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College basketball analyst Seth Davis is catching heat from one particular fanbase this Monday thanks to his recently unveiled Top 25 ballot. His personal rankings left one of the nation’s hottest teams out of the standings causing many to lose faith in the AP voting process as a whole.
South Carolina has been the surprise of the season, going from preseason cellar dwellers to the top of the SEC standings. Picked to finish dead last in the league by the media, the Gamecocks have surprised by winning 19 of their first 22 games.
At 19-3 and 7-2 in SEC play, they currently sit a game behind Alabama in the SEC regular season title race. The program hasn’t won the league outright since 1997-98.
The preseason expectation, combined with a relatively unchallenging non-conference slate, gave reason to leave the Gamecocks out of early Top 25 polls. Their recent play, however, has changed the narrative.
South Carolina picked up a win over No. 6 Kentucky three games back before knocking off No. 5 Tennessee on the road last week. Those two victories have come as part of a five-game SEC winning streak to push them near the top of the standings.
Still, they’d yet to land an AP ranking.
There were whispers of a potential Top 25 spot after taking down the Wildcats, but when last week’s AP Poll was released, the Gamecocks were on the outside looking in.
This week, a spot was all but guaranteed given those two Top 10 wins in a span of seven days. Or maybe not!
It seems one notable AP voter either didn’t feel the need to include South Carolina or completely forgot about the Gamecocks altogether!
CBS’s Seth Davis did not list Lamont Paris’s squad on his most recent ballot.
My top 25 as submitted to @APTop25_BB
1. UConn
2. Purd
3. UNC
4. Hou
5. Tenn
6. KU
7. Wisc
8. Ill
9. Marq
10. Ariz
11. Bama
12. Baylor
13. Iowa St
14. Creighton
15. UK
16. Aub
17. Duke
18. Dayton
19. SD St
20. Utah St
21. St. Mary’s
22. BYU
23. Texas
24. TTech
25. Ind St— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) February 5, 2024
Yet just days prior, Davis was pushing for the Gamecocks’ inclusion in the poll.
HUGE win for the Gamecocks! Only question next is where will they be ranked. Not if.
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) January 31, 2024
A number of South Carolina supporters came to the defense of their team, as did a few from the SEC rivals that the team had just beaten.
“You’re voting credentials should be revoked.”
How could the Gamecocks have been left off??
Seth Davis somewhat cleared the air, though it won’t lessen the feeling of disrespect South Carolina fans continue to feel.
The analyst says he completely forgot about the Gamecocks less than a week after that road win over Tennessee. With four Top 10 matchups having taken place on a stellar Saturday slate, the earlier upset hit the back burner!
Awww man. Apologies to @GamecockMBB. Total turnover on my part not to rank them. Mea culpa! Will make it up to you next week I promise. https://t.co/YMkRL6gv3e
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) February 5, 2024
“It may have had something to do with the distraction of my company going out of business but appreciate the kindness,” he later responded to one of his critics. “No excuse Sir! Gamecocks have been one of the great stories of the season. Hope they keep it going.”
Even without the analyst’s vote, the Gamecocks officially entered this week’s AP Top 25 with a No. 15 ranking. We’ll see if South Carolina can keep it rolling and make Davis’s next ballot.