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South Carolina a Cinderella and a Breakdown of Each Final Four Team

By Matthew Bartlett

Mar 31, 2017; Phoenix, AZ, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Frank Martin on the phone at center court during practice for the 2017 Final Four at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 31, 2017; Phoenix, AZ, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Frank Martin on the phone at center court during practice for the 2017 Final Four at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 26, 2017; New York, NY, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Frank Martin celebrates after beating the Florida Gators in the finals of the East Regional of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

7 Seed – South Carolina

It’s not George Mason or VCU, but the Cinderella of 2017 might be even more surprising. South Carolina finished 12-6 in the SEC. They were knocked out of the SEC Tournament by Alabama. Then they proceeded to defeated 10 Seed Marquette, 2 Seed Duke, 3 Seed Baylor, and 4 Seed Florida in the NCAA Tournament.

The formula for a Cinderella usually involves avoiding top seeds, but Frank Martin and the Gamecocks marched straight through some of the best teams in the nation – and they did so convincingly. Their closest wins of the tournament came by seven points and they blew out Baylor 70-50.

SEC Player of the Year, Sindarius Thornwell has been the driving force of the Gamecock’s success. His game-breaking talent has been awe-inspiring to see.  In four NCAA Tournament games the senior from Lancaster, South Carolina is averaging 25.8 points per game, 7.5 rebounds per game, and 2.0 steals per game.

This is the first Final Four that South Carolina has ever been to. In their run to Arizona they’ve knocked off a 4 Seed, 3 Seed, and 2 Seed. If they want to keep their championship dreams alive they’ll have to knock off 1 Seed Gonzaga. At this point, it’s certainly possible.