Western Kentucky, BYU Advance; Top East Seed Syracuse Loses Fab Melo for Tourney

Tournament Update & College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, March 13, 2012

First Four, Game 1: Western Kentucky 59 Mississippi Valley State 58 - The Hilltoppers of Western Kentucky have made a habit of rallying from sizable deficits through the latter half of the season and did it again to open the 2012 NCAA tournament in style, rallying from 16 points down in the final 4:30 to overtake the Delta Devils and advance to play #1 seed Kentucky in the South region.

The game was sloppy, but nonetheless, entertaining. Mississippi Valley State led 54-37 with under four minutes left to play, but turned the ball over repeatedly as the Hilltoppers stepped up the defensive pressure. Western Kentucky turned the ball over 29 times, but out-rebounded their opponents, 60-32. Shooting was horrendous, as neither team shot better than 36 percent. The Devils' Kevin Burwell led all scorers with 20 points.

First Four, Game 2: BYU 78 Iona 72 - Iona shot 57% and led by as many as 25 points in the first half, but BYU cut the lead to 15 at the break, down 55-40 and wore down the Gaels in the second half for the win. Brandon Davies scored 18 points with 15 rebounds and teammate Noah Hartsock dropped in a game high 23 points on 10-for-14 shooting, including a decisive three-pointer which gave the Cougars the lead for good with about two minutes to play. The Cougars held Iona to just 17 second half points.

Tourney Notes: In an unprecedented development, Syracuse center Fab Melo was ruled ineligible for the NCAA tournament by the school, throwing a serious wrench into the Orange plans. Syracuse was named the #1 seed in the East region on Sunday. Details are uncertain, though a number of media outlets are reporting that the issue is with Melo's schoolwork, which was a reason for his suspension for three games during the regular season. Syracuse faces UNC-Asheville in an East regional opener Thursday afternoon.

Noah Hartsock Scores 23 with 12 Boards as BYU Downs Oregon, Goes 6-2

College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, December 3, 2011

After their prolific scorer, Jimmer Fredette, graduated, fans of the BYU Cougars wondered just who would pick up the scoring and how well the Cougars would do in 2011-12 season.

After getting to 6-2 with a 79-65 win over Oregon, some of the answers are emerging.

Nobody is going to score at the pace of Fredette, though Noah Hartsock is leading the team with 16.9 points per game, but the team is more front court oriented as seniors Hartsock and Charles Abouo do most of the damage inside and on the boards.

Hartsock had his best game of the season against Oregon, scoring a career high 23 points on 8-for-14 shooting while pulling down 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. Improving his scoring average each of his four years as a Cougar, Hartsock, a 6'8" forward, is hitting at 57.8 from the field.

Last season, the Cougars were 32-5, losing in the third round of the NCAA tournament to Florida to finish their season.

Hartsock and the Cougars will get a quality check come December 17 when they host the Baylor Bears. The team opens West Coast conference play on December 29, at St. Mary's.

NOTABLE: The early season showdown between North Carolina and #1 Kentucky did not disappoint. Anthony Davis blocked John Henson's potential game winner with less than four seconds on the clock to seal the Wildcats' 73-72 victory. Freshman Michael Kidd-Gilchrist with his first collegiate double-double, leading all scorers with 17 points and hauling down 11 boards. It was the second loss for the Tar Heels, while Kentucky improved to 8-0.

The Big East won two of the four games on Saturday, with UConn downing Arkansas, 75-62 and Pitt taking down Tennessee, 61-56 to capture the Big East - SEC Challenge, eight games to four. Winners for the SEC on Saturday were LSU, with a 55-50 win over Rutgers, and Mississipi State, which topped West Virginia, 75-62.