Sports in South Carolina - wikipedia Sports in South Carolina Although there are no major league professional franchises based in South Carolina, the state does have numerous minor league teams. Several `` Carolina '' major league pro teams representing both North Carolina and South Carolina are based in neighboring North Carolina. The Carolina Panthers, the professional American football team of the National Football League based in Charlotte, North Carolina, has training facilities in South Carolina. College teams also represent their particular South Carolina institution and the state is a prime destination for golf and water sports as well. S. Carolina Gamecocks football game at Williams - Brice Stadium in Columbia Contents 1 Table 2 College sports 3 Major league 4 Minor league 5 NASCAR racing 6 Golf 7 Water sports 8 Roller Sports 9 Misc. Sports 10 See also 11 References 12 External links Table The following table shows the sports teams in South Carolina that average over 8,000 fans per home game : Team Competition Location Venue ( capacity ) Attendance Clemson Tigers football NCAA FBS - ACC Clemson Memorial Stadium ( 81,500 ) 80,773 South Carolina Gamecocks football NCAA FBS - SEC Columbia Williams - Brice Stadium ( 80,250 ) 78,586 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers football NCAA FBS - Sun Belt Conway Brooks Stadium ( 15,000 ) 14,959 South Carolina Gamecocks men 's basketball NCAA D-I - SEC Columbia Colonial Life Arena ( 18,000 ) 13,395 South Carolina Gamecocks women 's basketball NCAA D-I - SEC Columbia Colonial Life Arena ( 18,000 ) 12,277 South Carolina State Bulldogs football NCAA FCS - MEAC Orangeburg Oliver C. Dawson Stadium ( 22,000 ) 11,883 The Citadel Bulldogs football NCAA FCS - SoCon Charleston Johnson Hagood Stadium ( 11,500 ) 8,994 Jump up ^ Capacity as of the 2017 season ; stadium will be expanded to 20,000 for 2018 and beyond. Jump up ^ Capacity as of the 2017 season ; stadium will be expanded to 14,500 for 2019 and beyond. Clemson Tigers football game at Memorial Stadium ( Death Valley ) in Clemson College sports College sports -- particularly college football -- are very big in South Carolina. The University of South Carolina 's Gamecocks and Clemson University 's Tigers regularly draw more than 80,000 spectators at the schools ' home football games, placing them among the top twenty schools in average attendance. Their rivalry is called the Battle of the Palmetto State. Clemson 's football team won the National Championship in 1981 and 2016. Both South Carolina 's and Clemson 's baseball teams are consistently ranked. The Gamecocks won the national title in 2010 and 2011. The South Carolina men 's and women 's basketball teams both made the Final Four of their respective tournaments in 2017, with the women winning the national title. Clemson and South Carolina are the two most prominent of the state 's 11 NCAA Division I members. They are the only two schools that are members of the so - called Power Five conferences, the most prominent leagues in the top level of American college football, the Football Bowl Subdivision ( FBS ). The Tigers additionally have an ice hockey team that competes at club level in the South Division of the Atlantic Coastal Conference. Clemson is a charter member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, and South Carolina is in the Southeastern Conference. The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers are currently transitioning from Division I 's second football level, the Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ), to FBS. Coastal, whose baseball team won the College World Series in 2016, joined the Sun Belt Conference for non-football sports the day after it won the CWS, and joined Sun Belt football in 2017. Six other schools that play Division I football are full members of FCS conferences. The Citadel Bulldogs, Furman Paladins, and Wofford Terriers are all in the Southern Conference ; the Charleston Southern Buccaneers and Presbyterian Blue Hose are members of the Big South Conference ; and the South Carolina State Bulldogs compete in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Finally, two schools are full members of Division I conferences but do not sponsor football. The Charleston Cougars compete in the Colonial Athletic Association, and the Winthrop Eagles compete in the Big South. Major league South Carolina has no major professional franchise of the NFL, NHL, NBA, MLS, or MLB located in the state ; however the NFL 's Carolina Panthers ( based in Charlotte, North Carolina ), the NBA 's Charlotte Hornets ( based in Charlotte, North Carolina ), and the NHL 's Carolina Hurricanes ( based in Raleigh, North Carolina ) represent both North and South Carolina. In addition, the Panthers played their first season in Clemson, and maintain training facilities at Wofford College in Spartanburg. Minor league There are numerous minor league teams that are either based in the state, or play much of their schedule within its borders. The Charlotte