Syracuse Improves Post-Season Chances Behind 40 Points By Andrew White III

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, March 4, 2012

Likely in need of a win for consideration by the NCAA Tournament selection committee, the Syracuse Orange torched the visiting Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets before a sellout crowd at the Carrier Dome Saturday, using a stifling defense and 40 points from Andrew White III for a 90-61 victory.

White, in his final home game as an Orange, set a career mark with 40 points. Deadly accurate from anywhere on the floor, White was 12-for-16 from the field, including a Syracuse season-high eight threes on nine attempts. The fifth-year senior also went 8-for-9 from the foul line, adding three rebounds, two assists and a pair of thefts.

A transfer from Nebraska, and previously having spent two seasons at Kansas, White tied the Syracuse record for most points scored in the Carrier Dome, matching the effort by Gene Waldron in 1983 against Iona.

The Orange avenged a 71-65 two weeks ago at Georgia Tech and bolstered their chances of making the NCAA tourney, improving to 18-13 overall and 10-8 in the ACC.

Syracuse's 2-3 zone, brainchild of mastermind coach Jim Boeheim, limited the Yellow Jackets to 44% shooting, and was even more effective at limiting three-pointers. Georgia Tech shot just 25% (5-for-20) from beyond the arc. In contrast, the Orange were blistering, hitting at 54% overall and 62.5% (15-for-24) from three-point range.

Elsewhere in the ACC, #5 North Carolina captured the regular season title with a 90-83 win over #17 Duke and #8 Louisville outlasted #19 Notre Dame, 71-64.

The Tar Heels finished conference play with a 14-4 mark, two games better than Florida State, Louisville, and Notre Dame, each of which finished at 12-6.

The conference tournament, the winner of which will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tourney, runs Wednesday, March 8 through Saturday, March 11 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.

Dez Wells Pumps in 30 as Maryland Ousts Duke in ACC Tourney

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, March 15, 2013

On a night of heavy conference tournament action, the upset of the night was produced by the Maryland Terrapins, who whipped the 2nd-ranked Duke Blue Devils for the second time this season, 83-74, advancing to the semi-finals to face North Carolina Saturday afternoon.

The Terps led the entire game, though Duke cut the lead to one point midway through the second half, but Dez Wells, who pumped in a career high 30 points for Maryland, would not allow his team to fail in what some considered a must-win for the Terrapins' tournament hopes.

Wells was 9-for-13 from the field, including 2-for-2 from outside the arc and made all 10 of his chances at the foul line. He added six boards, three assists and a steal in 32 minutes.

Maryland topped the Blue Devils back on February 8th, 83-81, at the Verizon Center in Washington DC, and proved it was no fluke as they dominated Duke and sent them packing in a one-and-done tournament appearance, out-rebounding Duke, 36-26, and had 18 assists to the Blue Devils' 10.

The Terps were just 8-10 in ACC play, but 22-11 overall, stringing together 11 straight wins prior to conference action. Their match-up with the Tar Heels may be a troublesome one, as North Carolina topped the Terrapins twice during the regular season.

Elsewhere, Georgetown and Syracuse met for the third time this season, and this time the Orange avenged their previous two losses to the Hoyas with a 58-55 OT win, advancing to the Big East final against Louisville, a 69-57 victor over Notre Dame.

The Cardinals and Orange tip at 8:35 pm EDT at Madison Square Garden.

The Big 12 will also crown a champion Saturday night, when #7 Kansas meets #11 Kansas State for the tourney title.

Also on Saturday, UCLA faces Oregon for the PAC-12 championship.

It will be a busy weekend for crowning, as the Mountain West, Conference USA, America East, Southland, Big West, Great West, Big Sky, SWAC, MEAC, WAC and MAC all play tournament finals on Saturday. The ACC, SEC, Big Ten, and Atlantic-10 each have championship games on Sunday.

ACC: Duke Advances; FSU Upsets Tar Heels

The Madness that is March continued without interruption in the ACC, as Florida State upset #1 North Carolina, 73-70, in one semifinal contest Saturday afternoon. In the other half of the draw, Duke beat Maryland, 67-61.

In the Florida state win, North Carolina had a 9-point lead in the first half, but could not sustain it, as the teams exchanged leads throughout the game. though FSU held the advantage through much of the second half, but led by no more than 5 points at any time. Carolina's Danny Green tied the game on a pair of free throws at 69-69 with 2:03 left and Bobby Frasor gave the Tar Heels a 1-point lead a minute later, but FSU's Toney Douglas and Derwin Kitchen each made a pair of free throws and North Carolina was unable to score again. The Seminoles advance to the finals against Duke on Sunday.

Duke's win over a desperate Maryland squad was close until about halfway through the second half, when Duke went on a 12-2 run, stretching their lead to 56-43 with just over 5 minutes left to play. The Terrapins cut the lead to 4 points, but by then there were only 18 seconds left and Duke secured the win.