NCAA Basketball: Arizona, Baylor, and BYU rise in latest top 25 power rankings
By Joey Loose
16. South Carolina (24-5)
Certainly one of this season’s big surprises, South Carolina just keeps winning games and proving they belong in this position. A hot start to the season was followed up by some massive upsets. The Gamecocks had a bit of a slip a few weeks ago but shook off mid-February’s rust and have looked great again in recent weeks, with Lamont Paris deserving of some attention for national coach of the year awards.
On Wednesday South Carolina got a really nice 70-68 win at Texas A&M, upending a bubble team on the road. Meechie Johnson led all scorers with 22 points while Zachary Davis added 16 in the win. The Gamecocks got another ranked win over the weekend, hanging onto an 82-76 victory over Florida. Johnson (25 points) was electric once again while Collin Murray-Boyles had 15 points and 11 rebounds in the performance.
Few expected this kind of season out of South Carolina, but the Gamecocks already have 24 wins and are positioned well in a strong SEC, sitting 12-4 in the league standings. Nothing has come easy for this program in recent years, but this team plays hard and smart and is worth the hype. They’ll certainly be challenged in the final week of the regular season, as they’ll have a rematch with Tennessee (who they beat on the road in January) before heading to Mississippi State for the finale.