South Carolina Baseball: Gamecocks falling in NCAA Tournament projections

South Carolina baseball is not playing its best ball as the regular season approaches its end.

The Gamecocks endured an ugly sweep at the hands of the rival Georgia Bulldogs last weekend, and with a difficult final test on the road against the #1-ranked Tennessee Volunteers still ahead, most fans are bracing for another disappointing weekend. If things don't go well against the Vols, Carolina's NCAA Tournament fate will be a bit tumultuous.

As things stand in the latest NCAA Tournament projections from the analysts over at D1Baseball, South Carolina is in line for a 2-seed. In this mock bracket, the Gamecocks are in the Regional hosted by the rival Clemson Tigers. As the 6th overall seed, the Tigers would be hosting the Gamecocks, the College of Charleston Cougars, and the Wright State Raiders.

The Clemson, South Carolina Regional is partnered with the Terre Haute, Indiana Regional. Hosted by the 11th overall seed Indiana State Sycamores, the Arizona Wildcats, Illinois Fighting Illini, and Bowling Green Falcons are also in the Terre Haute Regional. The winner of the Clemson Regional will face off with the winner of the Terre Haute Regional in the Super Regionals for a chance to play in the College World Series.

Frankly, though, it would take a much better-than-anticipated finish to the season for the Gamecocks to end up with a 2-seed. A series win against Tennessee and/or a strong showing in Hoover for the SEC Tournament would be required for that to happen. If the Gamecocks get swept and then loses in the single-elimination round of the SECT, USC might miss the field altogether.

This weekend's series in Knoxville will start on Thursday and run through Saturday. Thursday's opener will start at 6:30 PM EST, Friday's game 2 also begins at 6:30 PM EST, and the finale on Saturday is set for 1:00 PM EST. All three games will be streamable on the SEC Network+ on the ESPN app.

The Gamecocks are set to start Ty Good on Thursday but have not announced starters for games 2 or 3.