As South Carolina fans, we must face reality: The Gamecocks will compete in the NIT, not the coveted NCAA Tournament.
"When you set a school record for wins in its history, in the regular season, you win nine games away from home. That means that you didn't just play bye games at home," head coach Frank Martin said. "You're four games over .500 in a BCS league and that's not good enough, it's not good enough."
Once we move beyond the disappointment and feelings of betrayal from the NCAA Selection Committee, it’s time to look forward to Tuesday night. The men’s basketball team is fresh off its first 24-win season since the 1996-97 season and is a No. 1 seed in the NIT.
As the No. 1 seed, South Carolina is set to play the High Point Panthers, who finished the season with a 21-10 record and a 13-5 record in the Big South conference, which tied Winthrop for first place.
The Panthers did not play a strong schedule this season, with the exceptions of NC State and Texas Tech, both of which belong to Power Five conferences. High Point lost those games but did play competitively each time, with the two losses coming by an average of 3.3 points.
High Point’s most dangerous player is senior redshirt forward John Brown, who led the Panthers this season in points per game (19.6), rebounds per game (7.1), blocks per game (1.8), steals per game (1.7) and minutes per game (29.6). The 2015-16 Big South’s Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year is ruled out, however, for Tuesday’s contest with a foot injury. Brown did not play in either of High Point’s Big South Tournament games.
Adam Weary, High Point’s second leading scorer with 12.4 points per game, is also ruled out of Tuesday’s game with a knee injury. Weary was named to the Big South Second-Team All-Conference.
Despite these two major injuries, High Point should not be taken lightly. The team nearly defeated UNC-Asheville in the second round of the Big South Tournament without Brown and Weary. Sophomore guard Austin White and junior forward Miles Bowman Jr. stepped in nicely for the injured players, combining for 35 points. Bowman Jr. also added 16 rebounds.
At 6-foot-6, Bowman Jr. is slightly undersized, however, and should be a favorable matchup for a Gamecocks frontcourt that possesses three core players over 6-foot-7.
Both Bowman Jr. and White will likely start again Tuesday.
South Carolina’s main advantage in this game will be its size, especially with senior forward Michael Carrera expected back in the lineup. Carrera missed South Carolina’s previous two games with a hip injury.
As long as the Gamecocks lock down the three-point line, they should advance to the next round. High Point shoots the three-pointer well as a team at 38.3 percent, so perimeter defense is essential.
The winner of Tuesday’s matchup will face the winner of the Georgia Tech-Houston game. The Gamecocks will have home court advantage through the quarterfinals, as the semifinals and finals are played at Madison Square Garden.