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Mary Ann Chastain/AP/
South Carolina's Zam Fredrick (20) celebrates with fans after his game-winning basket.
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Fredrick beats buzzer to sink the Gators
South Carolina's Devan Downey (2) celebrates as they defeated Florida 70-69.
Mary Ann Chastain/AP
It was a head nod and a quiet two words.
Mike Holmes looked at Zam Fredrick, turned his head toward downcourt and whispered “go long,” hoping his teammate read his lips.
Fredrick did.
And it ended up being the most important wordless conversation South Carolina has had in some time.
Those final 3.3 seconds were — as Fredrick put it — “perfect.” The result was a stirring 70-69 victory against No. 24 Florida.
Fredrick’s game-winning layup barely beat the buzzer, six seconds after the Gamecocks senior had missed a free throw that would have tied the game.
“It’s so sweet to be able to redeem yourself in that short a time and be able to come out with a win and not to have to answer that question about choking in the end,” Fredrick said.
The next few months will tell whether this win vaults USC’s program into prominence. For a few days, at least, the players who have experienced consecutive losing seasons, and a fan base sorely in need of a winner, can bask in a marquee victory.
The manner of the win made it all the more perfect.
USC rallied from five points down with 35 seconds remaining. And on the final play, the Gamecocks went the length of the court to pull it off.
A matter of milliseconds changed the outcome. When Florida’s Chandler Parsons missed the front end of a one-and-one, Holmes grabbed the rebound and fired a pass downcourt to a streaking Fredrick, who took one dribble and made the layup.
“It was a perfect pass. I mean perfect!” Fredrick said. “There was nothing else that could’ve been done. He dropped it in in stride, (I) took one dribble and put it straight up.”
Holmes said he looked at Fredrick before Parsons’ free throw.
“I was trying to get his attention,” Holmes said. “He read my lips. I told him to go long.”
It appeared to be a defensive breakdown by Florida, which didn’t have a player back to defend Fredrick. But coach Billy Donovan said his main concern was finding USC’s Devan Downey, who had pulled the Gamecocks back in the final minute.
“We were matched up properly, I just thought it was a great play by Holmes,” Donovan said.
The players and fans went wild with a few streaming onto the court.
Fredrick was set up to be the goat before the final play.
“Zam has an incredible memory, in that he doesn’t have one,” USC coach Darrin Horn said. “He always thinks the next shot’s going in.”
It was the Gamecocks’ second victory against a ranked team this season, joining the Jan. 2 win at then-No. 19 Baylor. Rankings aside, the Las Vegas line was actually a toss-up.
For 36 minutes, the biggest lead for either team was five. The lead changed nine times with nine ties. And the last change was the most dramatic in a long time at this arena.
That it all started with six seconds to go was appropriate. Last year on this same court, USC twice lost leads against SEC teams with six seconds remaining. The memory of those bitter losses to Vanderbilt and Mississippi State lingered for Fredrick, whose defense — along with Downey — was pointed to as part of the breakdown in those losses.
Wednesday’s win was the surest sign yet that USC had grown from those losses. Or maybe karma was swinging back their way.
“We paid a price in the summer,” Fredrick said. “In halftime and in huddles, we always said we paid the price. We deserve to win games like this.”
Reach Emerson at (803) 771-8676.
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