Joe Lunardi: South Carolina 'climbing' in seed list following Georgia win

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Lamont Paris on South Carolina win at Georgia

South Carolina was able to avenge an earlier season loss to Georgia on Saturday, taking down the Bulldogs in Athens. No coach in college basketball is hotter at the moment than Lamont Paris, defying expectations in his second season in charge. And for the first time since the 2016-2017 season, the program is on a five-game winning streak.

A run was made to the Final Four that season under Frank Martin and was South Carolina’s last NCAA Tournament appearance. Paris has the Gamecocks slated to be in the postseason this March and ESPN’s Joe Lunardi views them as a six-seed. But they are currently on the rise and could move up the seed list if the wins continue.

“They’re climbing,” Lunardi said during Saturday’s Missouri–Vanderbilt broadcast. “It wasn’t that long ago, they were on the bubble. Now, you see them as a six this morning… They’re going to be no worse than a six when we do a full, new bracket next week.

“Who knows? A five could happen for them. But right now, they’re 24th, which means they’re at the bottom of the six-line. They would have to leapfrog four other teams to get into a No. 5.”

Lunardi explained how seeding is affected by more than just one team’s performance. South Carolina has been playing well of late but if teams in the same vicinity are producing results, it’s hard to move up the seed list.

South Carolina will be tough to ignore if the wins continue to stack up, though. At some point, their own success will have to push them up.

South Carolina making SEC regular season title charge

Nobody really gave South Carolina a chance for success this season, with the preseason media poll having them dead last. Paris was thought to have a steep hill to climb in Columbia, especially after a tough showing in Year 1.

But 22 games into the season, the record sits at 19-3 and the Gamecocks are 7-2 in conference play. There is a legitimate chance at making a run toward an SEC regular season title. Wins against Kentucky and Tennessee are already on the resume.

Another shot at the Vols will come on March 6 too, hoping to defend home court.

South Carolina’s last conference title came in 1997, being their lone accolade in the SEC. There is still a long way to go but everyone involved has to be thrilled with the direction of the program under Paris.