Myles Stute Comes Up Clutch In Return From Injury

Myles Stute came back for South Carolina's men's basketball team in last night's game against Tennessee and wound up playing an important role in the outcome.

Just two weeks after he suffered an injury to his non-shooting shoulder against the Georgia Bulldogs, junior wing Myles Stute found himself back in the rotation for the South Carolina Gamecocks in their matchup against the Tennessee Volunteers. Due to Zachary Davis' inconsistent play, Stute found himself playing half the game on Tuesday night against Tennessee.

Had Gamecock fans been foretold about this outcome regarding Myles' minutes, they probably would've been concerned about the possible end result simply due to Stute's extended time away from regulation basketball. However, the Washington, D.C., native didn't miss a beat in his return and, even more impressively, heavily contributed in South Carolina's close win over the Volunteers.

Myles Stute looking to pass the ball from the top of the key vs. Tennessee (30th Jan., 2024) / Randy Sartin | USA Today Network

Myles' impact on the game wasn't just due to the shots he hit, but more so the time he hit said shots. All three of Stute's makes from the floor came from behind the arc and either gave the Gamecocks the lead or extended the gap to two possessions. The area where the junior wing made his presence felt, however, was at the charity stripe.

Transferring from Vanderbilt this past offseason, Myles is no stranger to the Tennessee faithful, battling the Volunteers on six different occasions during his three seasons in Nashville. So when Stute went up to the free throw line on two different occasions in the 23 seconds of game time, both the opposing fans and players tried to get him off kilter. Not only did the first-year Gamecock overcome the hostilities by hitting all four of his free throw attempts, he even dished it back out by shushing the crowd before hitting a shot to put Carolina up five points on Tennessee.

Former Vanderbilt wing Myles Stute showing some flair as he silences the Tennessee student section and ices it for South Carolina in Knoxville. pic.twitter.com/EKJiItnMEJ

— Joey Dwyer (@joey_dwy) January 31, 2024

Quite a way to reintroduce yourself to the SEC after being on the mend for two weeks. Myles' performance against the Volunteers is another example of South Carolina's 'next man up' mentality regarding their ability to pick their play to help a teammate who's had an off night. If Lamont Paris and the staff can get this Myles Stute for the rest of the season, the Gamecocks' will be even more dangerous on the offensive end of the floor moving forward.

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