South Carolina Basketball

South Carolina men's basketball coach Frank Martin announced Tuesday he tested positive for COVID-19 on May 8. 

Per The Athletic's Josh Kendall, Martin said he was asymptomatic for the most part aside from feeling fatigued. Upon learning of his positive test, he self-quarantined at his home and was confirmed negative May 23.

"We have a responsibility to protect, help and care for each other. Let's continue to educate ourselves about this virus, and follow the advice of medical professionals and do what we can to prevent the spread. Please reach out to your families and your friends."

— Josh Kendall (@JoshTheAthletic) June 2, 2020

Martin said he was preparing for knee replacement surgery and took a COVID-19 test on May 8. Two days later he learned of the results. 

Georgetown men's basketball coach Patrick Ewing announced May 22 he tested positive and was being treated at a local hospital:

I want to share that I have tested positive for COVID-19. This virus is serious and should not be taken lightly. I want to encourage everyone to stay safe and take care of yourselves and your loved ones. pic.twitter.com/a2fMuhIZyG

— Patrick Ewing (@CoachEwing33) May 22, 2020

His son, Patrick Jr., said three days later the Hall of Famer had returned home and was "getting better."

Cleveland State announced March 14 that Vikings women's basketball coach Chris Kielsmeier tested positive, making him the first coronavirus case at the school.

"It has been a very challenging couple of days," Kielsmeier said in a statement. "I am beginning to feel better and look forward to getting back to 100 percent."

The coronavirus pandemic brought an abrupt end to the 2019-20 college basketball season. The NCAA announced March 12 it was canceling the remainder of its winter sports season and the 2020 spring season as well.

According to the World Health Organization, the United States' nearly 1.8 million cases of COVID-19 are the most of any country in the world. More than 100,000 Americans have died from the disease.

The NCAA reportedly has alleged that South Carolina committed a Level I violation in a Notice of Allegations sent to the school, according to Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated. 

Per that report, the alleged violation is related to the federal investigation into corruption in college basketball:

"The association charged the school with a single Level I violation for [former assistant coach Lamont Evans] allegedly accepting at least $5,865 in bribes in 2015-16 from agent and runner Christian Dawkins. The bribes were in exchange for Evans arranging meetings between Dawkins and former Gamecocks guard P.J. Dozier and his family, in the hopes of swaying them to retain the agency Dawkins was working for, ASM Sports, which was run by Andy Miller."

In June, Evans was sentenced to three months in prison for accepting bribes in a part of the investigation into college basketball recruiting that also implicated a number of former college basketball assistants, former Adidas executive James Gatto, former Adidas and Nike employee Merl Code Jr. and sports agent Christian Dawkins.

Emanuel "Book" Richardson, a former Arizona assistant coach, was also sentenced to three months, while former USC assistant Tony Bland received 100 hours of community service. Former Auburn assistant coach Chuck Person was sentenced to 200 hours of community service. 

Gatto was sentenced to nine months in prison, while Code and Dawkins each received six-month prison sentences. 

Evans pleaded guilty in Jan. 2019 to bribery conspiracy for accepting $22,000 in bribes between 2016-17. Oklahoma State, where Evans also worked as an assistant, received a Notice of Allegations as well in November and is disputing its own alleged Level I violation, per Forde. 

NC State, Kansas, USC and TCU have also received NOAs, while Forde noted that Auburn, Louisville, Arizona, LSU and Alabama are currently under investigation. 

The South Carolina NOA, however, is more "limited" than those other schools have received in the wake of the federal probe, with Forde noting that "there are no allegations of failure to monitor the program, head-coach responsibility or lack of institutional control."

He also noted that the NOA doesn't accuse Dozier of accepting money from Evans or Dawkins, and that his season at the school doesn't appear to be in danger of being vacated. 

Dozier, 23, is in his third NBA season and currently plays for the Denver Nuggets. 

It's like the pickle on a Chick-fil-A sandwich—you never know where it is.

The pickle, according to A'ja Wilson, is Crime Mob's "Knuck If You Buck"; the Chick-fil-A sandwich, her pregame ritual. Wilson listens to the Southern rap classic every time she steps on the hardwood, but only via a pump-up playlist on shuffle—that way, it's a surprise every time. She leans forward confidentially while explaining her affection for the song, tucking her feet (she's wearing Birkenstocks with pink and green Alpha Kappa Alpha socks, a nod to her college sorority) below her.

"When I hear it, I'm like, 'It's time to go! It's game day!'" Wilson says, executing a couple of shoulder rolls in her warm-ups after practice in Albany, New York.

The Atlanta rap group recorded "Knuck If You Buck" about a three-hour drive from Columbia, South Carolina, the town that turned Wilson from basketball agnostic to No. 1 high school recruit to one of the best women's college players in the country—and it's been her soundtrack all the way through. A video of her lip-syncing, snapping and milly rocking to the song went viral just after Wilson led her South Carolina Gamecocks to their third consecutive SEC tournament victory in 2017.

