by WILL FOLKS
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The University of South Carolina men’s basketball team suffered its worst-ever conference loss – and the worst-ever defeat in its home arena – on Wednesday evening (January 28, 2026).
The Gamecocks’ humiliating 95-48 loss at the hands of No. 19 Florida can’t even truthfully be described as a “loss.” Because it was so much worse than that. The Gators’ in-house media referred to it as “Carolina carnage,” and an “obliteration.”
Frankly, those were gracious characterizations of the debacle that unfolded in front of an announced crowd of 12,686 at the cavernously cursed Colonial Life Arena – which saw a flood of departures add to the 5,000+ empty seats at tipoff.
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Crowd after the mass exit: pic.twitter.com/ENG9Fkv1oL
— Jackson Castellano (@jaxacastellano) January 29, 2026
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Head coach Lamont Paris‘ Gamecocks (11-10, 2-6 SEC) were shredded in every facet of the game – never leading and at one point surrendering fifteen unanswered points. By contrast, the last time Florida visited Columbia the fifth-ranked Gators trailed by fourteen points midway through the second half and never led in the game – at least not until future Golden State Warrior Will Richard nailed a high-bank, driving layup with 4.8 seconds left to stave off the upset.
That isn’t regression… it is evidence of a systemic collapse. A programmatic implosion. And judging by fans’ reaction to the latest curb-stomping, that implosion is fueling increasingly earnest cries for new leadership.
“If Lamont Paris has a job tomorrow morning, we will know how unserious we are about winning,” one Gamecock fan wrote on X.
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“This has to be over,” another added. “Lamont Paris has to go.”
At one point on Wednesday night, Paris was trending on X – and not in a good way.
Will these calls be heeded by second-year athletics director Jeremiah Donati – who has yet to make a major hire at South Carolina since being handed the reins of the athletic department from results-challenged Ray Tanner last January?
Or, will Paris be given additional leash – akin to the undeserved grace Donati has shown to fifth-year head football coach Shane Beamer, whose program is also in the midst of a major regression.
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Prior to Wednesday’s 47-point evisceration, South Carolina’s record for ignominy against a conference foe was a 43-point defeat at the hands of then-No. 9 Tennessee on February 25, 2023. That means Paris has his signature on two of the most lop-sided defeats in program history – one of five losses by forty or more points and one of ten losses by thirty or more points during his increasingly non-competitive tenure.
Widely viewed as the fourth choice for the South Carolina job when he was hired in March 2022, Paris briefly quieted critics during his second season – which saw the Gamecocks win 26 games and advance to their first NCAA tournament appearance in seven years.
Sadly, that season has been the outlier…
Paris has slipped to 60-59 (.504) in three-and-a-half seasons in Columbia, with an atrocious 21-41 (.339) record in conference play. In addition to the aforementioned lopsided losses, the Gamecocks have also dropped fifteen in a row against ranked opponents – including Wednesday night’s mauling by Florida and a 34-point road loss to then-No. 17 Arkansas two weeks ago.
South Carolina tips off again on Saturday at home against unranked LSU (13-8, 1-7 SEC). The Bayou Bengals previously lost to the Gamecocks in Baton Rouge on January 6 – one of only two conference wins for Paris’ team so far this season. According to VividSeats, tickets to Saturday’s game are selling for as low as $8.00.
BANNER VIA: MADDIE WASHBURN/FLORIDA GATORS
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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1 comment
So how much will Paris’ firing cost USC in buyout money? The athletic department leadership at USC made the same mistake with Paris that they made with Will Muschamp and then with Shane Beamer. All had one decent year that resulted in big raises and an extended contract which then resulted in a downward spiral into mediocrity or worse. There is no education in the second kick of a mule.