The No. 6 South Carolina Gamecocks suffered an early exit from the 2024 NCAA Tournament, as the No. 11 Oregon Ducks showed them the way out of the Big Dance. But that’s not the only big loss the Gamecocks suffered of late, as they will also be without leading scorer Meechie Johnson going forward.
Meechie Johnson Decides to Leave South Carolina Gamecocks, to Test Transfer Portal Waters
Johnson sent out a heartfelt message to the South Carolina Gamecocks and to head coach Lamont Paris amid his major decision.,
“Coach Paris has been very impactful in my life and my development and that is my guy forever. But all that being said, I will be entering the transfer portal,” Johnson said (h/t ESPN).
Johnson was a big part of the Gamecocks’ major turnaround in the 2023-24 college basketball season — Paris’ second as the program’s head coach. South Carolina went from 11-21 overall during the 2022-23 campaign to 26-8 in their recently concluded season.
In what turned out to be his final season with the Gamecocks, Johnson averaged 14.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game. He’s someone who could still use a lot of polish on his offense, especially in terms of efficiency, as he shot just 39.9 percent from the field and 32.1 percent from deep in his last season in Columbia.
In the Gamecocks’ 87-73 loss to Oregon, Johnson top scored for his team, scoring 24 points on 9/14 shooting from the floor.
Before arriving in Columbia, Johnson played for two seasons with the Ohio State Buckeyes.
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