Her only ad-lib to the NSFW lyrics? "I wish a hater would get crunk up on this Gamecock crew."

"Her whole personality came out in that rap. It had a little coolness to it, a little ratchetness to it, but at the end [of the video], you just hear her laugh uncontrollably," says South Carolina coach Dawn Staley. "It's just so her. She made me want to learn the words."

A'ja Wilson for National Player of the Year for these talents alone... 😂😂😂#Gamecocks #SECWBB @dawnstaley @_ajawilson22 pic.twitter.com/eL8X1zEH4J

— South Carolina Women's Basketball (@GamecockWBB) March 6, 2017

It's this side of Wilson that might be her biggest asset as she enters the WNBA as the consensus No. 1 draft pick. Sure, she averaged a double-double, finishing her season in the top 10 in the country in points with a list of achievements that requires five pages of minuscule type in the South Carolina media guide—and most recently, Wilson swept all seven national player of the year awards.

But the current WNBA is bursting with exceptional players. What it needs more of—what Wilson can and wants to bring—is the kind of star power that can bring the league further into sports' mainstream. As much as she's excited about seeing her name among WNBA greats she admires on the court—Breanna Stewart, Candace Parker, Tina Charles (when you ask her which basketball players she looks up to, Wilson only lists women)—Wilson has serious ambitions off it.

"My biggest thing is just changing [the league], not only with my game, but with the respect aspect," Wilson says, getting uncharacteristically serious as she reflects on the task ahead. "I think media coverage could be a lot better in the WNBA. It's just a matter of figuring out how it could be a lot better."

---

Forget changing the game—Wilson wasn't even into basketball at first. Growing up in Hopkins, a Columbia suburb, she was interested in just about everything besides basketball, which was played mostly at the behest of her father. The 6'8" Roscoe Wilson Jr. had played professionally in Europe and South America for a decade and coached a girls' AAU team for which Wilson was happy to ride the bench. But whenever the team won a game it wasn't favored to, something shifted.

"I was technically part of it, but I wasn't actually a part of it—my dad was the coach, and I still didn't get any minutes," she says. "That's when it hit me that I really wanted to play the game of basketball, because everyone was just so happy. I was like, 'Man, I want to be a part of this!'"

A'ja's enthusiasm for basketball kicked in right around the time Staley left Temple University to begin coaching at South Carolina in 2008, a fact her father made the most of. "I met her dad at some buffet at church," Staley remembers. "He came up to me and was like, 'You know, I got a daughter that's pretty good!'" She was, naturally, skeptical, but she finally met Wilson when her parents pushed her to do a Gamecocks kids' sports camp while in middle school. Wilson remembers being miserable and getting a participation certificate; Staley remembers that she was tall—"and that's about it," she adds, laughing. "I didn't see it, and I don't think she saw it in herself. But her father saw something, and he just kept bringing it out of her." The elder Wilson bought a hoop for the driveway, and they started shooting—first developing her footwork and then her strength with a weighted vest and ball.

Almost overnight, Wilson turned into one of the country's buzziest prospects (a five-inch growth spurt from 5'11" to 6'4" between eighth and ninth grade didn't hurt). Her college recruitment was heavily covered starting when she was a sophomore, with outlets referring to her as a UConn recruit. Staley was always in the back of her mind, though. "Coach Staley has done everything I would want to do as a player," Wilson says. "When I made my decision, I was like, 'Well, she would be the best person to teach me the rules—the good, the bad and the ugly of it all.'"

Wilson stayed in Columbia and did exactly what she and Staley schemed and dreamed about from the moment she became a Gamecock: won South Carolina its first national title. Twenty-six years prior, Staley was three points from helping Virginia win its first championship—her lone disappointment while breaking a slew of school records en route to three consecutive Final Fours. Wilson's prolific college career mirrored Staley's, but with a vindicating, net-slicing twist. In the process, she became the archetypal local girl making good.

But being a hometown hero also means being accosted in public, which has been a reality for Wilson since her junior year of high school. "I can't go anywhere without being noticed. I can't go out looking like a hobo anymore. I've actually got to look presentable," she says. Her escape is the back corner of any movie theater, where she'll go in a hat and a hoodie and sit alone in the dark, finally in peace. That is, until someone spots her. "Like, seriously?!" she says. "I mean, it's a blessing and a curse. Of course, you'd rather them know you than not. But at the same time, you can never be by yourself."

What she's embraced, though, is her status as a role model. "One of the things that I'm most excited about is building a brand for young girls to look up to and build off of," she says. When Wilson's not getting stopped in Walmart for pictures by girls shaking with excitement, she's getting DMs from kids telling her how they used to hate basketball but she made them want to play. "Seeing young girls have my name in their [social media] bio, like I'm the person they look up to...it makes my heart warm, it really does," she says. "Growing up, I never had that one person who I could call my role model, other than my mom and my grandmother."

