# 2020–21 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team

The 2020–21 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team represented the University of South Carolina during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team is led by ninth-year head coach Frank Martin, and play their home games at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina as a member of the Southeastern Conference.

## Previous season

The Gamecocks finished the 2019–20 season 18–13, 10–8 in SEC play to finish in a tie for sixth place. As the No. 6 seed in the SEC tournament, they were set to take on Arkansas in the second round before the remainder of the SEC Tournament was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Micaiah Henry | 13 | F | 6'9" | 235 | Senior | Decatur, GA | Graduated |
| Maik Kotsar | 21 | F | 6'11" | 270 | Senior | Tallinn, Estonia | Graduated |
| Jair Bolden | 52 | G | 6'3" | 215 | RS Junior | Brooklyn, NY | Graduate transferred to Butler |

### Incoming Transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Ford Cooper Jr. | 44 | G | 6'3" | 187 | Sophomore | Charlotte, NC | Transfer from Missouri State |

### 2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Patrick Iriel C | Columbia, SC | A. C. Flora (SC) | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 235 lb (107 kg) | Aug 6, 2019 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Ja'Von Benson PF | Columbia, SC | Ridge View (SC) | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 240 lb (110 kg) | Oct 18, 2019 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 ||||||
| Tre-Vaughn Minott C | Montreal, QC | NBA Academy Latin America (MX) | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) | 245 lb (111 kg) | Jan 8, 2021 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "South Carolina 2020 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 1, 2021. "2020 South Carolina Gamecocks Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 1, 2021. "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 1, 2021. ||||||

## Schedule and results

The exhibition game against Coker scheduled for November 25 was cancelled due to a delay in the delivery of Coker’s COVID-19 testing results.
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 25, 2020* | | Coker | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC |
| November 28, 2020* 4:00 p.m, ESPNews | | vs. Liberty Hall of Fame Classic Semifinals | L 62–78 | 0–1 | 12 – Lawson | 7 – Bryant | 2 – Tied | T-Mobile Center (0) Kansas City, MO |
| November 29, 2020* 1:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Tulsa Hall of Fame Classic Third Place Game | W 69–58 | 1–1 | 20 – Couisnard | 9 – Tied | 4 – Couisnard | T-Mobile Center (0) Kansas City, MO |
| December 5, 2020* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at No. 10 Houston | L 67–77 | 1–2 | 13 – Minaya | 7 – Hannibal | 3 – Tied | Fertitta Center (1,859) Houston, TX |
| December 10, 2020* 6:00 p.m., SECN | | Wofford | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC |
| December 14, 2020* 7:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at George Washington | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | Charles E. Smith Center Washington, D.C. |
| December 19, 2020* 12:00 p.m., ESPNU | | No. 24 Clemson Rivalry | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC |
| December 23, 2020* 7:00 p.m., SECN | | South Carolina State | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC |
| January 2, 2021* 3:30 p.m., SECN | | Florida A&M | W 78–71 | 2–2 | 25 – Lawson | 10 – Minaya | 5 – Couisnard | Colonial Life Arena (3,100) Columbia, SC |
| January 6, 2021 9:00 p.m., ESPNU | | Texas A&M | W 78–54 | 3–2 (1–0) | 30 – Lawson | 9 – McCreary | 5 – Minaya | Colonial Life Arena (3160) Columbia, SC |
| January 9, 2021 6:00 p.m., SECN | | at Ole Miss | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | The Pavilion at Ole Miss Oxford, MS |
| January 12, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN2/ESPNU | | No. 10 Tennessee | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC |
| January 16, 2021 8:30 p.m., SECN | | at LSU | L 80–85 | 3–3 (1–1) | 26 – Bryant | 10 – Minaya | 5 – Tied | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (2,143) Baton Rouge, LA |
| January 19, 2021 7:00 p.m., SECN | | at Missouri | L 70–81 | 3–4 (1–2) | 19 – Bryant | 11 – Minaya | 5 – Tied | Mizzou Arena (0) Columbia, MO |
| January 23, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | Auburn | L 86–109 | 3–5 (1–3) | 24 – Bryant | 10 – Leveque | 6 – Couisnard | Colonial Life Arena (3,250) Columbia, SC |
| January 27, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | Georgia | W 83–59 | 4–5 (2–3) | 19 – Bryant | 10 – Bryant | 6 – Hannibal | Colonial Life Arena (3,156) Columbia, SC |
| January 30, 2021 8:30 p.m., SECN | | at Vanderbilt | L 81–93 | 4–6 (2–4) | 21 – Lawson | 6 – Bryant | 4 – Couisnard | Memorial Gymnasium (78) Nashville, TN |
| February 3, 2021 6:30 p.m., SECN | | at No. 22 Florida | W 72–66 | 5–6 (3–4) | 22 – Lawson | 8 – Lawson | 2 – Tied | O'Connell Center (2,282) Gainesville, FL |
| February 6, 2021 3:30 p.m., SECN | | Mississippi State | L 59–75 | 5–7 (3–5) | 13 – Tied | 10 – Leveque | 4 – Couisnard | Colonial Life Arena (3,208) Columbia, SC |
| February 9, 2021 6:30 p.m., SECN | | No. 11 Alabama | L 78–81 | 5–8 (3–6) | 21 – Lawson | 7 – Minaya | 5 – Couisnard | Colonial Life Arena (3,089) Columbia, SC |
| February 13, 2021 6:00 p.m., SECN | | Ole Miss | L 74–81 | 5–9 (3–7) | 22 – Lawson | 9 – Minaya | 4 – Hannibal | Colonial Life Arena (3,250) Columbia, SC |
| February 17, 2021 9:00 p.m., SECN | | at No. 19 Tennessee | L 73–93 | 5–10 (3–8) | 20 – Lawson | 7 – Bryant | 7 – Woods | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| February 20, 2021 2:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | No. 20 Missouri | L 78–93 | 5–11 (3–9) | 22 – Lawson | 6 – Leveque | 2 – Bryant | Colonial Life Arena (3,176) Columbia, SC |
| February 24, 2021 7:00 p.m., SECN | | at Mississippi State | L 48–69 | 5–12 (3–10) | 14 – Bryant | 8 – Minaya | 4 – Moss | Humphrey Coliseum (1,000) Starkville, MS |
| February 27, 2021 1:00 p.m., SECN | | at Georgia | W 91–70 | 6–12 (4–10) | 23 – Couisnard | 8 – Hannibal | 5 – Tied | Stegeman Coliseum (1,638) Athens, GA |
| March 2, 2021 6:30 p.m., SECN | | No. 12 Arkansas | L 73–101 | 6–13 (4–11) | 18 – Lawson | 9 – Bryant | 7 – Moss | Colonial Life Arena (3,193) Columbia, SC |
| March 6, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN | | at Kentucky | L 64–92 | 6–14 (4–12) | 16 – Bryant | 6 – Hannibal | 6 – Hannibal | Rupp Arena Lexington, KY |
| SEC tournament |||||||||
| March 11, 2021 9:30 p.m., SECN | (11) | vs. (6) Ole Miss Second round | L 59–76 | 6–15 | 15 – McCreary | 6 – Leveque | 6 – Moss | Bridgestone Arena (1,809) Nashville, TN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||