© Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / © Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
The South Carolina basketball team was beaten soundly by rival Florida in SEC action on Wednesday night. That loss will go down in the history books.
Most of the students in attendance didn’t stick around for the final result. They bailed on the squad before halftime as the Gamecocks refused to show life.
South Carolina is not a good basketball team. It entered the game at 11-9 with just two victories in conference play. It got an opportunity to earn a signature win at home over a ranked league foe but fell flat.
Florida was up double digits less than 10 minutes into the game. The Gamecocks’ deficit only grew from there.
The Gators closed the first half on a 28-9 run. They led by 30 with under a minute remaining before the break. Fans chose not to stick around.
South Carolina students abandoned the basketball team.
Annnnnnd most of the students are heading out.
Florida leads 48-18 with 31 seconds left in the half pic.twitter.com/m2Q6YNBBi2
— Jordan Kaye (@jordankaye_23) January 29, 2026
The Gamecocks were down 28 points at the halftime bell. They would eventually fall by 47 with the Gators nearly doubling the home team up in a 95-48 blowout.
The margin was the largest for a road win in Florida history. It is believed to be the worst home loss in SEC play over the last 50 years.
Unfortunately, the blowouts have been a trend for the Gamecocks in conference play. They entered fresh off a 23-point thrashing from Texas A&M. They also lost by 34 to Arkansas earlier in the year.
The beatdowns are taking a toll. Head coach Lamont Paris was critical of his team’s effort after the most recent letdown.
The Gamecocks gave up.
Lamont Paris’ opening statement tonight after their loss to Florida:
He says some players were ready to call it over before he was.
“I was really disappointed in our effort and competitive spirit in a lot of ways. That just really surprised me”@GamecockMBB | @wachfox pic.twitter.com/rK5zTCi67X
— Claire Foley (@clairefoleytv) January 29, 2026
“(Florida) made us relent,” the South Carolina basketball coach said in the postgame.
“There’s nothing to be proud of in terms of fight… There’s a point in every game where you figure out, it’s probably not going to work out for us… We had some guys more eager to admit that point had gotten there.
“I was really disappointed in our effort and competitive spirit in a lot of ways. That just really surprised me.”
Paris believes his players gave up. He challenged their effort and response to adversity.
The Gamecocks will get a chance to flush the embarrassing loss when hosting LSU this weekend. The Tigers are one of the few teams that South Carolina has beaten thus far in league action.
Unfortunately, the back half of the schedule is littered with ranked foes and SEC powers. Lamont Paris, who could be fighting for his job amid a disappointing Year 4, will hope to find a spark.