Wilson lifts the sleeve of her Gamecocks pullover to show her deceased grandmother's name spelled out in cursive across her left forearm: Mrs. Hattie Wade Rakes.

It's thanks to Hattie, who died in the fall of 2016, that Wilson wears pearl necklaces with everything and stud earrings while she plays. They're so well-known as her trademark that fans were asked to wear pearls to her senior night.

"I was this tall, lanky girl and really wasn't feeling it," Wilson says. "She just told me, 'Pretty girls wear pearls.' She helped build my confidence up. Now, I don't want basketball to change my image even while I'm on the court, because I'm still the girly-girl that loves pearls." Wilson's mom still won't let her wear the necklace her grandmother gave her, but she's hopeful she'll be able to show it off on draft night—if it goes with her outfit.

"I don't know if I want to [wear a] dress, because I'm not trying to go to prom, like a long dress. But it could be a cute dress, or I might do like...a jumpsuit," Wilson says of her potential draft night outfits. "But definitely will be wearing pearls either way."

---

What Wilson can plan for, though, is looking out in the crowd to the support system that helped her become the No. 1 pick: her parents and the woman she calls her adopted mother, Dawn Staley.

Their relationship goes deeper than a shared first NCAA title. Despite the almost-one-foot discrepancy in their heights, the pair have become so close in part because they share experiences almost no one else can understand: what it's like to be the best in a field that's constantly battling for respect. The difference is that Wilson has Staley.

"The WNBA has been in existence 21 years now, so A'ja's had that carrot dangled in front of her for her entire life," says Staley, who had a prolific career in the pros before becoming only the second black woman ever to coach a NCAA women's basketball championship team.

"For me, [playing professionally in the U.S.] wasn't even a possibility. You had to go overseas and play. Now, I can give her a bird's-eye view: what a training camp looks like, what coaches are looking for. I can give her the toughness that it takes to have some longevity as a pro athlete. I just give her my experience and hope that she can follow suit in the sense that I decided when I wanted to hang up my shoes."

Staley says with size, athleticism and ability to contribute no matter where she's standing on the court, Wilson is "very capable of being the best player in the WNBA."

"She helps me out a ton—just telling me what I might see out there," Wilson says, gesturing as though a WNBA arena is on the other side of this Albany hotel conference room. She agrees that her Hall of Fame coach is an icon but wants to put it in her own words: "She's definitely the bomb diggity."

Once Wilson crosses the stage on draft night, Staley and the rest of Wilson's hoops family must prepare Wilson for her likely destination as a No. 1 pick, the Las Vegas Aces, where she'll be on a team in its first year in a new city that isn't known for its devoted local sports fans. "I think it's going to be tough," Wilson says. "Gamecock nation is huge. It's the best in the country. Then you kind of go to a place where, honestly, [the team] might not be supported like that. But there's still growth in it, and hopefully once I and this class of draftees are there, that just continues to build."

She'll also be leaving South Carolina, where she's lived her entire life. "That's going to touch my heart in so many places," she says. "This place, South Carolina, has done so much for me. My mom's side's down there, my dad's side's down there." Wilson hugs her arms to her chest and gets quiet. "We're all there, and I'm going to be gone."

Wilson may be venturing to a town without family and an established fanbase, but she's still entering the league with all the tools needed to make an impact on the sport: exceptional athletic ability and the unapologetic swagger of a bona fide local celebrity, combined with a polished yet approachable public persona. "I think that there's a void there that she could easily fill," says ESPN's college sports analyst Maria Taylor of how Wilson could potentially impact not just play in the WNBA but also its place in the sports ecosystem. "At the end of the day, athletes, especially on the women's side, have to be accessible, and I think she's proven that she is. She does a really good job of being open and confident but also making fun of herself, all while engaging with fans on social media and in person."

Although Wilson has cultivated the kind of celebrity and personality that is celebrated in men's sports, her mission to change the culture won't be without challenge. "I think people see me as being cocky? And I'm really not that!" she exclaims, alluding to the yelling and fist-pumping that punctuate her best games. "I just get into the game when my team is playing well and it's all clicking. So I'm going to show that, because it boosts my teammates' confidence if I'm like, 'They can't stop us on this play!'"

At the suggestion that this particular criticism is rooted in sexism, Wilson sighs. "Yeah, I think it probably is," she says. "But hey, it's all good. I'm going to keep playing. I'm not going to switch up who I am. It's just going to be an A'ja at a professional level."

She's incapable of being serious for long, though—there are too many possibilities for her to look forward to, stretching what it means to be a WNBA player on and off the court. Even the minor leveling-up in her future gets Wilson hyped: for example, the potential for a second phone once she goes pro. "That would look so cool," she says, admitting that it might be a non-starter since her mom is still paying her phone bill. "I want to be like, 'Call me on my business phone,'" she jokes.

Two phones or not, Wilson is already a star—in Columbia. But between her baller status and love of the spotlight, she has the potential to change the game, a journey that will start with the first call she gets on draft night.

Freshman forward Brian Bowen has transferred to South Carolina and will petition the NCAA to regain his on-court eligibility, the Gamecocks announced on Wednesday.

Bowen also took to Twitter with the news:

Blessed🙏🏽 #GAMECOCKS🐔🏀 @GamecockMBB pic.twitter.com/0BPgaf3e8h

— Brian Bowen II (@tugs_) January 11, 2018

The Courier Journal's Darcy Costello and Jeff Greer reported Bowen was no longer enrolled in spring classes at Louisville and that Louisville opened the door for Bowen to transfer to another school.

Bowen was the No. 19 player overall in the 2017 recruiting class, according to 247Sports' composite rankings, but he has yet to play a minute of NCAA basketball after he was connected to the FBI investigation that rocked college basketball.

ESPN's Mark Schlabach reported in September that four men collected $100,000 to provide to a recruit's family at the urging of a Louisville coach. The recruit was identified as "Player-10" in the report, yet the details of the allegations made it clear Bowen was the player in question.

Bowen's attorney, Jason Setchen, told reporters in November the FBI had cleared Bowen of any wrongdoing. Although Bowen's father, Brian Sr., was implicated in the FBI's investigation, Bowen hadn't knowingly violated any NCAA rules.

By clearing Bowen's name, the FBI allowed Louisville the opportunity to reinstate him to the team. However, Louisville confirmed Nov. 22 it didn't intend to do so and would allow him to transfer if he so desired.

By transferring to South Carolina, Bowen inches closer to making his NCAA debut, but it's equally plausible he never plays for the Gamecocks, either.

He already has to sit out this season in accordance with the NCAA rules regarding transfers, and the NCAA would still have to reinstate him before he could suit up for South Carolina for the 2018-19 season.

The opportunity to enter the 2018 draft will be on the table for Bowen, too. Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman ranked Bowen 41st overall in his big board in December. Bowen was absent on Wasserman's most recent big board.

While Bowen is a big addition for South Carolina, he and the school have multiple hurdles to clear before he can assume a starring role for the Gamecocks.

The South Carolina Gamecocks signed men's basketball coach Frank Marin and women's basketball coach Dawn Staley to contract extensions on Friday, the school announced.

Martin's contract now runs through the 2022-23 season after he received a one-year extension, while Staley's deal is slated to expire following the 2024-25 season after she was rewarded with a four-year extension for leading the Gamecocks to a national title earlier in the month. 

"This contract renewal is demonstrative of Dawn’s role in building our women’s basketball program as one of the best in the nation, one that is built for sustained success," athletic director Ray Tanner said, per the school's release. "Dawn’s leadership role in athletics, as a National Championship coach and the USA Basketball coach, continues to bring a welcomed spotlight to our University."

Martin, meanwhile, led the Gamecocks to a 26-11 season that was capped off by a Cinderella run to the Final Four after his squad emerged from a crowded East Regional, thanks to wins over Duke, Baylor and Florida before they were bounced from the Big Dance in a national semifinal showdown with Gonzaga. 

The 2016-17 campaign also represented a third consecutive season of improvement in the win column for the Gamecocks. After South Carolina won 14 games in each of Martin's first two years at the helm, they made steady progress with 17 victories in Year 3 and 25 in Year 4 before rattling off 26 this past season. 

"I can't express how grateful I am to know the trust and belief that Dr. Pastides, Ray Tanner and the Board of Trustees have in me, our staff and our program," Martin said in the release. "My wife, Anya, our children and myself are ecstatic to continue to call Columbia our home."

 

For more news, rumors and related stories about the South Carolina Gamecocks and college basketball, check out the college basketball and South Carolina streams on Bleacher Report's app.

Mississippi State slayed the giant, but South Carolina ended up with the spoils.

The Gamecocks are the 2017 NCAA women's national champions after their 67-55 win over the No. 2 seed Bulldogs in Sunday's title game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.     

While Mississippi State snapped Connecticut's 111-game winning streak in the semifinals Friday night, it couldn't replicate the magic in its third straight matchup against a No. 1 seed in this tournament.

The Bulldogs faced the highest possible seed in every game they played during March Madness.

The win represents the first national title for South Carolina, which had only made its first Final Four appearance two years earlier. 

There were plenty of noteworthy fans ready to congratulate the squad on the victory:

Congratulations to my friend @DawnStaley and the great @GamecockWBB on a terrific win!

— Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) April 3, 2017

I've seen firsthand up close for 5 years the pursuit of a championship by @dawnstaley & @GamecockWBB tonite I'm crying again. Love u guys

— Frank Martin (@coachFMartin) April 3, 2017

Congratulations to @dawnstaley & the @GamecockWBB team on their first NCAA Women's national championship! Phenomenal play & well deserved.

