DESTIN, Fla. - The glory years of South Carolina basketball occurred 40 year ago when Frank McGuire, John Roche and a host of other talents led the Gamecocks to the coveted ACC title.

However, the history of USC hoops has been ragged since then with pockets of success among a lot of failure, especially since the Gamecocks started competing in the SEC in 1991-92.

Winning records in conference play have been rare. The Gamecocks have one SEC regular-season championship banner hanging in the rafters at Colonial Life Arena.

Frank Martin says it time to bring the winning tradition back to Columbia.

"There's been somewhat of a disconnect over the past 20 years between the school and its great basketball history," Martin said on Tuesday. "There's been some good years periodically, but the program doesn't have the consistency that it used to have."

Martin inherits a roster with eight returning scholarship players that stumbled to a 2-14 record in conference play. The additions of four signees, including a 7-foot center that initially committed to Kansas State when Martin was still there, should help bolster the depth and give USC an opportunity to win more games in the always-competitive SEC.

"We have some good things in place, including a group of returning players," Martin said. "We had the same thing at K-State."

But Martin knows that football, baseball and women's basketball have been highly competitive - even winning national titles - and insists it's time for men's basketball to take the next step. He believes the ingredients exist to transform USC into a consistently winning program.

"Where the other programs are really got me excited," Martin said. "That's when I really started paying attention. I spoke with coaches that have coached before at South Carolina and I got even more excited about what's there, what it could be and what it used to be.

"I saw the success of Steve Spurrier, Dawn Staley and Ray Tanner and on down the line," Martin said. "Coaches have left other jobs and come to Columbia and have stayed and are now winning. My thinking is that it's a little closer to where I'm from (Miami) and it's a great opportunity. Let's take a chance and try to rebuild it the way we did at K-State."

At his introductory press conference, Martin recalled watching USC upset then-No. 1 Kentucky in front of a raucous crowd at Colonial Life Arena. He wants USC's arena to recapture the magic of that night.

"The thing that really got me was the loyal fan base," Martin said. "There is a fan base that loves the South Carolina Gamecocks no matter if it's football, basketball or baseball. They love their school. I was at a place where the fan base was off the charts. I was not going to walk away from that unless it was something similar. I think we have the same situation here. Now we need to do our part and get them excited about coming to the games."

How does USC accomplish that?

"It would help if we could make a layup every once in a while," Martin said. "They were so young last year. We just have to continue to make some strides. I told the guys that they're not young anymore. They've been through it. They've played. All the guys in that locker room have all played meaningful minutes in a SEC game."

In a sport where one five-star prospect can change everything, Martin's mission over the next few years is clear - attract talented players to USC to help the Gamecocks compete.

"We have to get bigger, stronger, faster. That's why our strength coach is so important with the ability to work out our players over the summer," Martin said. "It will help us as coaches gain a better understanding of what the players in place can and cannot do, and help them be in as many situations as we can.

"And it allows our players to have a better understanding of our system - how we're going to play and how we're going to deal with both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. So, when we begin practice in October, everybody is a little more accustomed to each other."

Under new NCAA guidelines, men's basketball coaches are allowed to spend up to two hours per week with their players in individual workouts. The strength coaches can spend six hours per week. As a result, the importance of the strength coach towards off-season development is critical.

Gamecock Central has provided the most in-depth coverage of Gamecock sports and recruiting since 1998! Give our service a try with our special 7-Day FREE TRIALClick "He is the most important person on the staff," Martin said. "He is the one that instills the work ethic and lays the foundation. As coaches, we have the work ethic and we can be demanding, but we're also disconnected from them for a large portion of the year. The strength coach has his hands on them year-round. He has more time with them. It's our job to support him and build from there."Here to view this Link.!

D. McCallum