Early Returns: Xavier, Kansas, Michigan St. Advance

(3) Xavier 73 (14) Georgia 61
Xavier had their hands full with the determined Bulldogs, finding themselves down by nine points at the end of the first half. Georgia shot 55% (16-29) to Xavier's 36% (10-28) in the opening period.

In the second half, the Bulldogs began to unravel under Xavier's relentless pressure defense, picking up their 7th team foul and putting the Musketeers into the bonus with 12 minutes still to play.

With the score 46-36 in favor of Georgia, Xavier went on a 16-3 run to completely turn the game around. Consecutive 3-pointers by B.J. Raymond and freshman Dante Jackson gave the Musketeers a 52-49 lead with 7:18 remaining. Jackson's trey was his first shot of the game and it was huge as Xavier led the rest of the way.

As time wore down, Georgia continued to turn the ball over and Xavier kept penetrating, scoring and hitting their free throws.

The free throw disparity was glaring. Xavier hit on 27 of 33 attempts, while the Bulldogs only went to the line just 5 times, hitting three.

Josh Duncan led all scorers with 20 points. The Musketeers advance, and will play the winner of the Purdue-Baylor game on Saturday.

(1) Kansas 85 (16) Portland St. 61
As expected, the Jayhawks had few problems handling Portland State. Kansas led from the opening basket, quickly establishing a double-digit advantage and keeping the Vikings at bay the rest of the way.

Brandon Rush led the way with 18 points. Darrell Arthur had 17 and Mario Chalmers scored 16.

(5) Michigan St. 72 (12) Temple 61
The Spartans couldn't buy a basket from the outside, but got plenty of scoring in the lane and in transition against the Owls. Temple had problems from the very start finding open shots, as the Spartans' defense kept everything on the perimeter and contested every shot.

Drew Neitzel finally hit his first shot from the field with under a minute to go in the first half, a three-pointer which gave the Spartans a 10-point lead just before the half. While Neitzel finished with only 5 points, hitting only 1-8 from 3-point range, his overall floor generalship was a key to the Michigan State win.

Countdown to a Championship

64-32-16-8-4-2-1. Today, 64; by April 7, there will be just one. One national champion. One shining moment, as the song says. The countdown from 64 begins today.

This is day one of two of the greatest annual event in college basketball, when all 64 teams will battle to the final buzzer. By Friday night, after 32 games, there will be 32 winners and 32 teams heading home.

It all begins at 12:20 ET, when the miracle men of Georgia, who, after going 4-12 in the SEC, earned an automatic bid by winning their conference tournament. Seeded #14, the Bulldogs tip with the #3 Xavier Musketeers.

#1 seeds in action today are UCLA and Kansas. North Carolina and Memphis begin play on Friday. For the Bruins, their foe, #16 Mississippi Valley St., presents no more a challenge than the usual practice. The Bruins are favored by a whopping 32 points. That game is scheduled to begin as the final game of the day for the West region, at 9:55 ET.

Kansas will take to the hardwood much earlier, as the opener in the Midwest, at 12:25, facing #16 Portland State. The Jayhawks, winners of the Big 12, are 22 1/2 point favorites.

I'll be blogging on and off most of the day and into the night, with highlights and analysis of key games.

Stay tuned. It's about to get serious.

NCAA Tournament: Matchup Mayhem

While the selection committee may not have picked the very best 65 teams for the tournament, they did come up with a number of intriguing first-round contests.

Here are some must-see games which will resonate through the college hoops universe all the way to San Antonio:

East Region
(8) Indiana vs. (9) Arkansas - The talented Indiana backcourt of freshman Eric Gordon and sophomore Armon Bassett should have their way with Arkansas' Gary Ervin and Patrick Beverley. The Hoosiers will also have JaMarcus Ellis and Jordan Crawford for extended periods, putting further pressure on the Arkansas guards.

Up front, however, it's a different story, where D.J. White, an experienced 6'9" post presence, will be hounded by the likes of Darian Townes, Vincent Hunter, and the ever-dangerous Sonny Weems, all seniors.