Knights, a Class AAA minor league baseball team, played at a stadium in Fort Mill, South Carolina, just across the border from Charlotte until the team moved to a new ballpark in Charlotte in 2014. Currently, five teams play in the state, all at the Class A level. The Myrtle Beach Pelicans play in the Class A-Advanced Carolina League, and the Augusta GreenJackets ( in North Augusta ), Charleston RiverDogs, Columbia Fireflies, and Greenville Drive play in the South Atlantic League. For a state where natural ice is a rarity, professional ice hockey has been popular in a number of areas of the state since the 1990s. Though four teams competed at one time in South Carolina, the ECHL ( formerly called the East Coast Hockey League ) currently oversees operations of only two franchises, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits and the South Carolina Stingrays. The Stingrays play in the North Charleston Coliseum, located in North Charleston. Another minor league franchise is the Charleston Battery, playing in the United Soccer League at the second level of American men 's soccer. The team plays in the soccer - specific MUSC Health Stadium, located on Daniel Island in Charleston. The American Basketball Association currently oversees operations of only three semi-pro basketball franchises, the South Carolina Warriors which are based in Myrtle Beach, the Greenville Galaxy which are based in Greenville, and the Palmetto State Rizers which are based in Columbia. NASCAR racing A race at Darlington Raceway in Darlington NASCAR racing was born in the South, and South Carolina has in the past hosted some very important NASCAR races, at the Darlington Raceway. Darlington Raceway plays host to NASCAR 's Labor Day weekend classic, the Southern 500. The Whelen, Xfinity Series, and Cup Series cars all race at Darlington. Golf South Carolina is a popular golf destination. With nearly one hundred golf courses, the Grand Strand region has more public golf courses per capita than any other place in the country. Some have hosted PGA and LGPA events in the past, but most have been designed for the casual golfer. Hilton Head Island & Kiawah Island have several very nice golf courses and host professional events every year. The upstate of South Carolina also has many nice golf courses, most of the nicer courses are private including the Cliff 's courses and Cross Creek Plantation ( the Cliff 's courses host the annual BMW PRO / AM that brings many celebrities and professionals to South Carolina. Cross Creek Plantation located in Seneca, also private hosted a PGA Qualifier in the 90 's ). In 2007, `` The Ocean Course '' On Kiawah Island was ranked # 1 in Golf Digest magazine 's `` America 's 50 Toughest Golf Courses '' and # 38 on their `` America 's 100 Greatest Golf Courses ''. Water sports Water sports are also an extremely popular activity in South Carolina. With a long coast line, South Carolina has many different beach activities such as surfing, boogie boarding, deep sea fishing, and shrimping. The Pee Dee region of the state offers exceptional fishing. Some of the largest catfish ever caught were caught in the Santee Lakes. The Upstate of South Carolina also offers outstanding water activities, especially in Lakes Hartwell, Jocassee, and Keowee. The Midlands region also offers water - based recreation revolving around Lakes Marion and Murray and such rivers as the Congaree, Saluda, Broad, and Edisto. Roller sports Following the rebirth of roller derby in the early 2000s and the release of the movie Whip It, South Carolina has seen the rise over several roller derby leagues. As of 2014 there are four leagues sanctioned under WFTDA each of which are located in Columbia, Charleston, and Greenville. Misc. Sports While there are no race tracks with betting in South Carolina, there is significant horse training activity, particularly in Aiken and Camden, which hold steeplechase races. Professional bass fishing tournaments are also found in South Carolina. Lake Hartwell, Lake Wylie, and Lake Murray both host Bassmaster Classic tournaments. Spartanburg, South Carolina, is also the home of the national evangelical sports program Upward Sports. See also Sports in Columbia, South Carolina South Carolina Gamecocks ( University of South Carolina teams ) Clemson Tigers football South Carolina vs. Alabama Crimson Tide ( 2009 ) Sports in Sumter, South Carolina References ^ Jump up to : `` 2017 Football Attendance '' ( PDF ). NCAA. Retrieved February 19, 2018. Jump up ^ `` 2017 NCAA Men 's Basketball Attendance '' ( PDF ). NCAA. Retrieved November 1, 2017. Jump up ^ `` 2017 NCAA Women 's Basketball Attendance '' ( PDF ). NCAA. Retrieved November 1, 2017. Jump up ^ `` 2013 NATIONAL COLLEGE FOOTBALL ATTENDANCE '' ( PDF ). ncaa.org. Retrieved 12 April 2018. Jump up ^ `` Myrtle Beach Golf ''. Jump up ^ `` GolfDigest.com -- America 's 50 Toughest Golf Courses ''. Jump up ^ `` GolfDigest.com -- America 's 100 Greatest Golf Courses ''. Archived from the original on 2006 - 07 - 21. Jump