How Frank Martin, USC basketball transfers are faring away from Columbia
As is often the case with a coaching change, the South Carolina men’s basketball program experienced a large amount of roster turnover this offseason.
After the USC administration fired 10-year coach Frank Martin and replaced him with former Chattanooga head coach Lamont Paris, seven USC players entered the transfer portal — three of whom followed Martin to his next coaching stop at UMass.
The current Gamecocks have received important contributions from such incoming transfers as Meechie Johnson (Ohio State) and Hayden Brown (The Citadel) en route to a 4-4 start to the season in Year 1 under Paris.
Here’s a look at how USC’s outgoing transfers are performing at their new schools.
The UMass transfers
Under Martin, the Minutemen are off to a 7-2 start to their season, including winning the title at the Myrtle Beach Invitational. Martin brought three former Gamecocks with him to UMass in the form of big men Wildens Leveque and Ta’Quan Woodley and Martin’s son Brandon Martin. Of the three, Leveque and Martin have started all nine games, with Leveque averaging 5.4 points and 5.1 rebounds and Martin averaging 2.4 points and 4 rebounds per game. Woodley decided to sit out the 2022-23 season due to personal reasons.
Jermaine Couisnard
The former Gamecocks starting point guard followed former USC assistant Chuck Martin to Oregon, where he landed a job on head coach Dana Altman’s staff. Due to offseason knee surgery, Couisnard hasn’t yet made his Ducks debut, but the injury isn’t expected to be season-ending.
Keyshawn Bryant
After wowing Gamecocks fans for four years with highlight-reel dunks, Bryant transferred to his home state to play for South Florida. The 6-foot-6 Bryant has played just five games this season, starting three, but he’s been productive on the court, averaging 9.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.
Devin Carter
Carter, the son of former NBA player Anthony Carter, had the look of a cornerstone player for the Gamecocks after a dynamic freshman season. But Carter transferred to Ed Cooley’s Providence (7-3) team after Paris was hired, and he’s established himself as a top scorer for the Friars. Starting in all 10 games, the high-flying Carter has scored 11.2 points and averaged 4.5 rebounds per game.
Erik Stevenson
The veteran guard Stevenson played just one season in Columbia but quickly endeared himself to fans and established himself as a fiery team leader. After Martin’s firing, Stevenson transferred to play for one of Martin’s closest friends in the game: West Virginia’s Bob Huggins. Already, Stevenson has emerged as the 7-2 Mountaineers’ top offensive threat, leading the team with 14.2 points per game and making a team-high 20 3-pointers on 43 attempts (46.5%).
This story was originally published December 10, 2022 at 7:45 AM with the headline "How Frank Martin, USC basketball transfers are faring away from Columbia."
