There was no hard-luck pat on the back, no “Wait til next year” and especially no congratulatory text message that was hastily reversed.
South Carolina is going to the NCAA Tournament.
The Gamecocks snapped a 13-year streak of missing the game’s signature event on Sunday when their names were called as one of the 68 participants for this year’s national championship. USC (22-10) earned a No. 7 seed and will play No. 10 seed Marquette on Friday in Greenville.
It’s the first tournament berth since 2004 and just the ninth in school history. Stung by his team’s exclusion last year after winning 24 games, coach Frank Martin significantly strengthened his schedule this year, and the move paid off when USC beat Vermont, Michigan, Syracuse and Monmouth before starting SEC play.