While Indiana may still be reeling from the departure of coach Kelvin Sampson, the Razorbacks have no such concerns, as coach John Pelphrey looks like he's going to be around a while. Both he and Hoosiers interim coach Dan Dakich are seeking their first tournament wins, and this one could go down to the wire.

It will be interesting to see if Gordon takes over the game from the backcourt or the Hogs run wild in the lane. The winner earns the right to play North Carolina in the next round. No picnic and little time to prepare.

Midwest Region
(6) USC vs. (11) Kansas State This may not be that great of a game, or it might, considering K-State's late-season meltdown and USC's arrival as a premiere West coast team loaded with studs. The big marquee players are here: Wildcats freshman Michael Beasley may be the #1 pick in the upcoming NBA draft, so this is his chance to showcase his talents to a national audience.

Likewise, USC's O.J. Mayo may not last into his sophomore year. The Trojans have the better team overall, though they start all sophs and freshmen. Forwards Taj Gibson and Davon Jefferson should be the difference-makers for USC, which should advance and could be a final four team if everything falls into place.

Look for USC to win this one going away, though holding Beasley under 40 may not be possible. A Kansas St. win would be a pretty remarkable upset, but future NBA stars will be on parade for both teams.

South Region
(7) Miami vs. (10) St. Mary's - If anyone picked either of these teams to be in the tournament preseason, they should get a full scholarship to Bracketville U.

The surprising Gaels of St. Mary's performed admirably through the rugged West Coast Conference schedule, and have what amounts to an international lineup with four Australians on the squad. Guard Todd Golden hits at 45% from 3-point range and 6'11" center Omar Samhan can be dominant in the post. The supporting cast is very athletic and long and can play with anyone.

For the Hurricanes, it was a season in which they exceeded expectations. They're an undersized group that can leap and run with any team in the country, so they are prime for upsets should they survive the opening round. Watch for Dwayne Collins and Jack McClinton to do most of the scoring and everyone else to crash the boards. These guys upset Duke earlier in the season and are one of only four ACC to make the tourney.

This could be the wildest game of the first round and it's a shame one of these exciting teams has to lose.

West Region
(5) Drake vs. (12) Western Kentucky - Surprising nearly everyone except themselves, the Drake Bulldogs - the only entrant out of the Missouri Valley Conference - may have the best team concept in the country, whipping the ball around the perimeter until Adam Emmenecker, a 6;1" senior dashes into the lane with the ball and either scores on a layup or dishes out to a teammate for an open three. These guys are also very adept passers who employ lots of back-door plays.

The Bulldogs can play stingy defense and will throttle down any hot shooters with a stifling zone or rough man-to-man.

The 27-6 Hilltoppers, winners of the Sun Belt tourney, have a slew of shooters who can light it up from anywhere on the floor, though they prefer to do their damage from behind the three-point line. Led by senior Courtney Lee, Western Kentucky may have trouble stopping Drake, but they won't have any problem finding shots.

The flow of the game will be intense and all-important. If the Hilltoppers get off early, they may make it hard for Drake to come back, though the Bulldogs have the kind of grit and heart to overcome early setbacks. This one ought to be a barn-raising good time with the winner set on upsetting another team in the second round.

Tomorrow: Locks, Bracket Busters and Definite Maybes

Bracketology: Georgia Plays Way In; Say UNC-le

The just-released 2008 NCAA Tournament brackets contained no surprises as far as the top four teams were concerned. North Carolina, Memphis, UCLA and Kansas ended up at the top of the heap with #1 seedings.

The Tar Heels received the #1 overall seeding after topping Clemson, 86-81, in the ACC tournament final. UNC will play in the East region, Memphis in the South, UCLA in the West and Kansas in the Midwest. The Final Four will pit East vs. Midwest and South vs. West in the semifinal games.

Georgia turned in the day's best story line, beating Arkansas, 66-57, to capture the SEC Tournament. The Bulldogs, 4-12 during the regular season, won four straight in the conference tourney, including wins over both Kentucky and Mississippi State on the same day. Because of the hurricane that ripped through downtown Georgia on Friday night, damaging the Georgia Dome, the scheduled game between Kentucky and Georgia was moved to the Georgia Tech campus and played on Saturday afternoon.

After winning that one, the all-Bulldogs semifinal went to Georgia and the rest, as they say, is history. Somewhat mercifully, Kentucky, Mississippi State and Arkansas also received NCAA bids, so nobody from the SEC was the victim of Georgia's fortune.

While Georgia actually earned their way in, a number of teams were very questionable choices, especially four from the Big 12 - Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Kansas State and Baylor.

None of these, nor Kansas State, reached the tournament final. The Aggies lost 5 of their last 7 regular season games; Baylor lost four straight and six of seven before finishing the regular season 3-1, then lost their first game of the conference tournament to last place Colorado.

Oklahoma may have a little better case. After finishing 9-7 in the conference, then, following a first-round bye in the conference tourney, beat Colorado, but were then buried by the Longhorns, 77-49. Texas beat the Sooners 3 times during the season by a total of 55 points. Do they really belong?

As for Kansas State, they've won just three times in their last nine games. The wins were against Missouri, Iowa State and Colorado, the three worst teams in the Big 12.

Realistically, the Big 12 should have sent two or three teams to the tournament, not six. Kansas, Texas and maybe Oklahoma were the only measurably solid choices.

From the Big East, Villanova could easily have been refused a bid. The Wildcats, 9-9 in the Big East regular season, beat two ranked teams, Pitt and UConn, by one and two points, respectively, and both games were at home. After winning their tournament opener over a depleted Syracuse squad, they were rousted by 19 points by Georgetown. At one point during the season, they lost five straight.

Another couple of questionable choices were Arizona and Oregon from the PAC-10. Arizona was 8-10 in the conference, Oregon 8-8

The six or seven teams mentioned here could easily have been replaced by any of the following: Illinois St., Southern Illinois or Creighton - all from the Missouri Valley Conference, which sends only one team, conference champion Drake - Ohio State, Virginia Tech, VCU, Wagner or New Mexico. All of these teams had records equal or better than those selected and would have added some more flavor - and representation by smaller conferences - to the tournament.

Tomorrow: Matchup Madness

Hail the Champions: Conference Titles Up for Grabs

A number of conferences wrapped up their tournaments on Saturday with more to come on Sunday. One thing's for sure: take nothing for granted. Upsets were the norm in the Big East, ACC and SEC.

Here are recaps of Saturday's key games and how they will affect the NCAA field.

Memphis 77 Tulsa 51
As expected, the Tigers swamped Tulsa and added the tournament title to their regular season conquest of Conference USA. The only question remaining is whether any teams other than Memphis will be invited to the big dance. Tulsa seems the only decent choice, but Memphis alone would make sense.

North Carolina 68 Virginia Tech 66
The Hokies have made their case for the big tourney, coming within a hair of upsetting the #1 Tar Heels. Carolina moves on to the finals on Sunday against Clemson.

Clemson 78 Duke 74
Not so shocking, Duke was vulnerable away from Cameron Indoor Arena. A tight game throughout, the Tigers made their case to the tournament committee, no matter what happens against North Carolina.

Wisconsin 65 Michigan St. 63
The Badgers took care of business to reach the finals on Sunday. If they beat Illinois, they will add the Big Ten Tournament title to their regular season trophy.

Illinois 56 Minnesota 50
The Illini got the best matchup they could ask for and took advantage, with a chance to play into the NCAA tourney with a win over Wisconsin Sunday in the finals.

Pittsburgh 74 Georgetown 65
Pittsburgh came all the way back from late-season woes and swept through the Big East field with wins over Cincinnati, Louisville, Marquette and last night, Georgetown. They are the real deal and should get a #2 or #3 seeding.

Texas 77 Oklahoma 49
Ho-hum. Texas and Kansas are the only Big 12 teams that belong.

Texas A&M 71 Kansas 77
See above comment.

Stanford 64 UCLA 67
The PAC-10 was almost as boring as the Big 12. The top four seeds ended up in the semi, and #1 UCLA topped #2 Stanford. Nothing to see here. USC and Washington St. will join these two in the NCAA field. UCLA will be the #1 seed in the West.

BYU 61 UNLV 76
This was somewhat of a shocker and nice to see, but it does create problems for the tournament selection committee. BYU won the Mountain West, and they're 27-7 overall, so expect both the Runnin' Rebels and Cougars in the tournament.

Temple 69 St. Joseph's 64
Another championship won by an underdog creates more questions for the selection committee. Xavier won the Atlantic-10 regular season, and they're no doubt about getting an at-large berth. Temple receives the automatic and St. Joseph's, 9-7 in the regular season, should be considered, as they've beaten Xavier twice in the last two weeks.

Arkansas 92 Tennessee 91
Arkansas pulled off the biggest upset of the day, cementing their credentials for the NCAAs, but Georgia, winning twice in the same day, really deserves a bid.

Georgia 60 Kentucky 56
The Bulldogs, 4-12 during the regular SEC season, topped the Wildcats to advance to the semifinals. Because of the storms that ripped up the Georgia Dome, this game was canceled Friday night and played Saturday afternoon.

Georgia 64 Mississippi St. 60
Just hours after beating Kentucky, Georgia's kids took out the SEC West champions in the semifinal of the SEC tournament. They move onto the finals against Arkansas. Oddly enough, the Razorbacks are one of the four teams that Georgia beat during the regular season, winning 82-69, back on January 19.

The Bulldogs finally evened their full season record at 16-16 with the win. If they do capture the SEC crown, they'll surely have the worst record of any team entered in the NCAA tourney, but the best story of how they got there.

Big East, PAC-10 Tourney Results

PAC-10

UCLA 57 USC 54
After trailing 34-28 at the half, UCLA opened the second half with an 18-4 scoring blitz to put away their rivals from across town and reach the tournament finals. The Bruins will face the winner of tonight's Stanford-Washington State clash on Saturday.

Big East

Georgetown 72 West Virginia 55
Roy Hibbert, who didn't score and had just 4 rebounds in Thursday night's win over Villanova, rebounded in a big way to lead the Hoyas to the Big East finals. The big man had 25 points and 13 rebounds while only committing two personal fouls. Georgetown will face Pittsburgh in tomorrow's championship game. Pitt defeated Georgetown, 69-60, in their only meeting of the regular season, on January 14 at Pitt

Pittsburgh 69 Marquette 61
Pitt, nearly written off for dead three weeks ago, has forged back to reach the Big East finals. They will face Georgetown for the championship on Saturday afternoon.

The Panthers went after the Golden Eagles early, getting three fouls on both Lazard Hayward and Jerel McNeal before halftime. Pitt led 35-22 at the break. Marquette rallied in the second half, but Pitt's lead was too large to overcome.

Badgers Know Defense; Arkansas Moves On - Conference Tourney Results

Conference Tournament Results for March 14

Big Ten

Wisconsin 51 Michigan 34
In what has to be considered on of the best defensive efforts of the college basketball season, the Wisconsin Badgers completely contained Michigan, holding the Wolverines to 20% shooting, forcing 14 turnovers and holding sway on the boards by a 42-34 margin. The 85 combined points was the lowest point total in the history of the Big Ten tournament.

Michigan St. 67 Ohio St. 60
Drew Neitzel had the time of his life, scoring 28 points on 9-17 shooting, including 6-12 3-pointers as the Spartans moved on to the semifinals against Wisconsin on Saturday. Ohio State will have to sit on the bubble and wait to see if they earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tourney. Their status is best described as "iffy."

Illinois 74 Purdue 67 OT
In the biggest upset of the tournament, the Illini handed Purdue an unlikely loss. The Boilermakers finished a strong second in the Big Ten at 15-3, while Illinois was 5-13. Illinois' Demetri McCamey led the way with 28 points including a perfect 6-for-6 from 3-point range. The Illini will face the winner of tonight's Indiana-Minnesota game in one of tomorrow's semifinal matchups.

