1996–97 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team

The 1996–97 South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team represented the University of South Carolina as a member of the Southeastern Conference during the 1996–97 men's college basketball season. The team was led by head coach Eddie Fogler and played their home games at Carolina Coliseum in Columbia, South Carolina. The team finished first in the SEC regular season standings and received an at-large bid to the 1997 NCAA tournament as No. 2 seed in the East region. The Gamecocks lost to 15 seed Coppin State in the first round to finish the season with a record of 24–8 (15–1 SEC).

Schedule and results
!colspan=9 style= | Regular Season

!colspan=9 style= | SEC Tournament

!colspan=9 style= | NCAA Tournament