'We're going all in': South Carolina shifts focus to SEC Tournament with familiar foe in first round

South Carolina’s season has been nothing short of a disappointment after having so much success this time last year. With the regular season now over, it will turn its attention towards the postseason.

The Gamecocks (12-19, 2-16 SEC) will go into this week’s SEC Tournament in Nashville as the No. 16 seed. They’ll take on No. 9 seed Arkansas in the first round on Wednesday, with tip-off at 1 p.m. on SEC Network.

It looks to be about as good of a draw as South Carolina could’ve hoped for, given the outcome that happened when these two teams met eight days ago. The Gamecocks held the Razorbacks to a poor shooting day in a 72-53 win at Colonial Life Arena.

Not to mention, head coach Lamont Paris has had a great track record going against Arkansas’ John Calipari over the years. Paris is a perfect 3-0 against Calipari, beating him twice when he was at Kentucky and now this year with the Razorbacks.

But the past is the past and ultimately doesn’t mean much going into this game. The same rule of thumb can apply to South Carolina’s season as a whole. While finishing last in the SEC standings wasn’t ideal, the tournament presents a clean slate — a new season, if you will.

“It’s like another reset,” Nick Pringle said after South Carolina’s 73-64 loss to Georgia on Tuesday. “I mean, we’ve played all the teams in the SEC now. We know what it’s about. We know we can compete with them. It’s just about making the right plays, just being there in the right moments, and just making it happen.”

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South Carolina’s odds of winning the SEC Tournament are going to be slim to none. It would take a Cinderella run of winning five games in five days to accomplish this feat. If it were to do it, it would automatically qualify for an NCAA Tournament berth.

But the likelihood of that right now is more wishful thinking than anything. The more pressing question is whether the Gamecocks can make it through the first round. If they do, then they would meet Ole Miss, who beat them by four points on Feb. 12, in the second round on Thursday.

“I think we just got to take it one game at a time. The odds are against us,” Jacobi Wright said. “Being a low seed, you gotta win more games than some teams that get a round bye.”

If they lose a game in Nashville, though, their season will officially be over. There’s always a chance they could wind up in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). As of March 8, South Carolina is projected to be a four-seed in the 32-team field. But in terms of playing for a shot at March Madness, that small window of hope would be gone.

Despite everything that has gone wrong this year, South Carolina has been playing better basketball lately. It will go into the tournament having won two of its last five games. The Gamecocks’ two wins came by double-digit points, and they also put up a respectable fight against No. 4 Tennessee in their regular season finale.

“We can compete with any team in this league,” Pringle said. “I mean, it’s been tough. It’s hard to tell by our record, but we’re continuing to get better. We’re going all in in this tournament.”

Here’s a look at the full SEC Tournament bracket

Round One (March 12)

Game 1: No. 9 Arkansas vs. No. 16 South Carolina, 1 p.m. on SEC Network

Game 2: No. 12 Vanderbilt vs. No. 13 Texas, 25 minutes after Game 1 on SECN

Game 3: No. 10 Mississippi State vs. No. 15 LSU, 7 p.m. on SECN

Game 3: No. 11 Georgia vs. No. 14 Oklahoma, 25 minutes after Game 3 on SECN

Round Two (March 13)

Game 5: No. 8 Ole Miss vs. Winner of Game 1, 1 p.m. on SECN

Game 6: No. 5 Texas A&M vs. Winner of Game 2, 25 minutes after Game 5 on SECN

Game 7: No. 7 Missouri vs. Winner of Game 3, 7 p.m. on SECN

Game 8: No. 6 Kentucky vs. Winner of Game 4, 25 minutes after Game 7 on SECN

SEC Quarterfinals (March 14)

Game 9: No. 1 Auburn vs. Winner of Game 5, 1 p.m. on ESPN

Game 10: No. 4 Tennessee vs. Winner of Game 6, 25 minutes after Game 9 on ESPN

Game 11: No. 2 Florida vs. Winner of Game 7, 7 p.m. ET on SECN

Game 12: No. 3 Alabama vs. Winner of Game 8, 25 minutes after Game 11 on SECN

SEC Semifinals (March 15)

Game 13: Winner of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 10, 1 p.m. on ESPN

Game 14: Winner of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 12, 25 minutes after Game 13 on ESPN

SEC Tournament Championship (March 16)

Game 15: Winner of Game 13 vs. Winner of Game 14, 1 p.m. ET on ESPN

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