South Carolina reserve guard Holden has left team
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Injured South Carolina guard Kory Holden has left the team.
Gamecocks coach Frank Martin announced Holden's decision on Saturday, a short time before South Carolina took on No. 10 Auburn at home.
South Carolina’s slide from Final Four to outside the NCAAs
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A year ago, surging South Carolina was building for a run to the Final Four. These days, the Gamecocks are struggling to keep their heads above .500 on their longest losing streak in four years that threatens to keep them out of the NCAA Tournament altogether.
South Carolina team of new faces in post-Final Four season
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina coach Frank Martin knows new isn't a bad thing as his team prepares to build on its Final Four ride.
Martin's team shocked many with its NCAA Tournament run, defeating second-, third- and fourth-seeded opponents to advance to the national semifinals. The heart of that group that won a school-record 26 games is gone, including leading scorer and rebounder Sindarius Thornwell and top three-point shooter Duane Notice.
SC coach Frank Martin eager to build on Final Four run
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina coach Frank Martin is excited to watch his Gamecocks try to build on their surprise run to the Final Four, even without many of the headliners who led them to the national semifinals.
Charges dismissed against suspended South Carolina guard
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Assault charges against suspended South Carolina guard Rykym Felder have been dismissed.
Columbia Police Department spokeswoman Jennifer Timmons said Felder's charges were dropped by the city prosecutor. Felder had been charged with third-degree assault and battery stemming from a bar fight. It was Felder's second arrest since joining the Gamecocks.
South Carolina coach suspends G Rakym Felder indefinitely
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina guard Rakym Felder has been suspended indefinitely and won't attend classes this fall, another blow to a thinning Gamecock backcourt that reached the Final Four this past April.
Felder's status was announced by coach Frank Martin on Wednesday.
Felder had been suspended since June 30 for his involvement in a fight outside a bar. He was arrested July 13 and charged with assault and battery.
Holden, Gamecocks looking to build on Final Four
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Kory Holden smiles at the congratulations he hears from South Carolina fans at the team's run to the Final Four last year. He also listens intently when they tell him how hard it will be to duplicate that success, given all the Gamecocks have lost.
Holden understands the concerns — but no way accepts them.
"We got two weeks off after that Final Four run, then we hit the weights," Holden said this week. "Two weeks later, we were right back at it."
Former Gamecocks star Sindarius Thornwell leads Palmetto State hopefuls in NBA Summer League
A true basketball junkie, Sindarius Thornwell can recall watching the NBA Summer League on television well before it became a mainstay of ESPN programming. He and his brother would brag to one other about what they would do in the competition, if they only had the chance.
Free agent deal sends former Gamecocks point guard PJ Dozier to Lakers
Turns out, Sindarius Thornwell isn’t the only former South Carolina basketball star headed to Los Angeles.
After being undrafted Thursday night, former Gamecocks point guard PJ Dozier signed a free-agent deal with the Lakers, according to ESPN. He will head to the same city as Thornwell, who was sent to the Clippers for cash after being taken by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round.
LA Clippers take South Carolina’s Thornwell in draft
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Clippers paid their way into the NBA draft Thursday night to pick up South Carolina guard Sindarius Thornwell.
The 48th-overall pick belonged to the Milwaukee Bucks before the Clippers acquired it for cash.
Thornwell averaged 21.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals with the Gamecocks last season in helping his team to the Final Four.
LA Clippers take South Carolina’s Thornwell in draft
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Clippers paid their way into the NBA draft Thursday night to pick up South Carolina guard Sindarius Thornwell.
The 48th-overall pick belonged to the Milwaukee Bucks before the Clippers acquired it for cash.
Thornwell averaged 21.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.1 steals with the Gamecocks last season in helping his team to the Final Four.
Trio of former Clemson and South Carolina basketball players to work out for Charlotte Hornets
CLEMSON — Three NBA draft hopefuls with ties to the state of South Carolina will work out for the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday, the Hornets announced.
Former South Carolina and Clemson stars PJ Dozier and Jaron Blossomgame will participate, as well as former Clemson guard Avry Holmes.
Sindarius Thornwell never gets chance to take final shot for Gamecocks against Gonzaga
GLENDALE, Ariz. – South Carolina had the ball exactly where it wanted it, in the hands of senior guard Sindarius Thornwell, with the game and its season on the line.
Thornwell had literally and figuratively put the South Carolina team on his back throughout the NCAA Tournament and led the Gamecocks to the Final Four. With less than 12 seconds to play and the Gamecocks trailing 75-72, the ball was in his hands, but Thornwell never got the opportunity to take the last shot.
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Gonzaga swingman Johnathan Williams bumped and bruised Sindarius Thornwell throughout the Final Four, shadowing his every step, preventing the South Carolina star from getting the ball, much less a good shot.
