South Carolina basketball: start date set for SEC play

The South Carolina basketball team has learned its start date for SEC play.

Today, the Southeastern Conference announced its planned start date for league play in the upcoming season. SEC play for 2020-21 will begin on December 29th.

The conference is moving forward with an 18-game schedule, which is no different from the number of contests on a typical league slate. There will be two open dates throughout the SEC schedule, though one of those dates will be filled with the SEC/Big 12 Challenge matchup for ten league teams.

Earlier this month, the NCAA set its regular season start date for out-of-conference competition, which will be November 25th.  The Gamecocks were scheduled to participate in the Hall of Fame Classic starting on November 22nd alongside TCU, California, and Northwestern. It’s yet to be determined whether the tournament will be postponed or cancelled.

Below is a press release from the Gamecock athletic department further detailing the SEC’s announcement.

"BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Southeastern Conference has established Dec. 29 and 30 as the new start dates for its 2020-21 men’s basketball conference schedule while the women’s basketball start date will remain Dec. 31, 2020, as previously scheduled, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey announced Friday.The 2020-21 SEC men’s basketball conference schedule will be comprised of 20 play dates that would accommodate an 18-game schedule with two open dates. Ten SEC schools will fill one of those open dates with the SEC/Big 12 Challenge in late January. The four teams not participating in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge will play league games that day.The 2020-21 SEC women’s basketball conference schedule remains at 18 play dates that will fit a 16-game league schedule.Earlier this month, the NCAA Division I Council approved a Nov. 25 start date for the 2020-21 men’s and women’s college basketball seasons, when the SEC will begin non-conference play. Teams can begin preseason practice on Wednesday, Oct. 14, and will have a 42-day window to conduct no more than 30 practices.Continue to check GamecocksOnline.com and the South Carolina men’s and women’s basketball social media accounts (@GamecockMBB, @GamecockWBB) for more information on the Gamecocks’ 2020-21 seasons."

South Carolina is poised to make some noise in the SEC this year as it returns eight of their top ten scorers from last season. The team got a huge boost when leading scorer AJ Lawson opted to forego the NBA draft and return to school for his junior year. Frank Martin will look to have the Gamecocks positioned in the top half of the league for the fifth time in the past six seasons.

This announcement affects the ladies’ team, too, as Dawn Staley looks to build upon a 32-1 regular season and fifth SEC tournament championship in the last six years.