For the second-straight season, Syracuse reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament thanks to a tight victory over Nebraska on Friday.
But that would once again be as far as the Orange could surge.
Despite hanging with South Carolina earlier in the season, SU fell behind early and never recovered in a 97-68 drubbing at the hands of the top-seeded Gamecocks. The Orange finishes the 2014-15 season with an overall record of 22-10.
"We played hard the entire game," SU head coach Quentin Hillsman [13] said. "That's how we do it at Syracuse. We compete the whole game. I thought our kids gave it everything they had. I give them a lot of credit. They gave it everything they had."
Alexis Peterson [14] scored 23 points to lead the Orange, which quickly found itself with a huge deficit thanks to a 42-18 run by South Carolina to close the first half.
SU recovered out of the break, shooting 43 percent from the field, but simply couldn't stop the Gamecock offense. Six South Carolina players scored in double figures, including three off the bench.
Cornelia Fondren [15] added 16 points for SU, while Brianna Butler [16] scored 12 in 29 minutes of play.
Syracuse returns all but two players to its lineup next season, the team's third in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
