South Carolina is outscoring opponents by 31.1 points per game with a +870 scoring differential overall. It puts up 87.4 points per game (third in college basketball) and gives up 56.3 per contest (16th in college basketball). Edwards' team-leading 20.1 points per game ranks 18th in college basketball. Ole Miss outscores opponents by 17.8 points per game (posting 77.2 points per game, 29th in college basketball, and giving up 59.4 per outing, 61st in college basketball) and has a +499 scoring differential.
March Madness is the big picture of the college basketball season, but the day-to-day challenges of January are key in putting that picture together. Especially in the talent-loaded SEC, which currently has nine AP-ranked teams battling each other for supremacy, while also trying to stave off upset attempts. One such powerhouse meeting comes Thursday: Texas -- coming off its first loss of the season, at LSU -- travels to South Carolina (ESPN2, 7 p.m. ET).
"I am working my rear end off to get us back to where we're in that mix and playoff talk," Beamer said. "And that's the same thing I told our football team today, that I guess the gist of that article was that would be a parachute or something for me to get out of here and have a soft landing spot. Well, I'm not happy with where we are right now, and I'm determined to get it fixed."
