Much to the surprise of basically everyone, South Carolina will represent the East Region in the Final Four after beating Florida on Sunday, 77-70. The Gamecocks are this year’s Cinderella, as the 7-seed escaped the region that boasted Villanova and Duke to make it to the first Final Four in school history.
After losing five of its final eight regular season games and getting bounced from the SEC Tournament in the first round, South Carolina flipped a switch as it entered the Tournament and has managed to beat Marquette, Duke, Baylor, and Florida. The odds of this happening, as ESPN’s John Gasaway showed us, were astronomical.
South Carolina was given a 0.4 percent chance to reach Final Four, won four consecutive games where it was the laptop underdog. Salute.
— John Gasaway (@JohnGasaway) March 26, 2017
Gasaway isn’t the only person who is in awe at this run by Frank Martin’s squad. A ton of people on the internet are stoked that the Gamecocks are actually going to Phoenix.
BIG FRANK SENT ME pic.twitter.com/zGJaaEDOFt
— BUM CHILLUPS AKA SPENCER HALL (@edsbs) March 26, 2017
Cocks going to the Final Four pic.twitter.com/sBJjyddcHa
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) March 26, 2017
https://twitter.com/nick_pants/status/846100022966046720
https://twitter.com/TomFornelli/status/846099875263631362
https://twitter.com/SBNationCFB/status/846099837175107585
People in attendance were blown away, too. One such person was the school’s most famous fan: ex-Hootie and the Blowfish lead singer Darius Rucker.
Darius Rucker tears of joy #Hootie pic.twitter.com/i5urFxwoh1
— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) March 26, 2017
When the December to Remember sales event comes to Lexus of Greenville pic.twitter.com/PuZDib3PlV
— Red Cup Rebellion (@RedCupRebellion) March 26, 2017
The numbers for this run are especially crazy. This doesn’t just mean the unlikelihood of the team’s run, but also the numbers that illustrate just how good South Carolina has been during the Tournament.
South Carolina has outscored opponents by 54 points in the second half in the tourney. Pre-tay pre-tay good….
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) March 26, 2017
FInal Four teams, last appearance:
Gonzaga – Never
South Carolina – Never
Oregon – 1939
Kentucky/UNC – 2015/2016— Troy Machir (@TroyMachir) March 26, 2017
South Carolina & Gonzaga is the first Final Four matchup with both teams making its first Final Four app since 1973 (Memphis-Providence).
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) March 26, 2017
But above everything else, people are happy for Martin, whose journey to the Final Four has taken an extremely long time.
From a bouncer @ a night club, to HS coaching, to HC @ #KState, to taking @GamecockMBB from the ashes to the @FinalFour = Frank Martin #Wow
— Jay Williams (@RealJayWilliams) March 26, 2017
If you're not happy for @FrankMartin_SC, you're an unhappy person. 😉
— Fran Fraschilla (@franfraschilla) March 26, 2017
i hate all the screaming, but it only works for frank martin because he truly loves those dudes and they know it. congrats to them all.
— bomani (@bomani_jones) March 26, 2017
Spoelstra: "We tend to like Frank Martin players. They have the type of grit and DNA, the toughness that we like."
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) March 26, 2017
We’ll give Martin the final word, as he told Allie LaForce of CBS how this run happened.
"It's all these guys." – Frank Martin #FinalFour #ForeverToThee pic.twitter.com/GIGWxOVGXT
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 26, 2017
