South Carolina men’s basketball is off to Pittsburgh.

The Gamecocks are officially in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2017 and just the 10th time in program history overall, earning a No. 6 seed in the Midwest regional. This is the highest seed South Carolina has earned since it was a No. 3 seed in 1998, and the third-highest seed the program has ever earned.

"it was fun just to watch the guys knowing their name was going to get called," Lamont Paris said. But still, when the moment happens, sitting there seeing their reaction and all the work they put in, to be rewarded by having their name called is super awesome."

South Carolina (26-7) will take on Oregon (23-11) in the first round of the tournament on Thursday at, with a 4:00 p.m. ET tip off time on TNT. If the Gamecocks win their first-round matchup, the second round game would be on Saturday against the winner of Creighton vs. Akron. Paris has coached an NCAA Tournament game in Pittsburgh before, although he ended up on the wrong end of a 54-53 decision against Illinois as Chattanoog head coach.

Oregon enters the field as the Pac-12 Tournament champions after winning the title game over Colorado on Saturday night. The Ducks also feature former Gamecock Jermaine Couisnard on their roster.

"I haven't been brushing up on my Oregon basketball all season," Paris joked. "I know they have a former Gamecock on their team, and he played really well in their championship game. And I know that if you win that Pac-12 Tournament, you're a good team. At this point every team that is in the NCAA Tournament is really good, playing really well, or both."

The draw also represents a positive outcome for Meechie Johnson, South Carolina's starting guard making his first NCAA Tournament appearance. Johnson is a Cleveand native, giving his family a short drive to see him play on Thursday afternoon. It was an outcome he manifested shortly after the Gamecocks lost in the SEC Tournament, and was elated to get.

"I predicted this," Johnson said. "The whole family, the city is about to come out. I'm just really excited for everything."

If South Carolina wins its first-round match-up and catches a little bit of luck with an upset in the 3 vs. 14 game, there could be another connection for Paris. That scenario would see the Gamecocks face Akron, where Paris spend the first five seasons of his Division I coaching career as an assistant from 2005-2010.

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