---

Baylor vs. South Carolina prediction roundtable with the Campus Insiders staff. Breaking down what will happen between the Bears and Gamecocks in their Sweet 16 matchup on Friday evening.

---

Jeff Bartl

I can’t get over the fact that South Carolina’s 41.4 field goal percentage heading into the NCAA Tournament ranked dead last in the SEC. Worse than Missouri. Worse than LSU. It keeps running through my head, and yet the Gamecocks somehow put up 88 points on Duke. I enjoy Frank Martin’s in-your-face defense and how well South Carolina can execute it, but I am not going to pick it to get past Baylor. It’s not even that I think the Bears are an Elite Eight-worthy team; I can just image the Gamecocks shooting something like 28 percent and Baylor winning by default.

Robert Judin

Not many expected the Gamecocks to make it to their first Sweet 16 in school history, but they did it — and in impressive fashion, I might add. Taking down Duke is never an easy task, but South Carolina did it with the same defensive pressure it has applied throughout the season.

If the Gamecocks can clog the lane and communicate well defensively, all they’ll need to do then is box out and keep Baylor off the glass. That’s where the Bears can really hurt you, by crashing the boards. The Gamecocks will need to focus most of their energy on Johnathan Motley and Terry Maston. Keep them off the glass and limit their shot opportunities. Make someone else step up for Baylor on the offensive end.

I don’t think South Carolina will be able to hold Motley and Maston, though. So, I’m going with Baylor here.

Dave Miller

Frank Martin has done a nice job in his fifth season in Columbia, taking the Gamecocks to the Tournament for the first time in his tenure after making the NIT last season. The win over Duke this past Sunday evening was very unexpected, and the Gamecocks will give Baylor some problems—especially in the first half—as they try to advance to the Elite Eight.

The Gamecocks have played great defense all year long, but Baylor’s Johnathan Motley and Terry Maston will be too much to overcome down the stretch. Whoever wins the rebounding battle and gets the most second-chance points will come out on top, and that will be Baylor to help head coach Scott Drew get to his third Elite Eight.

Kurt Schwerman

This one has lots of potential to be a high scoring shootout. Both teams are quite athletic and can get up and down the floor in a hurry. South Carolina comes into this game fresh off a mammoth upset over Duke, so confidence will be at a season high. They’ve also got SEC Player of the Year Sindarius Thornwell, who averaged 21 points per game in the regular season.

Despite all of that, Baylor still has the upper hand and is the better team. They have the ability to lock down defensively and force tough shots from their opponents. If they can do this, they’ll win. But if they let Thornwell get free and take over the game, SC could keep this run of theirs going. Ultimately though, I’m picking Baylor to advance.

Brian Stultz

Since our #FashionInsider Kurt Schwerman didn’t bring it up, I will: those bright yellow Baylor uniforms need to be taken away, put on a submarine that will then go deep down to the bottom of the ocean, and then blown up. If those uniforms were on Red October, Marko Ramius would have done the correct thing and blow himself up along with the other Russians in no time. There would then be a statue placed in every country recognizing the brave efforts of the comrades.

Bears win.

MORE: Complete NCAA Tournament Bracket, Predictions, Analysis