up ^ http://wftda.com/leagues?find=South+Carolina External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sports in South Carolina. Sports teams based in South Carolina Baseball CL Myrtle Beach Pelicans SAL Augusta GreenJackets Charleston RiverDogs Columbia Fireflies Greenville Drive CPL Florence RedWolves Lexington County Blowfish Basketball ECBL Carolina Crusaders PrimeTime Players South Carolina All - Stars South Carolina Upstate Redhawks ABA Charleston City Lions Greenville Galaxy Carolina Cougars Football AAL Upstate Dragons Hockey ECHL Greenville Swamp Rabbits South Carolina Stingrays Roller derby WFTDA Columbia Quadsquad Greenville Derby Dames Lowcountry Highrollers Rugby union USA Rugby Charleston Outlaws Columbia Olde Grey Soccer USL Charleston Battery NPSL Greenville FC PDL Myrtle Beach Mutiny SC United Bantams College athletics ( NCAA Division I ) Charleston Cougars Charleston Southern Buccaneers The Citadel Bulldogs Clemson Tigers Coastal Carolina Chanticleers Furman Paladins Presbyterian Blue Hose South Carolina Gamecocks South Carolina State Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs USC Upstate Spartans Winthrop Eagles Wofford Terriers Sports in the United States By state / territory Midwest Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Michigan Minnesota Missouri Nebraska North Dakota Ohio South Dakota Wisconsin Northeast Connecticut Delaware Maine Maryland Massachusetts New Hampshire New Jersey New York Pennsylvania Rhode Island Vermont Washington, D.C. South Alabama Arkansas Florida Georgia Kentucky Louisiana Mississippi North Carolina Oklahoma South Carolina Tennessee Texas Virginia West Virginia West Alaska Arizona California Colorado Hawaii Idaho Montana Nevada New Mexico Oregon Utah Washington Wyoming Territories American Samoa Guam Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands Major team sports American football Baseball Basketball Ice hockey Lacrosse Soccer Softball Major individual sports Athletics Boxing Golf Horse racing Thoroughbred Harness Steeplechase Mixed martial arts Motorsport Swimming Tennis Winter sports skeleton skiing Minor sports Australian rules football Badminton Bodybuilding Cricket Cycling Fishing Futsal Field hockey Gaelic football Gymnastics Ice skating Judo Karate Netball Polo Roller derby Rowing Rugby league Rugby union Surfing Volleyball Wrestling International sporting competitions World Baseball Classic Basketball World Cup Cricket World Cup FIFA Confederations Cup FIFA World Cup Maccabiah Olympics Pan American Games Paralympics Deaflympics Rugby League World Cup Rugby World Cup World University Games United States Olympic Committee United States Paralympic Committee History Major professional sports leagues Women 's sports State of South Carolina Columbia ( capital ) Regions Atlantic Coastal Plain Blue Ridge Mountains Grand Strand High Hills of Santee Lake Murray Country Lowcountry Metrolina Midlands Ninety - Six District Olde English District Pee Dee Piedmont Sandhills Sea Islands Upstate Seal of South Carolina Larger cities Charleston Columbia Greenville North Charleston Rock Hill Spartanburg Smaller cities Aiken Anderson Beaufort Bennettsville Camden Cayce Conway Easley Florence Forest Acres Gaffney Georgetown Greenwood Greer Goose Creek Hilton Head Island Isle of Palms Laurens Lexington Mauldin Myrtle Beach North Augusta North Myrtle Beach Orangeburg Simpsonville Summerville Sumter Union Walterboro West Columbia York Towns Abbeville Barnwell Batesburg - Leesville Bluffton Clemson Darlington Dillon Edgefield Fort Mill Fountain Inn Great Falls Hardeeville Irmo Jefferson Kingstree Liberty Marion McCormick Moncks Corner Mount Pleasant Newberry Pageland Pendleton Pickens Seneca Sullivan 's Island Travelers Rest Walhalla Westminster Williamston CDPs Berea Carolina Forest Dentsville Gantt Garden City Ladson Parker Red Hill Saint Andrews Seven Oaks Socastee Taylors Wade Hampton Counties Abbeville Aiken Allendale Anderson Bamberg Barnwell Beaufort Berkeley Calhoun Charleston Cherokee Chester Chesterfield Clarendon Colleton Darlington Dillon Dorchester Edgefield Fairfield Florence Georgetown Greenville Greenwood Hampton Horry Jasper Kershaw Lancaster Laurens Lee Lexington Marion Marlboro McCormick Newberry Oconee Orangeburg Pickens Richland Saluda Spartanburg Sumter Union Williamsburg York Topics Airports Amusement parks Census areas Colleges and universities Congressional districts Famous people Governors Highways Historic places History Legislature Media Newspapers Radio TV Rivers Shopping malls Sports venues State House State parks Tourist attractions Wildlife refuges Society Crime Culture Demographics Economy Education Politics Sports Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sports_in_South_Carolina&oldid=843374546 '' Categories : Sports in South Carolina Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 28 May 2018, at 18 : 55. 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Question: what nba team is closest to south carolina
Answer: Charlotte Hornets