Lamont Paris Looking To 'Even the Score' With His Team Heading To Pittsburgh
South Carolina's men's basketball team is going dancing, and their first stop will give Lamont Paris a chance to avenge a tough loss from two years ago.
Well, it's finally happened: for the first time since 2017, South Carolina's men's basketball team is heading to the big dance. They have been selected as the No. 6-seed seed in the Midwest region and have drawn the 11-seed Oregon Ducks as their first-round opponent. After their name was called during CBS' Selection Show, head coach Lamont Paris Spoke with the media and gave his initial reaction to his team seeing the team's name pop up on the bracket.
"Really excited, it was fun just to watch the guys. You know your name's going to get called up there, but still, when the moment happens, to see their immediate reaction to that and all the work that they've put in, to be rewarded with having their name called was awesome."
When asked about being in the Tournament with his former team, the Chattanooga Mocs, in 2022, he recalled a factoid from that game that could give him a little extra motivation.
"We played in Pittsburgh also; we've got to even the score out. I'm 0-1 as a head coach in Pittsburgh in the NCAA Tournament."
Later, he was asked how much he knew about Oregon and conveyed that he's only scratched the surface as far as scouting them goes.
"I saw them play last night, that's about it... I know they have a former Gamecock on their team, and he played really well in their championship game and I know if you win that Pac-12 Tournament you're a good team. At this point, every team in the NCAA tournament is either really good or they're playing really well or both. So, you have to be ready to play, and you have to expect to play well if you're going to advance in that Tournament."
The Gamecocks are going into this game with a chip on their shoulder. They have their own things to prove, and they are looking forward to the opportunity to prove that while they aren't the "sexy pick," as coach Paris said, they find ways to keep pushing forward.
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