The same scenario played out a week earlier in the Sweet 16, only it was Nigel Williams-Goss hounding Jevon Carter, preventing West Virginia's best player from getting a good look with the game on the line.
South Carolina’s Sindarius Thornwell got his mojo back in second half
GLENDALE, Ariz. – As Sindarius Thornwell goes, so goes South Carolina. The senior guard’s importance to his team was especially obvious during Gonzaga’s 77-73 Final Four win on Saturday.
The Gamecocks are not a notoriously dangerous offensive team, but Thornwell is a deadly offensive player. The SEC Player of the Year averaged 21.6 points per game this season and none of his teammates averaged more than 13.6.
Gonzaga coach Mark Few sticks to gut, fouls intentionally up three at end of game
GLENDALE, Ariz. – To foul or not to foul up three points in the waning moments of the game?
It’s an age-old question among college basketball coaches. A common foul puts the shooter at the line for two shots, not enough to tie the game.
But many disagree that is the superior strategy, arguing that the risk of a potential shooting foul from 3-point range and the chance for the opposing team to shoot three free throws is enough to warrant not fouling.
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Maybe it was the lingering effects of flu-like symptoms or maybe it was dealing with all those long-armed defenders Gonzaga kept throwing at him.
Maybe after playing as well as any player in the NCAA Tournament, Sindarius Thornwell was just due for a bad day.
Whatever the reason, Thornwell struggled to assert himself against Gonzaga on Saturday as the Gamecocks' first trip to the Final Four ended with a 77-73 loss in the national semifinals.
Gonzaga defense faces another tall order in stopping South Carolina’s Sindarius Thornwell
GLENDALE, Ariz. – The best defense in the country faces a stiff challenge in South Carolina senior guard Sindarius Thornwell.
The second best defense in the country faces a tall task against Gonzaga’s frontcourt, led by 7-foot-1, 300-pound Przemek Karnowski.
Top-seeded Gonzaga (36-1) and seventh-seeded South Carolina (26-10) collide in a national semifinal Saturday at University of Phoenix Stadium, both trying to limit the other’s offensive strengths.
South Carolina’s Sindarius Thornwell says he’s good to go against Gonzaga
GLENDALE, Ariz. – Sindarius Thornwell was healthy enough to hold court in front of a scrum of more than 50 reporters on Friday. So how much more of a challenge to his constitution could Gonzaga present?
“I had a litle headache, fever and stuff like that,” South Carolina’s best player said when asked the inevitable question after he missed Thursday’s practice because of illness.
Imhotep Charter basketball star will be cheering for South Carolina in the Final Four
When South Carolina faces Gonzaga in the Final Four on Saturday, Imhotep Charter basketball star David Beatty will be rooting for the Gamecocks. Beatty, a 6-foot-3 senior guard, is bound for South Carolina next season. He was really pleased when South Carolina defeated Florida in the Elite 8 to reach the Final Four in one of the NCAA tournament’s most exciting games.
For Palmetto State products Thornwell and Dozier, road to Final Four started with a leap of faith
COLUMBIA — The worst part wasn’t the losing. It was the apathy.
Not only did fans and students not turn out for South Carolina men’s basketball games, they didn’t seem to care. It was in this environment, plagued by lagging interest and compiling defeats, that head coach Frank Martin first went out recruiting to try and rebuild the Gamecocks’ program.
No wonder everyone thought Sindarius Thornwell was crazy.
Sapakoff: Final Four win or lose, Thornwell is the Gamecocks’ greatest ever and other bests
NEW YORK – Duane Notice tapped into the emotion of Gamecock Nation.
“It doesn’t feel real,” South Carolina’s senior guard said of a seemingly magical but very authentic Final Four run capped by a 77-70 victory over Florida on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. “It feels like a dream. If it is, I don’t want to be woken up.”
It’s far from over.
If a No. 7 seed can dream its way to Phoenix, it might be a nightmare for Gonzaga.
South Carolina headed to Final Four, beats Florida 77-70
NEW YORK (AP) — South Carolina added a missing piece to its rich basketball history.
The school of Frank McGuire, Kevin Joyce, Brian Winters, Mike Dunleavy and Alex English is going to the Final Four for the first time.
Add the names Sindarius Thornwell and Frank Martin to the top of the list.
Thornwell's 26 points and the Gamecocks' swarming zone defense meant a 77-70 victory over Florida on Sunday and a berth in the Final Four.
Postcard from NYC: Gators’ Canyon Barry vs. Gamecocks, plus Hootie and photo bomb
NEW YORK – Canyon Barry never got to play against South Carolina during his three seasons in a College of Charleston uniform but now Florida’s graduate transfer gets his third shot at the Gamecocks – with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
NEW YORK (AP) — Apparently South Carolina is getting the hang of winning NCAA Tournament games.
