South Carolina Gamecocks Opens NCAA Tournement With North Carolina A&T

Friday's contest against the Aggies at Colonial Life Arena is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2

COLUMBIA, South Carolina — South Carolina (26-6) earned a No. 2 seed in its 15th berth in the NCAA Tournament and will face 15th-seeded North Carolina A&T (23-8) on Fri., March 16, at 7:30 p.m. ET, with the contest set to be televised on ESPN2 in the event's opening round. The Gamecocks are in the Albany Region and will host the first and second rounds of the tournament at Colonial Life Arena. The other first-round game in Columbia pairs seventh-seeded California (21-10) and 10th-seeded Virginia (18-13) on Fri., March 16, at 5 p.m. ET.

Single-session tickets for the first and second rounds will go on sale at 10 a.m. Tue., March 13. General admission seating is available for $15 (adult) for the first round (both games) and $12 (adult) for the second round. Youth, University faculty/staff and group pricing is also available. Booklets for the entire weekend are available for $23 and include a general admission ticket for each round. Purchase ticket booklets by calling 1-800-4SC-FANS, visiting the Colonial Life Arena box office during regular business hours or going online at GamecocksOnline.com. Single-sessions tickets are available at TicketMaster.com.

This is the seventh-consecutive season the Gamecocks will participate in the NCAA Tournament, the longest streak in program history. South Carolina reached the NCAA Final Four for the first time in 2015 before capturing its first NCAA Championship in 2017. The Gamecocks have played in eight Sweet 16s in their 14 previous times in the event, reaching that round in five of their last six tournament appearances. South Carolina owns a 25-13 record all-time in the NCAA Tournament, including an 11-2 record in games played in Columbia.

The No. 7/8 Gamecocks won their fourth-straight SEC Tournament championship this season after notching three wins over ranked opponents in a stretch highlighted by a 62-51 victory over No. 2 Mississippi State in the title game. This year marks the fifth-straight season Carolina enters the NCAA Tournament with 25 or more wins.



UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS