Both USC teams head to Final Four

Who would have dreamed it? Both the University of South Carolina men’s and women’s basketball teams are in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament.

The men, of course, are the bigger surprise. This will be the second trip to the semifinals for the women.

They made it to the Final Four in 2015 but lost to Notre Dame. This year, they earned a return trip by halting a comeback attempt by Florida State in a 71-64 win.

The team arrived in Dallas on Tuesday afternoon. USC will face Stanford there in the Final Four at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the American Airlines Center.

The men were the big shocker, even after a program-record 26 wins during the season. The Gamecocks have never reached the Final Four. In fact, this was the first year they made it to the Sweet 16.

But a 77-70 victory Sunday over fourth-seeded Florida at Madison Square Garden sent them to the semifinals where USC will face Gonzaga on Saturday in Phoenix.

The double win for the Gamecocks puts them in the history books. South Carolina is only the 10th school to have both its men’s and women’s program advance to the Final Four in the same season.

This is the 13th time both teams from the same school have made it to their respective Final Fours, the most recent being Syracuse last year. UConn accomplished the feat three times, winning both championships in 2004 and 2014.

Both USC teams face stiff competition ahead. But no matter what happens, they succeeded in ruining a bunch of office-pool brackets this year.

Home-state fans will be rooting for the Gamecocks. But we suspect many others around the nation will be cheering them on as well, especially the underdog men.

The NCAA Tournament always provides excitement and surprises. This year, USC can take credit for single-handedly upping the thrill factor.

This story was originally published March 29, 2017 at 4:10 PM with the headline "Both USC teams head to Final Four."