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) April 3, 2017

A'ja Wilson was the star in the game, scoring 23 points with 10 rebounds and four blocks in the win.

Mitch Pugh of the Post and Courier summed it up nicely:

A'ja Wilson is dominating.

— Mitch Pugh📰 (@SCMitchP) April 3, 2017

Allisha Gray also played a key role with 18 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks as the team dominated inside.

Shockingly, South Carolina didn't hit a single three-pointer but generally avoided outside shots. Instead, the team attacked the basket and made a difference in the paint, also shooting 17-of-22 from the free-throw line.

Meanwhile, the Gamecocks held Mississippi State to just 34.5 percent shooting from the field and 2-of-12 from beyond the arc.

Morgan William, the hero from Friday's overtime win over UConn, finished with just eight points and didn't appear in the fourth quarter.

Victoria Vivians led the way for the Bulldogs with 12 points on 4-of-16 shooting.

While the two sides were close in a low-scoring first quarter, a 9-0 run helped South Carolina gain the early advantage.

Lindsay Jones of USA Today described the intial play:

South Carolina taking control early second quarter, now up 25-16. MSU's star, Morgan William, looks off, just airballed a jumper.

— Lindsay Jones (@bylindsayhjones) April 2, 2017

William was held scorless in the first quarter and only went 1-of-5 from the field in the first half. Conversely, just about everything was falling for South Carolina:

All the moves! @GamecockWBB #NationalChampionship #WFinalFour pic.twitter.com/S8wxkwtOap

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) April 2, 2017

A 21-13 rebounding advantage also helped the Gamecocks hold what became a 36-26 lead at halftime.

The momentum stayed with the No. 1 seed, which built a 14-point lead in the third quarter and seemed to make a big play whenever Mississippi State tried to come back.

This Tyasha Harris three-point play seemed like it would kill the underdog's spirits:

AND 1!@GamecockWBB #NationalChampionship #WFinalFour pic.twitter.com/x1X3eLd5L6

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) April 2, 2017

However, the Bulldogs immediately responded with a 9-0 run to get back in the game. They cut the lead to four before South Carolina bounced back to take a 52-44 advantage into the final quarter.

It seemed like every time the game got close, Wilson was there with a big play:

A'ja Wilson has the answer. @GamecockWBB #NationalChampionship #WFinalFour pic.twitter.com/hjVjKfNR1u

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) April 2, 2017

Icing ➡️ 🎂@GamecockWBB #WFinalFour #NationalChampionship pic.twitter.com/rACwhqGwoV

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) April 3, 2017

The fourth-quarter dominance from the All-American was what the Gamecocks needed to close out the 12-point victory.

South Carolina has few seniors on its roster and should be a contender once again next season, while Mississippi State also has plenty of returning talent. In the meantime, the Gamecocks will celebrate their first national championship.

          

Postgame Reaction

Head coach Dawn Staley, who made the Final Four three times as a player but never won a title, showed plenty of emotion after the win.

"I'm just so happy that our dreams our coming true today," she said, per WIS News 10.

Meanwhile, her star player is already looking forward at the 2018 title.

"Man, just be with us next year—we're trying to be in this same spot next year," Wilson said, per Doug Feinberg of the Associated Press. "We're going to see how it goes."

In the other locker room, Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer didn't want to put the blame on his players.

"I'm going to take responsibility for our poor defensive play today," he said, per Will Sammon of the Clarion-Ledger.

Despite the disappointing finish, the Bulldogs should be proud of an outstanding run that will be remembered for years.

South Carolina forward Chris Silva came up big in Saturday's Final Four game against Gonzaga by shutting down a seemingly open layup attempt from Bulldogs big man Przemek Karnowski.

Silva's block prevented Gonzaga from extending its 26-24 lead with 6:45 to play in the first half in Glendale, Arizona.

South Carolina guard Duane Notice delivered a heroic assist in Saturday's Final Four game against Gonzaga, sneaking a pass by Bulldogs big man Przemek Karnowski and right into the hands of teammate Chris Silva for the slam.

The effort helped close Gonzaga's lead to just 13-12 with 13:30 to play in the first half in Glendale, Arizona. 

NEW YORK — The NCAA tournament creates a high-stakes setting that magnifies performance, and NBA evaluators each watch it through their own custom scouting lens. 

Interpretations of postseason impact vary among scouts who all have different values and viewpoints on projecting talent. Some believe strong tournament play can be an indicator for future success.

"Yes, it's a big stage, and the passion and desire to win means a lot to me," one NBA executive told Bleacher Report. "It's about the care factor; at the end of the season, who makes the push to continue to succeed? It does come into play for sure."

For other scouts, it's the gradual buildup and progression, not necessarily the tournament itself. 

"The tournament factor isn't so much of a big deal. I think what guys really want to see is a development line on the uptick from Day 1 up to now," said another NBA scout. 