The Gamecocks, who hadn't won a tournament game since 1973, got their third this year. One more and it's on to the Final Four.
"It's a great win for the program," Gamecocks guard Duane Notice said. "It's a good feeling when we continue to make history and I think once we get a taste of it, we kind of get addicted and want to continue doing it."
On to the Elite Eight: Gamecocks rout Baylor to continue magical NCAA Tournament ride
NEW YORK — No glass slipper here.
Not at Madison Square Garden. Not this late in the NCAA Tournament. Not for a South Carolina team that made program history on Friday night with a knockout punch of another opponent that earlier this season had been ranked No. 1.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina's Sindarius Thornwell squirms and shakes his head slightly the Gamecocks are referred to as a one-man team. He might as well get comfortable with the description.
Thornwell has become the Jadeveon Clowney for men's basketball, the face of a basketball program the way the former No. 1 NFL draft pick was for Gamecock football.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Sindarius Thornwell knew South Carolina fans would be excited about the team's Sweet 16 appearance. The response since he has been on campus, though, surprised even him.
As Thornwell walked to the student union after class, he couldn't take more than a couple of steps without students swarming him for selfies or asking for some tidbit about the win against Duke on Sunday.
"We're trying to embrace the moment," Thornwell said Tuesday. "But that was wild."
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina is heading to Madison Square Garden — and not for the NIT.
A Gamecocks program known largely — and mocked often by some — for its back-to-back NIT championships in 2005 and 2006 is now heading to the world's most famous arena as part of the NCAA's Sweet 16. They are making their first appearance in the regional semifinals since the bracket expanded after an 88-81 victory Sunday night over No. 2 seed Duke in the East Regional.
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina is heading to Madison Square Garden — and not for the NIT.
A Gamecocks program known largely — and mocked often by some — for its back-to-back NIT championships in 2005 and 2006 is now heading to the world's most famous arena as part of the NCAA's Sweet 16. They are making their first appearance in the regional semifinals since the bracket expanded after an 88-81 victory Sunday night over No. 2 seed Duke in the East Regional.
Notes from Greenville: Silva shines in USC win over Duke, UNC only ACC team left in tournament
GREENVILLE — Friday it was PJ Dozier. Sunday it was Chris Silva.
South Carolina leading scorer Sindarius Thornwell is receiving some big-time help from his teammates in the sharing of the scoring load — and it's coming at the most crucial time of the season.
Sunday night in Greenville, it was Silva who stepped up in a monster way for the Gamecocks, the sophomore forward contributing a double-double featuring 17 points and 10 rebounds to help guide USC to a 88-81 victory over perennial Duke.
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina is heading to Madison Square Garden — and not for the NIT.
A Gamecocks program known largely — and mocked often by some — for its back-to-back NIT championships in 2005 and 2006 is now heading to the world's most famous arena as part of the NCAA's Sweet 16. They are making their first appearance in the regional semifinals since the bracket expanded after an 88-81 victory Sunday night over No. 2 seed Duke in the East Regional.
The streak is over: Thornwell scores 29 as Gamecocks romp to first NCAA victory in 44 years
GREENVILLE — Sindarius Thornwell could feel it.
There was the scream after a mid-range jumper fell through the hoop. There were the arms, waved excitedly to exhort the crowd after teammate P.J. Dozier threw down a dunk. There were the words, mouthed to South Carolina’s cheering section after a second-half 3. There was the smile, after a basket that helped put the game away.
GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina coach Frank Martin had a message for long-suffering fans: It won't take the Gamecocks 44 years to win another NCAA Tournament game.
Sindarius Thornwell had 29 points and 11 rebounds to lead seventh-seeded South Carolina to a 93-73 victory over Marquette to close first-round play in the East Region on Friday night.
South Carolina upends Alabama 64-53 in SEC Tournament
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Braxton Key had 18 points, Riley Norris added 12 and Alabama made 10 of 12 free throws down the stretch to lead Alabama past South Carolina 64-53 on Friday in a Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinal.
Key made 3 of 4 from the line during the critical stretch that finally gave the Crimson Tide space from the Gamecocks in a tense contest.
Sapakoff: Thornwell honored, Holbrook vilified; the Gamecocks and redemption tales
Sindarius Thornwell, who single-handedly cost South Carolina a close loss to Clemson this season, basks in honor this week.
He is the first Gamecock men’s basketball player to win an SEC Player of the Year Award and on Sunday will help celebrate the program’s first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2004.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Southeastern Conference coaches have named South Carolina's Sindarius Thornwell the league's player of the year.
Coaches also picked Florida's Mike White as coach of the year in awards announced Tuesday by the SEC.
Vanderbilt's Luke Kornet is the SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, Kentucky's Malik Monk is freshman of the year and Florida's Canyon Barry is the top sixth man. Texas A&M's Robert Williams is the league's defensive player of the year.