New out-of-conference game added to South Carolina basketball schedule

Last week, South Carolina basketball head coach Lamont Paris finalized his roster for the 2024-2025 season. Former walk-on Austin Herro was put on scholarship, putting the final touches on Coach Paris' group. Herro joins freshmen Cam Scott (4-star wing) and Okku Federiko (4-star forward) and transfer portal additions Nick Pringle (Alabama Crimson Tide center), Jordan Butler (Missouri Tigers forward/center), and Jamarii Thomas (Norfolk State, guard) as the new scholarship players on the team.

As the season draws closer, Gamecock fans have been growing in anticipation for their favorite team's pursuit of back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances, something that hasn't happened in Columbia since the 1990s.

Adding to that anticipation is the slow reveal of the 2024-2025 schedule. The entire SEC slate has already come out, and more non-conference tilts are announced seemingly every week.

According to a report from CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein, South Carolina basketball has added a new game to the 2024-2025 out-of-conference schedule as the East Carolina Pirates will travel to Columbia to take on the Gamecocks on December 7th.

Many expected this game to pop up on the Gamecock schedule. Last year, USC made the trip up to Greenville, North Carolina to face off with ECU, and because most power programs don't travel to mid-majors without at least one return trip, the home side of this home-and-home series doesn't come as a surprise.

Last year, despite South Carolina basketball being a much better unit than the East Carolina Pirates, a raucous crowd helped Michael Schwartz's squad keep things a little too close for comfort.

The East Carolina game is joined by the annual rivalry against the Clemson Tigers and the season opener versus the North Florida Ospreys as home non-con contests that have already been announced.

The Gamecocks also will take a road trip to Bloomington, Indiana to face the Indiana Hoosiers and will play in the Fort Myers Tip-Off in Florida against either the Michigan Wolverines, Xavier Musketeers, or Virginia Tech Hokies. There will be the possibility for more games in Fort Myers. Carolina also will play Boston College on the road as part of the ACC/SEC Challenge.