2017 NCAA Tournament: South Carolina vs. Marquette preview, prediction, TV schedule

The No. 7 South Carolina Gamecocks will face the No. 10 seeded Marquette Golden Eagles in the first round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

TV schedule: Friday, March 17, 9:50 p.m. ET, TBS

Two teams that made the 2017 NCAA Tournament based more on their ability to avoid bad losses than their ability to knock off elite teams on a consistent basis, the South Carolina Gamecocks and Marquette Golden Eagles have the TBS night game on Friday.

South Carolina comes into this game having lost six of their last nine games, a far cry from the team that began the season 15-3. The Gamecocks finished fourth in the SEC but were unable to win even the first game of the SEC Tournament after securing a bye. This team is trending downward and needs to figure things out, fast.

Marquette, on the other hand, is one of the most up and down teams in the country. The Golden Eagles, who actually beat Villanova once this season, have an explosive offense that can put up huge numbers on even the best defenses. Their defense isn’t great on paper, but, oddly enough, Marquette usually wins games in which the opponent scores 80 points because it probably means that the Golden Eagles scored 90.

While this looks like a bad matchup for Marquette, it might be an even worse match-up for the Gamecocks. South Carolina is a fantastic team, but, if you shut down Thornwell, you shut down the Gamecocks. I think this game comes down to whether or not another South Carolina player can step up and score at least 15 points for the Gamecocks; otherwise, Marquette comes out with the victory.

Next: 5 most likely first round upsets

I’m giving this one to the Golden Eagles in an upset, but it’s likely the end of the line either way for these teams, as the Duke Blue Devils are waiting for the winner.

Prediction: Marquette 85, South Carolina 77