Before the Gamecocks and Wolfpack square off, here's a look at the history South Carolina is closing in on:
There has been an undefeated champion nine times in women's NCAA Tournament history. The rare feat has been accomplished by four different programs: Baylor, Tennessee, Texas and UConn.
The 1985-86 Longhorns were the first to pull it off.
UConn is the only program with multiple unblemished championship seasons. Geno Auriemma's Huskies went unbeaten a staggering six times, with two coming in consecutive seasons.
Here's a full look at each undefeated women's champion:
Texas, 1985-86: 34-0
UConn, 1994-95: 35-0
Tennessee, 1997-98: 39-0
UConn, 2001-02: 39-0
UConn, 2008-09: 39-0
UConn, 2009-10: 39-0
Baylor, 2011-12: 40-0
UConn, 2013-14: 40-0
UConn, 2015-16: 38-0
There have been even fewer perfect championship seasons on the men's side. It's been done a combined seven times by four different programs: Indiana, North Carolina, San Francisco and UCLA.
San Francisco became the first undefeated men's champ in 1955-56.
It's been nearly 50 years since the last unbeaten men's champ, which was the 1975-76 Hoosiers. Gonzaga was on the brink of ending the drought in 2020-21, but the Bulldogs fell to Baylor in the national title game.
Here's a full look at each time it's been done:
San Francisco, 1955-56: 29-0
North Carolina, 1956-57: 32-0
