a ballpark or target number of points in the paint South Carolina strives for. He doesn’t want a one-dimensional offense. USC made an intentional choice to shoot more 3-pointers against Notre Dame even if it wasn’t a stellar night beyond the arc.

“I just want to be aggressive when we have opportunities to drive downhill,” Paris said.

The Gamecocks, however, forced eight turnovers, scoring nine points. In the first half, Notre Dame was dangerously close to three-straight shot clock violations.

Notre Dame’s 53 points tie for the fewest points USC has allowed this season, the other time against USC Upstate. Paris’ group has found some way to cover the lack of two-point buckets, but it’ll be a lingering issue against George Washington and Clemson coming up.

Update on Collin Murray-Boyles

Paris said postgame that freshman forward Collin Murray-Boyles has been cleared to practice full and half court starting Wednesday. The new Gamecock hasn’t played this season after the program announced he had mono the morning of the teams’ exhibition game against Wofford on Nov. 1.

“I was so happy for the kid,” Paris said on Murray-Boyles getting cleared. “Imagine being out of basketball and it not be a part of your life as a freshman in college and you have these expectations.”

Paris said Murray-Boyles has lost some weight with the illness, but he’s glad the freshman can start to participate again. Murray-Boyles was on the bench Tuesday, sitting courtside with his teammates. His return will be “sometime soon,” Paris said.

“We’ll eventually be able to sprinkle him into some games hopefully sometime soon,” Paris said. “The question will be how long it takes him to get back to where he was pre-mono, which was playing at a high level at that point.”

Next four USC MBB games

Dec. 1 - vs. George Washington, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Dec. 6 - at Clemson, 8 p.m. (ACC Network)

Dec. 9 - at East Carolina, noon (ESPNU)

Dec. 16 - vs. Charleston Southern, 6 p.m. (SEC Network)