What’s at stake, how to watch and stream South Carolina at SEC tournament in Tampa
Two years ago, the South Carolina men’s basketball team was in a similar position.
Head coach Frank Martin and the Gamecocks traveled to Nashville for the 2020 SEC tournament with 18 wins on their resume and a hunger to make a run for the NCAA tournament. Martin was convinced the Gamecocks were going to beat Arkansas in the first round of that tournament — a Razorbacks team the Gamecocks beat earlier in the season on the road.
But USC never got that chance. No one did. COVID-19 erupted worldwide, and basketball was among the first sports to shut down. The SEC tournament was canceled before the Gamecocks could play a game.
“We were getting ready to play that same day,” senior Keyshawn Bryant recalled. “You get ready to play for the game, and then 20 minutes later they say everything’s canceled. Got to go home. It was just a ‘wow’ moment for everybody. Like, is college basketball coming to an end?
“A lot of emotions at the time, but luckily we’re here again.”
After last year’s pandemic-riddled 6-15 season, the Gamecocks built themselves back up and enter this week’s SEC tournament in Tampa under comparable circumstances. At 18-12 (9-9 SEC) No. 7-seed USC needs a deep run in Tampa to have any shot at the NCAA tournament, starting with No. 10 Mississippi State on 6 p.m. Thursday, airing on SEC Network.
This time — unlike two years ago — Martin and the Gamecocks will actually have a chance to make that run.
“It’s very similar,” Martin said this week. “Very few teams go into their conference tournament and they already know their fate.
“Same as that team was a couple years ago. I was excited about coaching that game against Arkansas, because the opportunities for our team were great in that tournament. I think the opportunities for our team in this tournament are great, too.”
What’s at stake for USC
Simply put, the Gamecocks need to win several games — if not the SEC tournament — to have a chance at NCAA tournament consideration.
As it stands the Gamecocks rank 90th in the country in the NET and are just 2-8 against Quadrant I teams, which lags behind most tournament-bound teams. The NIT is a more realistic outcome at this juncture.
But the Gamecocks aren’t ready to give up on their NCAA visions. Senior guard Erik Stevenson has kept close tabs on the numbers and projected brackets. And much like his head coach, he isn’t a fan of the NET rankings. Those rankings factor a team’s efficiency and scoring margin into the algorithm, which reward teams and punishes others for playing different styles of basketball.
“The NET pissed me off, man,” Stevenson said. “I don’t think it’s right. I don’t think it’s accurate. I’m not saying we should be a lock for the tournament, but I don’t think we should be anywhere near 90 where we’re at.
“... I think if we win two games, you have to put us on the bubble. And I think if we win three, I think it’d be a lock for us to be in the tournament.”
Evaluating Mississippi State
The Gamecocks have played Mississippi State (17-14, 8-10) twice this season and split the series, losing at Starkville and most recently winning in Columbia. Both games were decided by double-digit points.
After handling the Bulldogs with relative ease in Columbia — a 66-56 win — the Gamecocks are expecting some adjustments from a Mississippi State team that is also fighting for its postseason life.
“I definitely expect a different outcome from the last time we played them,” Stevenson said. “Not us losing, but them to put up a better fight. They’re a better team than what they showed that night.”
The Bulldogs are led by veteran guard Iverson Molinar, who leads the team with 17.8 points per game and has been a thorn in USC’s side over the years. Limiting him will be paramount, as will putting up a fight on the boards against big men Garrison Brooks and Tolu Smith.
One factor that bodes well for USC: The Bulldogs were 14-3 at home this year but just 1-9 on the road and 2-2 on neutral courts.
Homecoming for Bryant
Though a senior, Bryant will only be playing in his second SEC tournament. He missed the 2020 tournament, along with everyone else, and he didn’t play last year due to what he called a “mental health issue.”
But Bryant is in good spirits in Tampa, which isn’t a long drive from where he grew up in Winter Haven. Bryant said he expects more than 60 family members and friends to watch him and the Gamecocks play at Amalie Arena throughout the tournament.
“There’s great energy from everybody, especially me back home, close to family,” Bryant said Wednesday, with a big smile. “So we get to bring out a couple of friendly faces that will get to see me play for the first time. My grandparents never got to see me play in college.”
The senior will try to put on a show for his family. Known for his dunks and athleticism, Bryant said he threw down a windmill dunk during practice Wednesday.
Will he be able to replicate that in a game?
“I got you,” Bryant said, smiling.
How to stream the SEC tournament
All games can be streamed via the ESPN app (as long as you have an appropriate TV or streaming provider). Thursday’s South Carolina vs. Mississippi State game can be streamed here.
SEC men’s tournament scores, schedule
FIRST ROUND — Wednesday, March 9
Game 1: No. 12 Missouri 72, No. 13 Ole Miss 60
Game 2: No. 11 Vanderbilt 86, No. 14 Georgia 51
SECOND ROUND — Thursday, March 10
Game 3: No. 8 Texas A&M vs. No. 9 Florida, noon, SEC Network
Game 4: No. 12 Missouri vs. No. 5 LSU, 2:30 p.m., SEC Network
Game 5: No. 7 South Carolina vs. No. 10 Mississippi State, 6 p.m., SEC Network
Game 6: No. 11 Vanderbilt vs. No. 6 Alabama, 8:30 p.m., SEC Network
QUARTERFINALS — Friday, March 11
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Auburn, noon, ESPN
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Arkansas, 2:30 p.m., ESPN
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Tennessee, 6 p.m., SEC Network
Game 10: Game 6 winner vs. Kentucky, 8:30 p.m., SEC Network
This story was originally published March 10, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "What’s at stake, how to watch and stream South Carolina at SEC tournament in Tampa."
