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Tribune News Service

Sport

Michael Lananna

Frank Martin dismissed as South Carolina's basketball coach

Frank Martin South Carolina Carolina Gamecocks USC SEC

South Carolina has fired head men's basketball coach Frank Martin, The State confirmed through sources close to the team. The school confirmed Martin's dismissal Monday afternoon.

"After a thorough evaluation of our men's basketball program, we have decided to make a change," athletic director Ray Tanner said in a school statement. "We are grateful for the dedication that Coach Martin has made to Gamecock Basketball. We wish him and his family nothing but the best in the future."

The news was first reported by national reporters Jon Rothstein, Jeff Borzello and Jeff Goodman.

"Our expectation is to compete for Southeastern Conference and national championships," Tanner said. "We have great facilities, a passionate fan base and we provide our student-athletes an outstanding experience at the University of South Carolina. We will hire someone with a winning coaching history, who has the energy, passion, and commitment to excellence in all areas of the student-athlete experience."

A search for his replacement will begin right away, with CBS Sports writer Matt Norlander reporting that USC has already begun interviewing candidates. The new hire will be the 33rd head coach in school history.

The news comes after the Gamecocks finished 18-13 (9-9 SEC) in Martin's 10th season as USC's head coach. USC was not selected to play in this year's NIT.

Hired in 2012, Martin, 55, compiled a 171-147 (79-99 SEC) career record with the Gamecocks. The win total is the third most in program history, and his tenure was highlighted by the program's only Final Four in 2017.

Per Martin's contract, the university will owe Martin a $3 million buyout.

Rumors circulated at the end of last season about a possible firing after Martin's team went 6-15 (4-12 SEC) in a trying COVID-impacted year. The Gamecocks lost the bulk of their non-conference schedule to COVID-19 cancellations, lost starting big man Alanzo Frink for the year and Martin contracted the virus twice.

After nearly a month of negotiations, Martin and the university reached agreement on a two-year extension through the 2024-25 season. The extension did not include a raise, carrying his $3.3 million salary into the final two years of the deal. The university also negotiated a lower buyout following the 2021-22 season, from $3.3 million down to $3 million.

Had USC fired Martin in 2021, it would've owed him $6.5 million. If USC had waited one more season and made the move after April 1, 2023, Martin was not set to earn any buyout money.

"Is that contract extension exactly what I wanted? No," Martin said after he signed the contract last year. " ... I live my life day to day. I don't live my life based on my contract."

Producing stars such as Sindarius Thornwell, P.J. Dozier, Duane Notice and Chris Silva, Martin led the Gamecocks to their first Final Four in program history in 2017, winning a school-record 26 games in the process. Before that Final Four run, the Gamecocks hadn't appeared in an NCAA tournament since 2004 and hadn't won a tournament game since 1973.

South Carolina, however, failed to reach the NCAA tournament in each of the subsequent years. The 2020 Gamecocks finished 18-13 (10-8) and were considered a bubble team that was likely headed for the NIT, although the Gamecocks still had an opportunity to improve their resume in the SEC tournament before COVID-19 abruptly cut the season short.

The pandemic loomed large over last year's team, forcing USC to cancel or postpone seven games between December and January and shutting down activities three separate times. The Gamecocks went nearly seven weeks without practicing and then played just one non-conference game before moving into conference play.

Martin vowed to "hit the reset button" prior to this season, and the team featured nine new players — six of them transfers. Veteran guards James Reese and Erik Stevenson made instant impacts upon transferring to USC, and freshmen Devin Carter, Ta'Quan Woodley and Jacobi Wright each contributed meaningful minutes, with Carter establishing himself as one of the team's go-to scorers.

Martin said multiple times throughout the season that new players like Reese and Stevenson revitalized him after the trials of last season. Martin said that he almost considered walking away from coaching altogether after battling through the COVID-19 year.

The Gamecocks improved in 2021-22 and had signature wins against the likes of LSU and Texas A&M on the road, but ultimately they couldn't do enough to make their way back into the NCAA tournament.

Through all of the rumors, Martin has defended his record at USC, pointing to the fact that the team's six seasons before the COVID-19 were the team's most consecutive non-losing seasons since the Frank McGuire years in the 1970s.

"I know a lot of people struggle with actually admitting that we've won in my time here," Martin said near the end of the season. "But the two winningest seasons in the history of school happened with me as the head coach.

"With the job comes people that want to criticize, that doesn't bother me, but I don't work for them. At the end of the day, I have a great job. And my job is to help my players. My job is to help them find success. It's always been that way. It's all I ever care about."

Frank Martin at USC, year by year

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2012-13: 14-18 (4-14 SEC)

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2013-14: 14-20 (5-13 SEC)

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2014-15: 17-16 (6-12 SEC)

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2015-16: 25-9 (11-7 SEC) NIT appearance; lost in second round

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2016-17: 26-11 (12-6 SEC) NCAA appearance, won four games, advanced to Final Four

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