For the first time since their simultaneous runs to the Final Four in 2017, both University of South Carolina basketball teams are dancing in the March Madness tournament. 

The Gamecock women’s team was selected as the No. 1 overall seed after finishing the season undefeated, 32-0. This is the fourth consecutive year South Carolina was selected as the No. 1 overall team in the tournament. 

“I mean, to be the number one overall seed and to be undefeated, I’m excited because we get a chance to know what our path is to win a national championship,” women’s head coach Dawn Staley said. “All great teams, a lot of familiar faces that’s in our region, but we have to take it one game at a time. And that’s what we’ll do on Friday.”

On the men’s side, the Gamecocks qualified for their first tournament appearance since their Final Four trip in 2017. South Carolina surprised everyone this year when they went from preseason last-place to tied for second in the SEC. Their reward for this was the final six seed and a game against the Pac-12 champion Oregon Ducks. 

“You know your name is going to get called up there, but still, just when the moment happens, to see their immediate reaction to that and all the work that they put in and to be rewarded with having their name called was awesome,” men’s head coach Lamont Paris said. “[I’m] just really excited. Excited for our fan base, for our students, for the city, the state.”

The men will play first. They play March 21 in opening round game against Oregon in Pittsburgh as part of the Midwest region. The Ducks are 23-11 overall and finished fourth in the Pac-12 regular season, before knocking off fifth place UCLA, first place Arizona and third place Colorado in the conference tournament. 

The women will have to wait a bit longer before they know who they play. The Gamecocks will host the winner of the first four match in Columbia between Sacred Heart and Presbyterian that was scheduled for March 20. 

Paris and crew will play a talented Oregon team that features a familiar face to Gamecock fans. Point guard Jermaine Couisnard is the team’s second leading scorer and leads the team in assists and steals. Cousinard spent his first three seasons of college ball in Columbia under Frank Martin before transferring out. 

“It is a good opportunity for us, I feel like,” Couisnard said. “I know a couple of those guys over there. A lot of the strength coaches and the trainers. So it’s going to be a fun, fun game for me.” 

Paris returns to Pittsburgh after his 2022 Chattanooga team almost pulled off a 13-4 upset against Illinois in the opening round. But the Mocs blew a double-digit lead late in the game and lost by a point.  

“I’m 0-1 as a head coach in Pittsburgh in the NCAA tournament, so we gotta even the score out,” Paris said. 

Should the Gamecocks advance past Oregon in first round, they would be set to play the winner of No. 3 Creighton and No. 14 Akron. A potential second round game would be on March 23 in Pittsburgh. 

Other notable teams in their portion of the bracket include No. 1 seed Purdue,  No. 2 seed and fellow SEC foe Tennessee, No. 4 seed Kansas, No. 5 seed Gonzaga, future SEC school No. 7 seed Texas and the 2022 Kentucky killers 15-seeded Saint Peter’s. 

“At this point, every team that’s in the NCAA tournament is either really good, or they’re playing really well or both,” Paris said. “You have to be ready to play, and you have to expect to play well if you’re going to advance in that tournament.”

The women will begin their tournament journey as the top team almost two weeks after securing the SEC tournament title. 

“I probably think more about being the number one overall because it’s a really hard place to be. It means you played a really tough schedule. It means that you’ve been successful. It means that you’ve done something right,” Staley said. “And for it to be us with the team that came into the season with so many holes and so many unknowns, I’m really proud that they were able to get us back here.”

The team will be down one of their top players in Kamilla Cardoso, who is serving a one-game suspension for fighting in the SEC championship game against LSU.

If the Gamecocks win their first game, they would face the winner of the North Carolina and Michigan State game on March 24 at Colonial Life Arena. 

Any potential Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games will be in Albany as part of the Albany 1 region. Albany 1 also features No. 2 seed Notre Dame, No. 3 seed Oregon State, No. 4 seed Indiana, No. 5 seed and future SEC school Oklahoma and two current SEC schools in No. 7 seed Mississippi and No. 11 seed Texas A&M. 

Unlike previous seasons, Staley said this group’s journey to the tourney came as a surprise. Their youth and ability to learn every day made the process different from most of her other teams. 

“This team, they just start over every day,” Staley said. “Every day is something new. Every day they work hard. Every day they just figure it out. And it’s kind of a scary but cool dynamic.”