From a draft-stock perspective, we've seen prospects salvage inconsistent regular seasons with breakout showings in the tournament.

Syracuse's Malachi Richardson was the most recent in 2016. Through 31 regular-season games last year, he hung below the radar, shooting 37.5 percent for a bubble team. But a few scoring outbursts on Syracuse's Final Four run propelled Richardson into the first-round discussion, and the Sacramento Kings snatched him (via trade) at No. 22 overall. 

This year, Michigan's D.J. Wilson and Moritz Wagner jumped out early as possible risers from this year's tournament. Neither garnered much attention in the draft discussion coming into the tournament, having each finished at least 15 games with single-digit point totals. But Wagner's 26-point explosion against Louisville in the round of 32 raised eyebrows. Wilson has averaged 16 points and hit six threes through three tournament games.

Suddenly, both names make for relevant draft chatter. Scouts seem more hesitant on Wagner, but Wilson has raised interest with just two weeks of high-level play. "I think Wilson can do what (Dallas Mavericks forward) Dwight Powell is doing and possibly more," said one Eastern Conference scout.

Dominant NCAA tournaments often help the perception of seniors, despite struggles to win over evaluators after four years of college basketball. Before the 2014 NCAA tournament, Shabazz Napier had played 137 games at Connecticut and never generated serious NBA interest. It wound up taking 143 games.

In an update right after the 2014 NCAA tournament, ESPN's Chad Ford wrote: "No one did more to help his draft stock in the tournament than Napier. Previously billed as a borderline second-round pick by many scouts, his brilliant play for Connecticut has pushed his draft stock into the first round."

In those six games during the Huskies' national title run, Napier managed to diminish concerns that lingered after 137 career games and convince the Miami Heat he was worth taking No. 24 overall (via trade).

This is all promising news for South Carolina's Sindarius Thornwell, who's 22 years old and had never received much love from NBA scouts. Even after being named the SEC's Player of the Year, there was little buzz surrounding Thornwell. 

Averaging 25.8 points through four tournament wins, with another chance to strengthen his case against Gonzaga, it now seems like a given Thornwell gets drafted. Teams may buy into the timing of his performance or simply admire the steady improvement. 

There are, of course, plenty of evaluators whose scouting scopes don't account for the increased magnitude of the NCAA tournament. A few polled gave hard-no answers to whether they scout postseason games any differently. One viewed them as any other "big regular-season game."

Those who don't put any stock into raised play during March Madness could point to former NCAA tournament stars like Napier, Mitch McGary or R.J Hunter. It's safe to say each of those drafted prospects was the result of overvalued postseason success.

Still, it won't stop front offices in the future from moving prospects up their board following impact play in crunch time. 

Thornwell will have the chance to raise his stock further in the 2017 Final Four. Other than age, the knock on him revolves around his use of strength over quickness and explosiveness. A physical driver and bully with the ball, he gets to the line at excellent rate (8.4 times per game), but only shoots 47.4 percent inside the arc (a career high) after shooting under 40 percent his first two years and 41 percent in 2015-16. 

Finishing against Gonzaga's 7-footers, Przemek Karnowski and Zach Collins, would assuage concerns over Thornwell's ability to convert against NBA-sized rim protection. And if South Carolina can advance and meet North Carolina in the championship game, another opportunity would present itself.

Showing he can score on Justin Jackson, a 6'7" wing and potential lottery pick who kept Monk quiet during the Elite 8, would undoubtedly improve Thornwell's credibility. 

For scouts, it's about assessing the significance of high-stakes performance versus month-by-month progress and consistency. For prospects thriving in the tournament, it only takes one team to believe there's meaning in their raised level of play during the most crucial time of the year. 

After the formalities—after he slips on the "CUT THE NET" T-shirt, after he gathers with his teammates for the trophy presentation on the dais, after he snips a section of the net and strings it around his hat—PJ Dozier sets off on his own path.

He isn't lost, but he doesn't know exactly where he’s going. First, he finds a teammate holding the East Regional trophy—which South Carolina had earned by defeating No. 10 seed Marquette, No. 2 Duke, No. 3 Baylor and finally, on this Sunday afternoon, No. 4 Florida, giving the school its first Final Four berth—and pulls it into his chest.

"Oh yeah," he says. "I'll hold on to this for a while." Then he lets a few fans find him, lowering his shoulders to slip into the camera frame for their selfies or throwing up four fingers for their Snapchat stories.

Then, as if he's just remembered something he'd forgotten in another room, he 180s on the court and cuts through the maze toward the crowd.

He high-fives his way through the fans standing courtside, slips between security guards at the bottom of the lower bowl and scales chairbacks till he reaches his destination: his family. Standing tall above the nearly dozen grandparents, parents, siblings and cousins who made the trip is Perry Dozier Sr., a former South Carolina forward and PJ's father. Without a word, they embrace. And as PJ descends again toward the court, Perry yells, "I'm floating!"

