Beating a No. 1 team coached by Rick Barnes? Frank Martin’s done it before
Frank Martin has never defeated the nation’s No. 1 team as South Carolina’s coach, but he played a quiet role in the Gamecocks’ only such win in their 120 years as a basketball program.
On Jan. 18, 2010, eight days before one of the bigger moments in Colonial Life Arena history, the Martin-led Kansas State Wildcats beat top-ranked Texas, 71-62. When the next AP poll was released, Kentucky moved to the top spot — only to be knocked off by Devan Downey and 18,000 of his closest friends.
Downey scored 30 points and cemented his USC legacy as the Gamecocks upset the Wildcats, 68-62, on Jan. 26. Gamecock fans flooded the floor and Downey reportedly shouted “I told you so!” to anyone around him. Carolina had failed its previous seven tests against No. 1. It entered this particular game with an 11-8 record.
Eight years later, the Gamecocks are 10-9 (5-1 SEC) as they welcome No. 1 Tennessee (18-1, 6-0) to a sold-out CLA at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. This is Martin’s first shot at a top-ranked team since the Gamecocks fell at Kentucky, 77-43, on Feb. 14, 2015. He’s 2-6 all-time against No. 1s, but 1-0 against Rick Barnes in this situation.
It was Barnes in charge of the Longhorns when they couldn’t keep their high ranking at K-State. Barnes now leads the Volunteers.
“It makes me understand why I respect him the way I do,” Martin said Monday of Barnes, “that we were both in another league and he was No. 1 in the country and now we’re both in the same league and he’s No. 1 in the country again.
“That was a great night for K-State. It’s a great moment anytime you have the No. 1 team in your building. Great opportunity.”
If not for Martin’s success that evening, Kentucky — then featuring John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins — likely comes to Columbia the next week at No. 2 or worse. South Carolina could still be winless against top-ranked teams.
It’s 1-12, instead.
“In our old locker room, in the (Carolina) Coliseum, I’ve seen it playing on the TV,” senior guard Hassani Gravett said of the ‘10 USC-UK game. “I didn’t really catch the whole game, but I’ve seen some of the highlights.”
All five members of Kentucky’s starting lineup that night are still playing in the NBA. Tennessee might not feature that kind of talent, but the Volunteers don’t pose an obvious weakness.
They lead the SEC in scoring offense, scoring margin, free throw percentage, field goal percentage, field goal percentage defense, blocked shots, assists and assist-to-turnover ratio.
In three-plus seasons, Barnes has taken UT from 15-19 to a legitimate threat to capture consecutive SEC titles. Junior forward Grant Williams is a legitimate threat to take national player of the year honors. Martin, stemming from a comment Barnes made in October 2017, takes a little joy in the Vols’ rise.
“Rick Barnes said at media day, ‘Our deal here is to build our program the way Frank built South Carolina,’” Martin said. “That’s one of the biggest compliments that’s ever been paid to anything I’ve done. No. 1, because I respect the heck out of Rick Barnes. And No. 2, here’s this new coach who’s a hall of famer coming into the SEC, where he’s never coached in, and he’s not saying, ‘We got to use the blueprint that was used at Kentucky or Billy Donovan at Florida or Bruce (Pearl) was when he was at Tennessee.’ He said the one we used.
“That to me was unbelievable.”
After USC whipped Tennessee by 27 in February 2017, the Volunteers are 20-7 over their last 27 league games.
“That same group of kids have stayed the course,” Martin said, “and now they’re the No. 1 team in the country.
“We play very similar styles.”
South Carolina has topped the last three ranked SEC teams to come to CLA, including a win over then-No. 16 Auburn last week.
“We’re prepared to play another game,” said USC senior forward Chris Silva. “But the fact that they’re No. 1, it just means that they do things the right way every time. So we gotta pay attention to every detail.”
Like Downey and the Gamecocks and Martin and the Wildcats did within eight days of each other in 2010.
“That team I had back then, the starting five was old,” Martin said. “They were strong and they’d been through it together. I don’t have that age group on our team this year. We probably don’t have the depth that that team had.
“But that’s OK. I’m real happy with the version of us that we’re becoming. We just gotta go out there and play through our strengths.”
NEXT GAME
Who: No. 1 Tennessee (18-1, 6-0 SEC) at South Carolina (10-9, 5-1)
When: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Colonial Life Arena
TV: SEC Network
This story was originally published January 28, 2019 at 1:36 PM.
