Congratulations to Coach Martin and our courageous Gamecocks...
GREATEST VICTORY IN HISTORY OF USC BASKETBALL
- Thread starter lawcalcock
- Start date
Nope. This was sweet, but I'll take the 1971 ACC championship. You had to live through those ACC days to understand.
THAT TEAM DIDN'T EVEN MAKE THE NCAA TOURNAMENT...THEY PUNKED OUT VS A CRAP NCST TEAM THAT WASN'T EVEN IN THEIR CLASS
Easily the basketball equivalent of the FB Bama. Great to see the total team effort - Confidence has been infectious.
I agree with you, but lots of these folks are too young to remember that. You're apparently a couple of years older than me!
This was lots of fun, no matter what.
Worst loss? Losing to N.C. State in the 1970 conference tournament finals. Roche was playing on one leg.
Look at this?
NCAA in 1971, 1972 & 1973 Sweet 16 three times???
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Carolina_Gamecocks_men's_basketball
NCAA in 1971, 1972 & 1973 Sweet 16 three times???
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Carolina_Gamecocks_men's_basketball
This is an issue worthy of great debate...But reasonable minds can disagree...I see your point...But this just flat out tops the 1971 squad
That was the 1970 team, but thanks for playing. The 1971 team beat North Carolina in the ACC final to earn the only NCAA bid from the ACC.
thats correct. When they were saying first sweet 16 ever I knew that was wrong -- though in those days you could get there by virtue of a bye, as in '71, or just one win ( '72 and '73).
Partner, you misfired that time. We beat UNC in 1971 and won the ACC Championship thereby. The tournament champion was conference champion then and was the only league team to make the NCAA Tournament. That was before the field expanded to 64. I rate that win and this one tonight as the greatest in program history.
When teams count how many sweet 16s they've been to they count since the beginning of the tournament.
As a SEC and UK fan, I just want to all SC fans how proud I am of the performance tonight. Real gritty effort. Duke finally got a fair whistle for a chance. Hope SC, UF and U.K. Keep advancing.
I'll allow that 1971 was better for the program, but I was a little too young to know about it. so this is the sweetest moment for me by far in decades of watching basketball and among the greatest moments I've seen in sports, period. Thanks so much to Coach Martin and the whole team.
Like, winning the ACC was big, but this is bigger. We won the ACC back before television was really a thing and before ESPN and CBS and March Madness. What really matters is winning in the big dance, and this is our first Sweet 16 during the era of the field of 64. I love the stories of McGuire era and know that it electrified the state. But what people really remember is how you do in the Big Dance (not conference championships, etc.) This win rivals anything we've ever done, and it is captured forever on live television with the entire nation watching.
I think it's bigger in the respect that it gives us a chance to move our frame of reference to this century. I remember the '71 game. I was jumping all over the house. But I was a boy then and I've become an old man waiting for something like this.
1971 ACC tournament game against UNC was bigger, but this has to be #2 and if we win again, that would be the biggest. Just a great, gutsy effort, another splendid second half!
I don't think there were 64 teams back then. You just had to win one game to get to the sweet sixteen. I'm so happy right now it doesn't matter. Those were definitely our glory years but this season has a lot of promise yet.
Congrats from a UK fan!!! SEC!!!! Good luck the rest of the way!!!
In our case, most of those years we got a first- round bye into the sweet 16.
Ok, so here is why this one was so sweet-
I was not born til 1978, So I was not around for the years in question, but I know the history... we were in the ACC, and Tobacco Road dominated the conference in so many ways- not just wins but all the important games were played there, frequently the first rounds of other championships would land there... That was why Frank wound up bitching and why we wound up leaving the conference.
Fast forward to today, and we get to see the exact flip! Not only are we no longer in a conference run by those obnoxious NC teams, we are in the best athletic conference in college sports! This year we got the NCAA a tournament IN SC, and got DUKE in he second round and beat there asses to go to the Sweet Sixteen! This is so much sweeter than winning a conf championship, and better for the publicity of the school... with media the way it is today... the whole NATION just noticed us! Sure a lot of people read about us winning the ACC the next day in 1971... but we just had our best basketball moment in my lifetime LIVE STREAMED on national TV, and trending on every major social media outlet!! Everybody knows what we did! This has a bigger impact on the face of our program today than that ACC championship had in 71 IMO. We won't know for years of course, but we will hang a banner about this, we will be able to leverage it in recruiting... and on top of all that, we beat perhaps THE MOST HATED DUKE TEAM OF ALL TIME!!! The whiners and the TRIPPER on this team- did you see how much that little birch Jefferson whined and screamed at the refs? That other white boy snatching his towel late in the since half and covering his face with it so sphe could scream and cry into it!?!? This was a disgusting bunch of men we beat tonight, and did it in style! I just feel it has a bigger impact for us... I hope it is a game changer for the program long term!
I was not born til 1978, So I was not around for the years in question, but I know the history... we were in the ACC, and Tobacco Road dominated the conference in so many ways- not just wins but all the important games were played there, frequently the first rounds of other championships would land there... That was why Frank wound up bitching and why we wound up leaving the conference.
Fast forward to today, and we get to see the exact flip! Not only are we no longer in a conference run by those obnoxious NC teams, we are in the best athletic conference in college sports! This year we got the NCAA a tournament IN SC, and got DUKE in he second round and beat there asses to go to the Sweet Sixteen! This is so much sweeter than winning a conf championship, and better for the publicity of the school... with media the way it is today... the whole NATION just noticed us! Sure a lot of people read about us winning the ACC the next day in 1971... but we just had our best basketball moment in my lifetime LIVE STREAMED on national TV, and trending on every major social media outlet!! Everybody knows what we did! This has a bigger impact on the face of our program today than that ACC championship had in 71 IMO. We won't know for years of course, but we will hang a banner about this, we will be able to leverage it in recruiting... and on top of all that, we beat perhaps THE MOST HATED DUKE TEAM OF ALL TIME!!! The whiners and the TRIPPER on this team- did you see how much that little birch Jefferson whined and screamed at the refs? That other white boy snatching his towel late in the since half and covering his face with it so sphe could scream and cry into it!?!? This was a disgusting bunch of men we beat tonight, and did it in style! I just feel it has a bigger impact for us... I hope it is a game changer for the program long term!
Tom Price spoke tonight of a center who committed in 68. He was admitted, but UNCs AD was commissioner. The ACC blocked him. We appealled to the NCAA, and won. But the ACC office still blocked him. After a short time, he transferred to Louisville, where he averaged 19 rpg. I can't recall his name....but I was ready for tonight.
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I lived them as well but those days have now been eclipsed by the best team we've ever had. The great teams advance towards championships. As much as I regularly stated how this team sucked, they have now advanced to the regionals. Thornwell will now be known as the best player to have played at South Carolina. That's what winning when it counts means.
Yes it was. Go Cocks!!!! So pumped!!!!
Let's keep it going now, we in it to win it!!!!
Tevin Mack and Zion, btw come on down guys!!!
Still can't believe what I just witnessed. Go cocks!!!!!!!
Let's keep it going now, we in it to win it!!!!
Tevin Mack and Zion, btw come on down guys!!!
Still can't believe what I just witnessed. Go cocks!!!!!!!
As of right now, tonight's victory over Duke is the biggest victory of the program!!! Why? Because we won two tournament games after a 44 year drought and Duke has been on fire over their past 4 games. When we whoop Baylor on Friday, that win will then supplant tonight's as our biggest victory ever!!!