SEC

Tennessee 89 South Carolina 87
A narrow escape for the Vols, but they hardly needed the game. The Gamecocks are out, out and done.

Arkansas 81 Vanderbilt 75
A key, quality win for the Razorbacks which is probably good enough to impress the selection committee. Count Arkansas as one in the field of 65. The 'Backs were actually outshot from the field and both the 3-point and foul lines, but their enormous 45-24 rebounding edge game them more 18 more chances and the win. The Vols are up next on Saturday for Arkansas.

Mississippi St. 69 Alabama 67 OT
Close call for the Bulldogs and the Crimson Tide as a storm ripped a hole in the Goergia Dome roof and delayed the game in overtime. Mississippi St. will face the winner of tonight's Georgia-Kentucky game on Saturday.

ACC

North Carolina 82 Florida State 70
An easy win for the well-prepped Tar Heels. Tyler Hansbrough scored 22 and Wayne Ellison knocked in 19 points. Carolina looks unstoppable. They should win the ACC tourney without breaking a sweat. They've won nine straight and look like the #1 seed n the East no matter what happens.

Virginia Tech 63 Miami (FL) 49
Some redemption for the Hokies and trouble for Miami.

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Duke 82 Georgia Tech 70
Georgia Tech had no shot at making the NCAAs. This was a walkover for the Blue Devils.

Big 12

Texas 66 Oklahoma St. 59
Routine win for the Longhorns. The Big 12 needs an upset desperately because after Kansas and Texas, there's nothing there.

Oklahoma 54 Colorado 49
The Sooners catch their arch-enemy, Texas in one of two semifinals on Saturday.

Kansas 64 Nebraska 54
The Jayhawks at least made it interesting, having to come from five down at the half. Tomorrow, they'll play (and probably beat) the winner of tonight's Texas A&M-Kansas State game.

Later: Big East, PAC-10 and late results from all major conferences

Georgia survives in OT; Stanford sends Arizona home

Late Tourney Results from March 13

Georgia 97 Mississippi 95 OT
Georgia center Dave Bliss hit a buzzer-beater with o.4 seconds remaining in overtime to give Georgia an opening round win over Ole Miss. The Bulldogs finished last in the SEC East, so their only chance of receiving an NCAA bid is to win the entire tournament. They face Kentucky tonight in a quarterfinal game.

Mississippi wasn't likely to receive a bid either, after finishing 7-9 in the SEC. Rarely does the NCAA accept teams with losing conference records.

Stanford 75 Arizona 64
Stanford's size eventually proved to be too much for the Wildcats, who will wait until Sunday to see if they are offered a berth in the NCAA tournament. Brook Lopez, the Cardinal 7'1" powerhouse, scored 20 points and grabbed 15 rebounds as Stanford pulled away late. Stanford faces Washington State in a PAC-10 semifinal game Friday night. Arizona finished 8-10 during the conference's regular season and is unlikely to get an at-large bid.

Pitt on Comeback Trail; Florida is History; 'Huskers in the Mix

More Conference Tournament Results

Pittsburgh 76 Louisville 69 OT
Sam Young misfired on all four of his 3-point attempts, but he was 8-14 from inside the arc, scoring 21 points to lead the Panthers past Louisville in a critical second-round Big East tournament game.

Pittsburgh, which suffered through a three-straight losing streak in the midst of their Big East regular season schedule, has righted itself and should be sailing towards an NCAA bid. Pitt finished an undistinguished 10-8 in conference play, but have reached the semifinals of the Big East tourney with a pair of wins. On Friday, they will face Marquette in a semifinal contest.

Elsewhere around the nation's conference tournaments, Nebraska beat back Missouri, 61-56, keeping their hopes alive in the Big 12. Georgia Tech eliminated Virginia from the ACC tourney, 94-76 and Alabama ensured that there will be a new NCAA champion this season by knocking reigning champion Florida out of the SEC tournament in the first round by an 80-69 tally.

