Tuesday, March 17th, 7:00 p.m. (et).

FACTS & STATS: Site: Colonial Life Arena (17,600) -- Columbia, South Carolina. Television: ESPN2. NIT Record: Davidson 2-4, South Carolina 21-8. Series Record: South Carolina leads, 39-25.

GAME NOTES: The Davidson Wildcats and South Carolina Gamecocks were undoubtedly disappointed to be left out of the NCAA Tournament, but the teams have landed in the NIT and will square off in a first-round game tonight. The winner of this clash will meet either second-seeded Saint Mary's-CA or seventh-seeded Washington State in the next round. Davidson is making its fourth NIT appearance and first since 2005, when the team won two games before finally falling to Maryland. The Wildcats, who are seeded sixth in this event, won the Southern Conference regular season title with an 18-2 record but were upset in the league tournament. They are 26-7 overall, including 10-2 on the road, and always have a chance to win regardless of the opponent because of the presence of the nation's top scorer, Stephen Curry. As for third-seeded South Carolina, it won the NIT title in both 2005 and 2006 after finishing second in 2002. The Gamecocks are making their 11th overall appearance in this tournament and own a stellar 21-8 NIT record. They finished 10-6 against SEC foes during the 2008-09 regular season, their first double-digit win total in conference play since 1998. Unfortunately, South Carolina lost to Mississippi State in the quarterfinal round of the league tournament, and the team's 21-9 overall record wasn't good enough to impress the NCAA Tournament selection committee. South Carolina holds a 39-25 series advantage over Davidson, and the Gamecocks won the only previous NIT meeting between the two teams back in 1996.

Last season, Stephen Curry carried Davidson on a memorable run in the NCAA Tournament. The sharp-shooting guard is quite often a one-man show, and he accounts for almost one-third of the Wildcats' field goal attempts this season. Curry is averaging 28.6 ppg, and while his 38.2 percent three-point efficiency is a bit disappointing, he often has to fight through double teams and rarely gets an open look. In addition to his scoring ability, Curry has dished out 181 assists and recorded 82 steals. The only other double-digit scorer on the roster for Davidson is Andrew Lovedale, who provides 12.5 ppg. The Wildcats are scoring 78.4 ppg while allowing 65.5 ppg on 39.6 percent shooting from the field. Curry, a junior, has been named the SoCon Player of the Year the last two seasons, the first Davidson Player to earn the honor in back-to-back years since 1969-70.

All-SEC guard Devan Downey leads South Carolina in scoring (19.9 ppg), assists (4.5 apg) and steals (2.9 spg), and he remains one of the nation's most underrated players. Unfortunately, the standout connected on only 5-of-20 field goal attempts against Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament and shot inefficiently in some other key games down the stretch. Downey gets plenty of help from backcourt mate Zam Fredrick, who scored 20 points against MSU and is averaging 15.6 ppg. Dominique Archie brings 11.1 ppg to the floor, and he is pulling down 6.4 rpg. Mike Holmes, who rounds out the double-digit scorers with 10.8 ppg, leads the squad with 7.7 rpg and 37 blocks. USC is scoring 78.7 ppg while allowing 71.3 ppg. It is certainly impressive that the Gamecocks have forced an average of 19.5 turnovers per contest.

The homecourt advantage will lift South Carolina to victory tonight in what figures to be a close game from start to finish. Downey will shoot much more efficiently than he has in recent outings.

Predicted Outcome

South Carolina 80, Davidson 73