South Carolina sends another favorite packing to earn spot in Final Four

Gamecocks took down No. 4 seed Florida to add to their tournament wins against No. 2 Duke and No. 3 Baylor.|

NEW YORK - South Carolina coach Frank Martin had vowed to handle things differently the next time he had a chance to go to the Final Four.

He blamed himself for Kansas State’s failure to advance out of the Elite Eight in 2010, when he was the Wildcats’ coach. He had committed a cardinal sin, by his standards, in the day between the Sweet 16 and the Elite Eight: He had lightened up his intensity in practice.

“I told myself, ‘If I’m ever in the same situation, I’ve got to practice our guys the way that we have trained for six months,'” Martin said. “Not any way differently.”

Martin kept his foot on the pedal this time, and his fiery leadership brought South Carolina basketball to new heights. The seventh-seeded Gamecocks, who until this month had gone 44 years without an NCAA tournament win, advanced to their first Final Four Sunday by beating fourth-seeded Florida, 77-70, at Madison Square Garden.

South Carolina became this year’s second newcomer to the Final Four, joining Gonzaga, a top seed that advanced Saturday. They will face each other Saturday in Glendale, Arizona.

The Gamecocks versus the Gators was the first matchup between Southeastern Conference schools in the Elite Eight since 1986. Less than a month ago, South Carolina lost at Florida by 15.

But with a relentlessly physical style of play, the Gamecocks toppled second-seeded Duke and third-seeded Baylor to reach Sunday’s showdown. And now Florida, the fourth seed, to win the East Region.

Just 37 hours after Florida edged Wisconsin in overtime on a buzzer-beating shot, the Gators were back to racing up and down the court. Fatigue did not seem to be an issue for them early in the game. The Gators went 7 of 12 from beyond the 3-point arc, shooting 56 percent from the field, to take a 40-33 lead at halftime.

The quick pace and high scoring were unexpected. The Gamecocks relish any opportunity to make their opponents miserable - but, as Martin pointed out, not in a traditional way.

“We’re not physical because we foul and push,” Martin said. “We’re physical because we don’t get out of the way.”

But familiarity was a factor here. Florida was not experiencing the teeth of South Carolina’s defense for the first time. The Gators knew the proper ways to probe the zone. Their length inside and quickness on the perimeter created problems for the Gamecocks.

Again, South Carolina leaned on its senior leader, Sindarius Thornwell, the conference’s player of the year. Before the game, Florida’s players said the Gamecocks looked different from the way they had earlier in the season, more confident offensively. Thornwell was a big reason.

With Thornwell (26 points), the Gamecocks pounded the ball inside, drawing enough fouls to put them in the bonus situation with 15 minutes left. Forty-two of South Carolina’s 77 points came in the paint.

A stretch of 10 consecutive missed field goals by the Gators midway through the second half allowed the Gamecocks to regain the lead, but considering how well the teams knew each other, it seemed only right that the game would go down to the wire.

A 6-0 run by the Gamecocks gave them a 67-63 lead with 1:55 left. A steal by Duane Notice with 40 seconds left and a missed layup by Florida’s Kevaughn Allen on the next possession kept Florida down.

With 14 seconds left, trailing by 5, the Gators’ Chris Chiozza tried to drive, but the ball was stolen by P.J. Dozier, who passed to Notice for a dunk. The Gamecocks began celebrating. Few could have predicted that they would be among the last four teams left standing.

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