Fifty years ago, South Carolina organized one of its best basketball teams of all time.
This team, led by a veteran coach, showcasing some of the biggest names in Gamecock hard court history, won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship, made it to the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history and ended the season in sixth national position .
The South Carolina Athletic Department and the basketball program paid tribute to this team at halftime against Ole Miss last week, celebrating 50 yearsº anniversary of the team title. Due to the health and safety protocols of COVID-19, the celebration had to be virtual with a video in honor of the interval. The plans foresee that the championship team will be personally honored in the annual Legends Weekend program, scheduled for February 2022.
South Carolina won the 1971 ACC championship on a last-second tray from Gamecock’s great Tom Owens. With time running out against North Carolina in the ACC finals and the Gamecocks losing, 51-50, a high ball was called by Kevin Joyce of Carolina, whose height was only 6-3, against center pivot Lee Dedmon 6-10 of the UNC. Surprisingly, Joyce bounced Dedmon and dropped the ball directly to Owens under the basket for a 52-51 tray. Gamecock’s victory and ACC title advanced the team to the program’s first appearance on the NCAA Tournament.
The lineup for the 1970-71 campaign included trainer Frank McGuire, assistant coaches Buck Freeman, Bill Loving and Donnie Walsh. Student athletes included John Roche, Dennis Powell, Casey Manning, Bob Carver, Kevin Joyce, Tom Owens, Danny Traylor, Tom Riker, John Ribock, Rick Aydlett and Jimmy Powell. Roche led the team in scoring with 21.6 points per game, and Owens added 15.0 points and 12.9 rebounds per game. Both players have had successful careers in the NBA and the ABA. The team ended the season with an overall record of 23-6.
Current Gamecock basketball coach Frank Martin said that celebrating the program’s history is the best way to keep former players, current players and the community connected. Martin added that it is his and his players’ responsibility to make the legendary coaches and players proud.
“We have much better things than they had back then,” he said. “It is part of the responsibility to show players that this school has been number one in the country and that it has won conference championships.”
He said he is very proud of the fact that he represents the same schools that the Hall of Fame and the legendary coaches and players represented.
The impact of legendary coach Frank McGuire and this team put basketball on the map of the state of South Carolina. Football had been king in South Carolina, but now basketball has become important and has gained popularity across the state.
From my personal point of view, these guys were my heroes growing up! McGuire and these players inspired me to make basketball a big part of my life. I played basketball for many years, coached basketball for 37 years and now broadcast and write about basketball, thanks to the influence that Coach McGuire and his teams had on me.
The 1971 South Carolina ACC Championship team’s 50th anniversary celebration brought back memories of the first time I met my childhood hero, Coach McGuire. I was a technical assistant at USC-Spartanburg (USC Upstate) and we were playing a double game with the Gamecocks at the Carolina Coliseum. Our team was playing Coastal Carolina and South Carolina was playing William & Mary soon after.
Before our game, I was walking around the coliseum and I met Coach McGuire. He invited me to see his office and talk. He showed me the photos and plaques he had collected over the years. He told me great stories about his experiences as a basketball coach and the great players he coached. He also told me how he fought politicians in the capital to protect his job as a basketball coach and to protect his teams. I will never forget how kind he was to me and the last thing he said to me. He wished me good luck and said that if he could help me in any way, please let me know. As a young coach, you can imagine how it made me feel. Even today, Frank McGuire is one of my heroes as a coach.
The Coaches Corner: Gamecocks 50th anniversary of their team ACC Basketball Championship 1971 – YouTube