Forget the national spotlight, Madison Square Garden and the potential of advancing to the Final Four for the first time in program history.
The South Carolina men’s basketball team is focused on one thing right now: the Florida Gators.
“We’re playing a team we know. We’re not playing the moment. We’re not playing the building. We’re not playing the NCAA Tournament. We’re playing the Florida Gators,” Frank Martin said. “Our focus should be playing a team that we played twice, playing a team that we beat and playing a team that beat us.”
A situation seven years ago explains Martin's current mindset.
In 2010, Martin's No. 2 Kansas State team was set to play Brad Stevens' fifth-seeded Butler Bulldogs in the Elite Eight. That year, the Wildcats won a double-overtime thriller against Xavier in the Sweet 16 and didn't return to their hotel until 2:30 a.m. after the game. Because of the quick turnaround, Martin led the Wildcats through a relaxed practice the next day and was upset 63-56 by Butler.
“We went on the court and we did nothing but shoot balls and walk through things. And that's not the way we practice,” Martin said. “And I told myself, if I'm ever in the same situation, I've got to practice our guys the way that we have trained for six months, not anyway differently.”
After defeating Wisconsin with Chris Chiozza's buzzer-beating 3-pointer Friday night, the fourth-seeded Gators are facing a similar scenario. Coach Mike White and his players are hoping to stay focused leading up to Sunday’s contest, especially 6-foot-1 guard Kasey Hill. The senior competed in the Final Four as a freshman in 2014 with a 36-3 Florida squad composed of Scottie Wilbekin, Will Yeguete, Patric Young, Casey Prather and Michael Frazier II.
“Those guys, they were very big on that, they had a lot of experience, a lot of tournament games under their belt. But really just staying in the moment and going out there and competing and trying to play every game like it is your last,” Hill said.
“If we're not focused 100 percent on preparing as well as we can for South Carolina, then none of it matters,” White added. “It's a one-game tournament for us. Kasey said, treat every game like it is your last.”
The Gamecocks and Gators have played each other twice this season, with each team earning a victory on its home court. Despite the split, SEC Player of the Year Sindarius Thornwell doesn’t feel any pressure and will prepare for the matchup like any other.
“We’re still getting picked against, and we're still going in as the underdog," Thornwell said. "And so when you go in as the underdog, you don't have any expectations on anything, so we just playing free and having fun.”