As PJ makes his way at last toward the locker room, he finally finds the words to fit his feelings. "I'm blessed," he says. "I'm living right now what every kid dreams about: playing for your hometown team and taking them further than they've ever been."

---

About 30 years before South Carolina signed PJ Dozier to its class of 2015, the Gamecocks were hoping to secure the services of high school stars Perry and Terry Dozier in the class of 1985. To that end, then-Gamecocks coach Bill E. Foster shipped a nearly 10x10 poster to the twin boys' home in Baltimore. It read, "SOUTH CAROLINA WANTS PERRY AND TERRY," and it was co-signed, a Baltimore Sun story notes, by seemingly "half the state."

Perry, who is 6'10", and Terry, a 6'9" McDonald's All-American, were nicknamed the Twin Towers, and they did eventually sign with South Carolina. Although injuries limited Perry to 2.5 points per game through three seasons, Terry averaged 13.9 points through four years and even played on a South Carolina team that advanced to the NCAA tournament as a senior, losing to N.C. State in the first round. After school, Terry went on to play part of a season with the NBA's Charlotte Hornets and then for several years overseas, and Perry set down roots in South Carolina.

After having two girls, Asia and Amelia, Perry and his wife, Theresa, welcomed PJ to the world in 1996. Years before the internet began giving birth to an endless succession of five-year-old basketball phenoms, PJ became just that. In grainy video footage, five-year-old PJ can be seen crossing over and stealing from seven-year-olds and sinking layups with both hands.

To understand how serious basketball instruction was in the Dozier household, consider this: That footage wasn't shot so it could be uploaded to YouTube, which was still years away from launch. It was shot so that Terry, the uncle-slash-trainer, and Perry, the father-slash-coach, could review it with PJ.

Before PJ was studying multiplication tables, he was studying tape.

Perry would coach PJ in rec leagues and on the AAU circuit until sixth grade, and Terry would train him until high school. They built PJ's game from the fundamentals up, starting with ball-handling and footwork. Although they figured PJ would be tall, they didn't want him pigeonholed as a big man, so Perry would fudge PJ's age and play him with boys one or two years older.

"With the way the game was changing, you were going to need ball skills," Perry says. "And when you play with older kids, you get tougher."

By March 2009, a month after he had been surrounded by the NBA's best while playing in the junior national game at NBA All-Star Weekend in Phoenix, PJ was named the best sixth-grader in the country by Hoop Scoop. The ranking put his name in a New York Times news brief, and his skyrocketing hoops career was chronicled in a Sunday feature in South Carolina's The State. "I see my basketball talent as a gift from God," 12-year-old PJ told the newspaper, "and you can't just let God's gift sit there."

What neither Hoop Scoop nor the two newspapers nor any of his many opponents knew was that PJ had torn his right anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments the previous year during a tournament in Charlotte. Although doctors repaired his MCL, they advised Perry to put off his son's ACL surgery for fear that it could potentially stunt his growth. And so as PJ grew from a 5'6", No. 1-ranked sixth-grader to a 6'4", consensus top-25 sophomore playing for his father at Spring Valley High, he did so with only one functional ACL.

Although the eventual surgery sidelined him for his junior season in high school, he recovered in time to become a McDonald's All-American and a top recruiting target for prestigious programs such as North Carolina, Michigan, Louisville, Georgetown and, of course, South Carolina.

Even though PJ had grown up going to Gamecocks games, his commitment was far from guaranteed. He had seen the school's fanbase grow, but he remembered the nearly empty arena of his childhood. Even though his sister Asia was a captain on what would become a women's Final Four squad at South Carolina, he wasn't sure the men's team would soon make a similar breakthrough.

Part of what eventually sold him was Frank Martin, who had been introduced in 2012 but whose head coaching record was 28-38 through two seasons. Martin made no promises about wins and losses. He focused instead on the smallest details of development, just like PJ's uncle and father had done.

"Some people were saying that we were pressuring him to go out of state," Perry says, "but nothing could be farther from the truth. We wanted him to go where he'd fit, where he'd be developed. And of course as a parent, you want your child close to home."

Or, as Asia puts it, "South Carolina always had his heart, but they had to earn his commitment."

Although Martin never made PJ a poster, he did take advantage of that proximity: He or a staff member attended almost every one of PJ's high school or AAU games. It was the same full-court press that had helped them land South Carolina's top prospect in the class of 2013, Sindarius Thornwell.

On Nov. 12, 2014, the first day of the early signing period, PJ held a press conference at his high school and slipped on a Gamecocks hat. When Martin heard the news, he tweeted: "I am so proud to welcome [PJ Dozier] 2 the family. Unbelievable young man that will wear the Garnet and Black proudly!!! Let's goooooookk."

One of the first replies read: "What a great day, coach! Watch out SEC! The Gamecocks are on the way up!"

