USC-Clemson basketball game postponed as Gamecocks navigate COVID issues
The in-state rivalry game between South Carolina and Clemson’s men’s basketball teams, scheduled for this Saturday, has been postponed, the schools announced Monday. The Gamecocks are dealing with the fallout of positive COVID-19 cases that have already forced the cancellation of two other games and paused all team activities.
The two programs are leaving open the “potential of rescheduling for a future date to be determined.”
USC has not taken the court for nearly a week now since announcing the positive tests following a road game against Houston. Because of the pause in activities, the Gamecocks have also had to cancel games against Wofford and George Washington.
Coach Frank Martin said last Thursday that the team would not be able to resume practices for a full week, until this Thursday. That would have left just a two-day turnaround before the annual rivalry game with Clemson. In announcing the postponement Monday, South Carolina did not say whether the team was still on track to resume activities Thursday.
Clemson, meanwhile, entered the AP top 25 poll Monday for the first time, checking in at No. 24 after starting the year 5-0 with wins over Maryland, Purdue, Alabama and Mississippi State.
The Gamecocks and Tigers have met 81 times, dating back to 1913. Should this season’s game not be made up, it would mark the first time two teams have not played since the 2000-01 campaign and just the second time since 1995. South Carolina won last year’s matchup, 67-54, but Clemson won the previous three meetings.
The rival schools were already forced to cancel their long-running football series this fall, marking the first time in 111 years the two teams hadn’t played.
This story was originally published December 14, 2020 at 4:45 PM.
