What Lamont Paris, bracketology experts say about USC MBB’s NCAA outlook
The South Carolina locker room was silent, except for the shuffling of shoes, the occasional cough and the sound of zippers opening and closing bags. The Gamecocks had been sent home packing after falling 86-55 to Auburn in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.
The fate of USC’s next steps is in the hands of the NCAA Tournament selection committee.
“We’re still building here. That’s been a thing for us,” head coach Lamont Paris said. “I think that’s been the general theme. I’ve talked about that a whole bunch.”
Leaving the SEC Tournament with a 1-1 record, South Carolina should still sit somewhere in range of a four-, five- or six-seed in the NCAA Tournament, which begins next weekend. That means they’d face a 10-, 11- or 12-seed in the opening round of March Madness.
The No. 15 Gamecocks have two losses to Auburn and one loss each to Clemson, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and LSU. They finished the regular season with a national ranking by both The Associated Press Top 25 and the USA Today Coaches Poll, and sit with an impressive 26-7 record.
It still might be hard to swallow a loss like Friday’s, especially since it was so similar to the regular-season blowout to Auburn last month, but there’s some silver lining ahead.
First, this is only the end of one tournament. The Gamecocks will hear their name called at some point Sunday evening. For most of those players, that’s a first. There’s no denying that eases the blow of an SEC Tournament loss.
“What a tremendous accomplishment it will be for this group to be able to play a game or more in the NCAA Tournament,” Paris said. “We’ll find out where we go. We’ll rejoice in that.”
It also gives USC some time to recover. The Gamecocks were without Myles Stute again on Friday. He’s day-to-day with a hip pointer after taking a hard hit Thursday against Arkansas. Ta’Lon Cooper also tweaked his right ankle against the Tigers and sat out for a chunk of Friday’s second half.
South Carolina will have eight or nine days to nurse wounds and rest sore muscles before playing another game. There’s still time to pick apart the game film and scout the first opponent. All that stuff will still happen.
But rest. That is something USC hasn’t had in quite some time, and the Gamecocks are in need of it.
“I think that’s a big part of it,” Paris said. “So if not for winning it all, I guess this is probably — some people would probably prefer this than play another game and still not win it all.”
As for where USC will land in the NCAA Tournament, a five-seed would likely push the Gamecocks over toward the West Coast, according to national predictions, but a six-seed might keep them east of the Mississippi River. Some of the seeding scenarios won’t be sorted out until Saturday or Sunday, but South Carolina could flip in either direction.
Most recent bracketology projections have South Carolina as a five seed heading to play in Spokane, Washington. ESPN predicts a first-round matchup against NcNeese, CBS Sports has a game against VCU in mind and The Washington Post last had USC facing Seton Hall as a seven seed in Omaha, Nebraska. Those predictions haven’t been updated to account for Friday’s games yet.
Regardless where the Gamecocks end up, Paris told the silent locker room one thing: The SEC Tournament was an entirely separate season compared with the regular season. The NCAA Tournament will also be a brand new opportunity.
If that’s how South Carolina chooses to refocus and regroup, then Selection Sunday will be the start of Season Three.
Whenever and wherever that will be.
How to watch the NCAA Selection Show?
The March Madness Selection Sunday TV show is at 6 p.m. Sunday on CBS.
Tournament dates
The first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament will be March 21-24. Game times for those rounds will be announced following Selection Sunday.
This story was originally published March 15, 2024 at 6:14 PM with the headline "What Lamont Paris, bracketology experts say about USC MBB’s NCAA outlook."