---

If not for Asia, PJ might have never played for the Gamecocks. Although his father and uncle were always his on-court counsel, Asia taught him the intangibles. Three years his senior, she'd challenge him to driveway duels that would sometimes last hours and almost always end in tears.

"I wasn't going to let him grow up soft just because he didn't have a big brother," Asia says. "So I made sure I was big sister and big brother."

That competition extended well beyond the basketball court. In fact, the most contentious Dozier family activity was often bowling night, which would happen one or two times a month at the Royal Z Lanes near their home in Spring Valley. Perry, Terry and their mother, Paula, had all spent time as semi-professional bowlers. Even Grandma wasn't above trash talking. "I can't say exactly what would be said when we went bowling," says PJ, whose personal best is 287, "but those nights were legendary."

As he transitioned to college, PJ continued to lean on family. Asia's dorm suite, which was almost identical to his and two floors above it, became his second home. Asia would often return from practice to find PJ napping in her bed. They'd buy groceries together, and then he'd beg her to cook dinner for him. He'd bargain by saying he'd do the dishes afterward, but Asia rarely held her baby brother to that promise.

On the court, PJ was battling the kind of outsized expectations that get placed on every 5-star prospect. Although he started 28 of the Gamecocks' 34 games, he averaged just 6.7 points and 3.0 rebounds in 19 minutes a night. Most troubling were his advanced stats, which, according to kenpom.com, showed a player who used nearly 27 percent of his team's possessions with an abysmal offensive rating of 78.9.

Although South Carolina started the season 15-0, it was clear Martin hadn't found the right fit for his star freshman. "I've got to figure him out as a player," he told reporters after a January win over Vanderbilt. "That's the biggest adjustment anyone has to make. I've got to figure out what he's real good at, and he's got to figure out that he's got to be a little more aggressive. He's too passive."

The Gamecocks would limp to a 9-7 finish, lose in the first round of the SEC tournament to Georgia and barely miss out on the Big Dance. The snub left a bad taste in everyone's mouth.

For Dozier, that meant rededicating himself to training in the offseason. Through South Carolina's legendary strength and conditioning program, he estimates he put on about 15 pounds of muscle. He also accepted a secondary scoring role, averaging 13.8 points behind Thornwell (21.6 PPG), who would become the SEC Player of the Year.

But for the second season in a row, South Carolina struggled in the stretch run. Bookended by a quadruple-overtime loss to Alabama and a first-round exit from the SEC tournament at the hands of the same Crimson Tide, South Carolina finished the season 3-6. After that SEC tournament loss, Thornwell erupted in the postgame locker room. "I was pissed," he remembers. He called out players specifically, asking them if they wanted to keep playing or not.

Martin reminded his team of a metaphor he'd used all season, of tug of war. "If one person on one side lets go of the rope, it's bad," he told reporters. "I don't care how hard it is. You can't let go of the rope or your team's going to lose. So we started saying, 'We're in a difficult moment right now. Hold on to that rope. Don't let that rope go. I don't care how hard it gets—don't let that rope go.'" He also asked them a simple question: "Why not us?"

After breezing by Marquette in the first round of this year's NCAA tournament, South Carolina has strung together the most impressive run of any team in the field. Dozier has more than done his part, averaging 15.3 points in the tourney and being named to the All-East Regional team. Although he'd dropped off most mock drafts, his recent performances have inspired scouts to take a fresh peek at a player who has always looked the part of a future NBA All-Star but hadn't put it all together prior to this tournament.

For Dozier, the most enthralling thing about this run hasn't been that NBA scouts are watching. It has been seeing how fervently Gamecocks fans have followed their team. "I was coming to South Carolina games when almost no one was watching," he says. "Everyone is watching us now."

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As the Gamecocks' bus idles in the bowels of Madison Square Garden, Perry Dozier and his family brave the 41-degree New York day to see PJ one more time. Well, most of his family—Asia and an aunt excuse themselves and head to a Kmart across the street to wait in the warmth. "My hands are cold," Perry says, "but I'd stand out here all day to see my boy."

When PJ finally emerges, he is wearing his South Carolina sweats, a beige Steph Curry backpack and a bright smile. He poses for more photos with fans and then basks in the afterglow of another win with his family. He jokes with Asia that when reporters were asking him questions in the locker room, he would twirl the piece of the net secured to his hat to show it off.

When the buzzer sounded in the arena, Asia had a flashback to her own Final Four run. Now she hopes out loud that he will make it a game further than her Gamecocks did.

After a final family photo—and a brief interruption from a pair of college-aged women wearing South Carolina jerseys who demanded a photo with PJ by yelling, "Party Juice! Party Juice!"—PJ gives his father a fist bump. "See you in Phoenix!" several fans yell. PJ turns toward the bus and strides away. He knows exactly where he's going next.

    

David Gardner is a staff writer for B/R Mag. Follow him on Twitter: @byDavidGardner.

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