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ESPN gives South Carolina basketball low grade following 12-20 season

by: George Bagwell05/31/25
https://www.on3.com/espn-gives-south-carolina-basketball-low-marks-following-12-20-season/
Lamont Paris (Photo by Katie Dugan/GamecockCentral)

ESPN’s Myron Medcalf examined SEC basketball this week, handing out season grades to each program. While 13 of the conference’s 16 teams earned a ‘B’ or higher, South Carolina was not one of those teams. Medcalf gave the Gamecocks, along with Texas and LSU, a ‘D’ mark.

The ESPN writer called the 2023-24 season, in which South Carolina made the NCAA Tournament, a “dream.” However, this past season, when the Gamecocks notched just two SEC wins, was described as a “nightmare.”

The grade takes preseason expectations into account as well. Even with South Carolina entering the season picked 11th in the conference, they weren’t able to meet that low bar.

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Medcalf did point out a silver lining, however, as South Carolina took down three tournament teams. That included in-state rival Clemson, in a 91-88 overtime victory at Colonial Life Arena. Overall, seven SEC teams managed an ‘A’ rating from Medcalf, and six more earned a ‘B’. South Carolina and LSU were the only teams from the conference to miss the NCAA Tournament this past year.

This upcoming season, South Carolina will have more potential hurdles to leap over. Collin Murray-Boyles will stay in the NBA Draft as he is expected by many to be a first-round pick. In addition to filling his void, the Gamecocks must find replacements for six of the seven players who started a game last season.

Lamont Paris enters his fourth season as the head coach at South Carolina. He has a 49-49 overall record and a 19-35 record in conference games. He has brought in six transfers and five freshman recruits ahead of the 2025-26 season. The headliner of the freshman class is Eli Ellis, who is ranked inside On3’s top-100 rankings for the class of 2025.

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