The scene in Columbia at the Colonial Life Arena last night following the Gamecocks' 68-62 upset win over top-ranked Kentucky was a predictable one of pandemonium.

No one expected this.

Not the analysts on ESPN. Not the team beat reporters (of either team). And let's be honest, not even the Gamecocks themselves. They definitely wanted to make a statement after being completely shutout of the discussion as to where the Wildcats might be given tough games.  

But to say they truly expected to win the game is a bit of a stretch.

Still, it goes a long way towards displaying what is possible when a team comes together and plays hard. It also shows once again why college basketball is so popular - anything can happen (short of the UCONN women losing) on any given night.

Last night's game featured several factors that you have to have to witness such a big upset:

- The Underdog is at home with a rabid crowd: the "Garnet Army" was out in full force last night.

- The Underdog has at least one game-breaker: Devan Downey is hands down one of the top players in the nation.

- The Underdog has to get a significant contribution from a secondary player: Brandis Raley-Ross was fantastic and the Gamecock post players were special.

- The Favorite must have a less-than-stellar outing: Kentucky was riding a big wave of emotion after raising $1 million for Haiti and receiving a phone call from President Barack Obama and played as if they expected South Carolina to roll over or at the very least fade away early in the second half. Neither of those things happened and the Wildcat freshman looked a bit lost in the lights down the stretch. 

- The Underdog must win the effort battle: UK Coach John Calipari himself admitted as much himself in the postgame interview after watching the Gamecocks outrebound his vaunted 'Cats.

Add these things together and you might just get mentioned in an ESPN highlight - or two.