CBB Rank 2024: No. 44, South Carolina Basketball

South Carolina is a basketball school once more, and Columbia is ready. But what can we expect from this year’s South Carolina basketball squad?

The tradition continues! CBB Review is again ranking the top 100 teams heading into the new college basketball season. Each day, we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Up next: South Carolina basketball.

Expectations from most media members were low regarding South Carolina men’s basketball entering last season. After all, they had just finished off a 11-21 season and lost their best player (GG Jackson) to the NBA. But Lamont Paris had other plans. 

The addition of transfers B.J. Mack and Ta’Lon Cooper brought a veteran presence to the roster on both sides of the ball, while Meechie Johnson took the next step as a leader offensively. Throw in the development of freshman Collin Murray-Boyles, and it turned out that the Gamecocks had a pretty decent team. 

Starting the season 13-1, South Carolina reached last season’s win total before Christmas, beating Grand Canyon and Notre Dame in the non-conference portion of the schedule. Once getting into conference games, they didn’t slow down, making a statement with a victory against Mississippi State then defeating No. 6 Kentucky at home along with a road triumph over No. 5 Tennessee. Along the way, they picked up a seven-game conference winning streak. 

Rising as high as No. 11 in the AP polls, South Carolina ended up as a 6 seed in the big dance, but lost in the first round to a red-hot Oregon offense. 

Despite losing Mack, Cooper, and Johnson, the future is bright: Murray-Boyles returns, along with dependable returnees Jacobi Wright, Zachary Davis, and Myles Stute. Transfers Nick Pringle and Jamarii Thomas were brought in to fill voids, and freshman Cam Scott caps off a top-heavy roster that has the talent to succeed in the SEC. 

Providing needed depth are fellow returnees Morris Ugusuk, Arden Conyers, and Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk, while freshman Okku Federiko and transfer Jordan Butler will provide depth in the frontcourt. 

Click here to learn more about our preseason top 100 teams heading into the 2024-25 college basketball season.

Head coach: Lamont Paris (3rd season at South Carolina, 8th season overall)

2023-24 record: 26-8 (13-5)

2024 postseason finish: Lost to Oregon (87-73) in the NCAA Tournament Round of 64

Notable departures: 

• Meechie Johnson (17.8 PPG, 4.7 APG, 4.5 RPG)
• B.J. Mack (8.6 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 1.6 APG)
• Ta’Lon Cooper (6.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 0.5 APG)

Notable non-conference games: 

• at Indiana (Nov. 16)
• Fort Myers Tip-Off, Nov. 25-27
• vs. Clemson (Dec. 17)

Projected Rotation

PG: Jamarii Thomas (5-11, 190, Sr.)

2023-24 stats: 16.9 PPG, 3.8 APG, 3.8 RPG (Norfolk State)

SG: Jacobi Wright (6-2, 185, Sr.)

2023-24 stats: 5.9 PPG, 1.9 APG, 1.8 RPG 

SF: Zachary Davis (6-7, 200, Jr.)

2023-24 stats: 5.9 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 1.3 APG 

PF: Collin Murray-Boyles (6-7, 245, So.)

2023-24 stats: 10.4 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.8 APG 

C: Nick Pringle (6-10, 220, Gr.-Sr.)

2023-24 stats: 6.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 0.7 APG (Alabama)

6: Cam Scott (6-6, 170, Fr.)

247Sports Composite #50 ranked recruit

7: Myles Stute (6-6, 210, Sr.)

2023-24 stats: 8.3 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 1.0 APG 

8: Morris Ugusuk (6-4, 170, So.)

2023-24 stats: 2.2 PPG, 0.7 RPG, 0.5 APG 

9: Jordan Butler (7-0, 240, So.)

2023-24 stats: 2.0 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 0.1 APG (Missouri)

10: Okku Federiko  (6-10, 210, Fr.)

247Sports Composite #204 ranked recuit

11: Arden Conyers (6-7, 212, Rs.-Fr.)

2023-24 stats: N/A (Redshirt)

12: Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk (6-9, 240, Gr.-Sr.)

2023-24 stats: 2.5 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 0.5 APG 

South Carolina Basketball Team MVP: Collin Murray-Boyles

Murray-Boyles is going to be selected in the first round of the 2025 NBA draft, barring injury. The sophomore power forward likely projects as a small forward in the league, but he’s bullying SEC frontcourts. Despite a bout of mononucleosis prior to the season, the Columbia native turned into a top-three contributor on the team as the season went on. His numbers back it up, too. 

The SEC All-Freshman selection placed top 10 in the conference in the following categories: 2PT%, TS%, PER, total box plus/minus, offensive box plus/minus, defensive box plus/minus, win shares/40 minutes, offensive rating, defensive rating, total rebound percentage, offensive rebound percentage, defensive rebound percentage, steal percentage, and block percentage. Take a moment to take that all in. He was the only player in the league to place top 10 in both steal and block percentage, and seemingly was always there when the Gamecocks needed a big play, on either side of the ball. When he shows off a deeper range shooting (when, not if) he’s going to get lottery looks. The sky is the limit. 

South Carolina Basketball make-or-break player: Jamarii Thomas

Starting his career at UNCW, Thomas didn’t see much playing time as a freshman before becoming a regular starter as a sophomore, averaging 7.1 PPG in 2022-23 for the Seahawks. Despite the jump in opportunity, he decided to take his talents to Norfolk State, where he shined, earning the 2023-24 MEAC Player of the Year award while averaging 16.9 PPG and 2.1 SPG. 

Taking over for Ta’Lon Cooper is a big ask, but Thomas is up for the challenge. Every year of college basketball played, the Greensboro native has improved both his per game stats and underlying metrics. He’s Lamont Paris’s brand of point guard, and he’s in Columbia now for a reason. That reason? To lead. He’s more than capable of doing that.

Key analytic: Opponent 3PA per game

South Carolina attempted 23.8 3PA per game last season, but opponents only shot 17.6 attempts from deep per game, quite a large discrepancy. The Gamecocks simply stopped their opponents from getting shots off on the perimeter, forcing them inside to look for shots from two-point range. This was one reason why South Carolina’s defense was at its best in years, giving up just 67.6 PPG on average, second in the SEC behind only Tennessee. 

Adding Jamarii Thomas to the equation should only benefit this team’s defense, and swapping to the occasional 1-3-1 defense to maximize Zachary Davis’s talents worked to perfection the past season. There might not be a better defensive-minded coach in the SEC, just from and Xs-and-Os standpoint, than Lamont Paris. There were times last year when games were won (see vs. Florida, Arkansas, Mississippi State, etc.) because Paris simply out-schemed his opponent. The league will see much more of that this season.

South Carolina Basketball 2024-25 projections

Projected conference finish: 11th in the SEC

Projected postseason ceiling: NCAA Tournament Round of 32 Exit