There are 14 teams in the SEC -- and South Carolina was projected to finish last in the preseason poll after going 4-14 in the league last season and losing leading scorer GG Jackson to the 2023 NBA Draft. Credit to second-year coach Lamont Paris for never believing this was a sensible projection and for feeling confident enough to express as much on the record shortly after the preseason poll was published.
"I take it personal -- and take it personal for a lot of reasons," Paris reportedly told TheBigSpur.com back in October. "Ultimately it says we don't think that coach is very good or we don't think those players are very good. There's no denying that. You think the coaching or the players are not very good. That's OK. You're also not there every day, and I'm there every day. So I take that personally."
Fast-forward to the present, and it's undeniable that the Gamecocks are exceeding all expectations. They improved to 20-3 overall, 8-2 in the SEC on Tuesday with a 68-65 win over Ole Miss. They remain No. 13 in Wednesday morning's updated CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 daily college basketball rankings and are clearly the biggest surprise among the sport's power-conference teams.
"It's going to be one of the most exciting times of these guys' college careers," Paris said Tuesday, "if on Selection Sunday they call our name and we get to go somewhere and play [in the NCAA Tournament]."
Things certainly seem headed that direction thanks in part to Paris' work in -- what else? -- the transfer portal. Four of South Carolina's top five scorers are first-year players in the program, three of whom are transfers who played Division I basketball elsewhere last season. It's the latest example that illustrates coaches asking for patience and time in this era are mostly making excuses. Because of NIL and transfer waivers, it's always possible to build a quality team in one offseason. Kansas State's Jerome Tang did it in advance of last season, took over a program picked to finish at the bottom of the Big 12 but advanced all the way to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament thanks to the presence of star transfers Markquis Nowell and Keyontae Johnson. Now it appears Paris has done something similar, and his prize should be a trip to the Big Dance and, possibly, an SEC Coach of the Year award, if not more.
Wednesday's Top 25 And 1 rankings
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Zach Edey finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds in Sunday's 75-69 win at Wisconsin. The Boilermakers' next game is Saturday against Indiana. | -- | 4-0 |
| 2 |  | Cam Spencer finished with 20 points and four rebounds in Tuesday's 71-62 win over Butler. The Huskies' next game is Saturday at Georgetown. | -- | 3-0 |
| 3 |  | Jamal Shead finished with 23 points and four assists in Tuesday's 79-63 win over Oklahoma State. The Cougars' next game is Saturday at Cincinnati. | -- | 2-1 |
| 4 |  | Zakai Zeigler finished with 26 points and 13 assists in Saturday's 103-92 win at Kentucky. The Vols' next game is Wednesday against LSU. | 1 | 4-0 |
| 5 |  | AJ Storr was 4 of 15 from the field in Sunday's 75-69 loss to Purdue. The Badgers' next game is Wednesday at Michigan. | 1 | 4-0 |
| 6 |  | Kam Jones finished with 31 points and two steals in Saturday's 91-57 win at Georgetown. The Golden Eagles' next game is Saturday against St. John's. | 1 | 4-0 |
| 7 |  | RJ Davis was 7 of 22 from the field in Tuesday's 80-76 loss to Clemson. The Tar Heels' next game is Saturday at Miami. | 3 | 2-1 |
| 8 |  | Kansas was 3 of 15 from 3-point range in Monday's 75-70 loss at Kansas State. The Jayhawks' next game is Saturday against Baylor. | -- | 4-0 |
| 9 |  | Kobe Elvis finished with 21 points and 10 assists in Tuesday's 94-79 win at Saint Joseph's. The Flyers' next game is Friday at VCU. | -- | 4-0 |
| 10 |  | Caleb Love finished with 18 points and seven assists in Sunday's 82-71 win over Stanford. The Wildcats' next game is Thursday at Utah. | -- | 2-1 |
| 11 |  | RayJ Dennis finished with 21 points and four steals in Tuesday's 79-73 win over Texas Tech. The Bears' next game is Saturday at Kansas. | -- | 2-1 |
| 12 |  | Tamin Lipsey finished with 12 points and five assists in Tuesday's 70-65 win at Texas. The Cyclones' next game is Saturday against TCU. | -- | 2-0 |
| 13 |  | Collin Murray-Boyles finished with 16 points and nine rebounds in Tuesday's 68-65 win over Ole Miss. The Gamecocks' next game is Saturday against Vanderbilt. | -- | 2-2 |
| 14 |  | Johni Broome finished with 15 points and nine rebounds in Saturday's 91-77 win at Ole Miss. The Tigers' next game is Wednesday against Alabama. | -- | 3-0 |
| 15 |  | Tyrese Proctor was 1 of 6 from the field in Saturday's 93-84 loss at North Carolina. The Blue Devils' next game is Wednesday against Notre Dame. | -- | 3-1 |
| 16 |  | Coleman Hawkins finished with 20 points and seven rebounds in Sunday's 87-84 win over Nebraska. The Illini's next game is Saturday at Michigan State. | 2 | 3-0 |
| 17 |  | Mark Sears finished with 21 points and four rebounds in Saturday's 99-67 win over Mississippi State. The Crimson Tide's next game is Wednesday at Auburn. | 2 | 3-1 |
| 18 |  | Creighton let Butler shoot 55.1% from the field in Friday's 99-98 loss to the Bulldogs. The Bluejays' next game is Wednesday at Providence. | 2 | 4-0 |
| 19 |  | Isaiah Stevens finished with 16 points and 11 assists in Tuesday's 75-62 win over Boise State. The Rams' next game is Friday against San Jose State. | 2 | 3-1 |
| 20 |  | Jaedon LeDee finished with 14 points and nine rebounds in Tuesday's 77-64 win at Air Force. The Aztecs' next game is Friday at Nevada. | 3 | 2-0 |
| 21 |  | Javian McCollum finished with 20 points and two rebounds in Tuesday's 82-66 win over BYU. The Sooners' next game is Saturday against Oklahoma State. | NR | 3-0 |
| 22 |  | Robbie Avila finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds in Saturday's 75-67 win over Drake. The Sycamores' next game is Wednesday against Valparaiso. | -- | 2-2 |
| 23 |  | Johnell Davis finished with 24 points and five rebounds in Saturday's 102-70 win over Tulsa. The Owls' next game is Thursday at UAB. | 1 | 3-2 |
| 24 |  | Donovan Dent finished with 19 points and seven assists in Tuesday's 91-73 win at Wyoming. The Lobos' next game is Saturday against UNLV. | NR | 3-1 |
| 25 |  | Richie Saunders was 1 of 8 from the field in Tuesday's 82-66 loss at Oklahoma. The Cougars' next game is Saturday against Kansas State. | 8 | 4-0 |
| 26 |  | Alex Ducas finished with 18 points and five rebounds in Tuesday's 84-43 win at Pacific. The Gaels' next game is Saturday at Portland. | -- | 4-0 |
