Why a return to the Final Four is ‘bittersweet’ for this Gamecock
At what ended up being one of his final media sessions as a member of South Carolina’s basketball team, Hassani Gravett wore a memorable hat.
It was gray with bold black lettering across the front, spelling out “March Madness.”
The then-Gamecocks guard claimed it was just a coincidence that he pulled it out on the brink of USC’s trip to Mississippi State, a Feb. 23 game filled with NCAA Tournament implications.
“There’s no significance,” Gravett said with a grin. “I cut my hair, so I can just rock some of my old hats now.”
The lid is two years old, from a time when USC played through March and into April. Gravett was a sophomore on the Carolina team that advanced to the Final Four. This weekend, he returns to the site of college basketball’s biggest stage — to represent the Gamecocks in a different way.
Gravett will compete in the Dos Equis 3X3U National Championship in Minneapolis. The tournament, held at the Mall of America, begins Friday and ends Sunday. Gravett will be on the SEC team, joined by three other seniors who have exhausted their collegiate eligibility — Missouri’s Jordan Geist, Georgia’s Derek Ogbeide and Texas A&M’s Christian Mekowulu.
The winners take home $100,000 and will advance to USA Basketball 3x3 Open National Championship later this spring.
South Carolina’s Frank Booker participated in this event last year.
“I’d say it’s bittersweet,” Gravett said Tuesday. “Bitter because I’m not there playing (in the Final Four) this time. But sweet just to know that I was there before. The environment is just positive vibes everywhere.”
Texas Tech, Michigan State, Virginia and Auburn — this year’s Final Four — will play at U.S. Bank Stadium, just a 15-minute drive from the Mall of America. That’s close enough for Gravett to think of the time the Gamecocks came up five points shy of a national title shot.
But it’s a fitting cap to a career that peaked in the final season.
Gravett, after averaging 11.4 points a game and shooting 40 percent 3, was named the SEC’s Sixth Man of the Year last month. He helped lead South Carolina back from a poor non-conference showing to a fourth place finish in the SEC.
“We faced a lot of obstacles this season,” Gravett said. “The injuries, ups and downs throughout the whole season. Once we turned it around in December, we had a lot of fun together. It was unfortunate the way it ended, but we all look back and feel like we were successful within ourselves and what we accomplished.
“I’m going to miss all the coaches, all the guys around here, all the staff members, women’s team, coaches, managers. Everybody around here, I’m definitely going to miss that as I look to depart here soon.”
The 2019-20 Gamecocks return a solid nucleus with A.J. Lawson, Keyshawn Bryant and Justin Minaya and should have Big Dance expectations. Before he left for Minneapolis, Gravett posted on his Instagram story a video that showed his old team working out at the Carolina Coliseum.
“All the guys on the team can hit me up anytime,” Gravett said. “I’ll be available for them. I’m definitely going to keep up with the program, of course. I’m an alum, so that’s something I gotta do. But I’ll be busy as well, so I’ll keep up as much as I can.”
Gravett said he’ll soon depart for Las Vegas for pre-draft training. The 6-foot-2, 188-pounder’s goal is to “play basketball until I can’t anymore.”
Dos Equis 3X3U National Championship
When: Pool play begins 5 p.m. Friday
Where: Mall of America, Minneapolis
TV: All games will be carried live on Twitter or ESPN2
This story was originally published April 3, 2019 at 6:13 PM.
