South Carolina Basketball: Former Gamecock transfers to SEC rival

There was some transfer portal news for the Gamecocks over the weekend, but it had nothing to do with a player coming into the South Carolina basketball program or leaving it.

Instead, a former Gamecock from the Palmetto State is making his return to the SEC.

Former Ridge View High School forward Ja'Von Benson did not play much at all for the Gamecocks in the final two years of the Frank Martin era in Columbia or the first year of Lamont Paris' time in garnet and black. The lack of a role on the team led Benson to transfer out of the program, and he joined fellow former Gamecock Ford Cooper in transferring to the Hampton Pirates.

On Friday, it was announced that Ja'Von Benson is the newest member of Chris Beard's Ole Miss Rebels team.

Despite showing some flashes of productivity and real athleticism in his very limited minutes, Benson played in just 12 games over three seasons with the Gamecocks, but he had a bigger role for the Pirates. Benson averaged over 7 points, 5 rebounds, and nearly 1.5 blocks in just 15 minutes per game.

The per-minute production caught the eye of Beard and the Rebels, and Benson parlayed that into his SEC return. He will get a chance to play against his former team in his former home arena as Ole Miss will travel to Columbia to take on the Gamecocks as part of USC's 2024-2025 SEC schedule.

Benson is not the only former Gamecock to transfer to another SEC program this offseason as big Josh Gray is now part of the Missouri Tigers basketball team. The Gamecocks also are bringing in two SEC transfers as center Nick Pringle (Alabama Crimson Tide) and Jordan Butler (Missouri Tigers) have signed with the South Carolina basketball program this spring.