The Gators finished the regular season at 8-8 in the conference and are 21-11 overall, which is probably not good enough to make the final cut to 65 for the NCAAs.

UCLA 88 California 66
UCLA ended Cal's dreams of post-season glory and moved to the next round of the PAC-10 tourney. Darren Collison led the Bruins with 19 points, including 5-of-7 threes. Josh Shipp had 18 and freshman Kevin Love scored 11 as the Bruins shot 53% from the field. UCLA faces cross town rival USC - a 59-55 winner over Arizona State - in one of the semifinal games Friday.

Washington St. 75 Oregon 70
This was a tough matchup for the Ducks and it may have cost them any chance at consideration for an NCAA bid. The Cougars roared to a 42-27 lead at the half and turned back repeated challenges by Oregon to advance to Friday's semifinals to face the winner of the Stanford-Arizona game later tonight.

The Ducks pulled to within four points on Tajuan Porter's three-pointer with under 90 seconds remaining, but were forced to foul down the stretch and could draw no closer. It was the third time this season the Cougars dunked the Ducks.

Marquette 89 Notre Dame 79
Jerel McNeal just kept firing, but when he was forced to sit with three fouls midway through the second half, teammate Dominic James took over, scoring seven straight points for the Golden Eagles, putting Marquette ahead for good. McNeal, who had nearly single-handedly kept Marquette in the game most of the night, finished with a game high 28 points on 9-16 shooting, including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc.

Marquette will play Pittsburgh in one of Friday's semifinal games.

Boston College 71 Maryland 68
Count the Terrapins out of the ACC and the NCAA tournament. The troubled Terrapins collapsed in the second half of their first-round game with Boston College, surrendering any chance of consideration by the NCCA tournament committee for an at-large bid.

Maryland finished the ACC season 8-8 and was on the bubble heading into the conference tourney, but losing to last-place (4-12) BC was the last straw. The loss was the third straight for Maryland and their sixth in their last eight outings.

Mid-day Movers: Mountaineers Climb; Hoyas Hammer 'Cats

Conference Tournament Results

West Virginia 78 Connecticut 72
The Mountaineers now have everybody's attention and probably an at-large invite to the NCAAs with their second straight win in the Big East Tournament. UConn probably has little to worry about, since they went 13-5 in the Big East and 24-7 overall.

Georgetown 82 Villanova 63
The Hoyas put the hammer down on Villanova, a team they beat by just two points during the regular season. The Wildcats may have been a little weary from playing yesterday, while the well-rested Hoyas - who received a first round bye - were clicking from the outside as center Roy Hibbert played only 14 minutes, eventually fouling out with no points and four rebounds. Jesse Sapp and Jonathan Wallace were on fire from three-point range. Wallace hit 5-of-6, while Sapp nailed 6-of-9 from beyond the arc. Sapp finished with a game-high 23 points. Wallace had 20 as the Hoyas shot 54% for the game.

Villanova shot only 33% and now must sweat out Selection Sunday. They are 20-12 overall and finished 9-9 in the Big East. Georgetown will face West Virginia in one of two semi-final games on Friday.

Florida St. 70 Wake Forest 60
The Seminoles kept their hopes alive for a bid with an opening round win over Wake Forest in the ACC tourney. The Deacons are unlikely to go anywhere but the NIT.

Miami 63 NC State 50
Say bye-bye to the Wildcats for this season and hello to the Hurricanes. The opening round win nearly cinches an at-large berth for Miami, which finished the ACC regular season 8-8 and tied with Maryland for fifth place. The Hurricanes own a win over the Terps, as well as Duke, Clemson and, outside the conference, Mississippi State.

In the Big 10 tourney, Michigan beat Iowa, 55-47, and Illinois topped Penn St., 64-63, though neither are likely to make the NCAA tourney unless they win the entire tourney, which is unlikely.

Over in the Big 12, Colorado downed Baylor, 91-84, in double overtime. The opening-round loss puts the Bears back on the bubble with a 9-7 regular season conference record and 21-10 slate overall.

Oklahoma State knocked out Texas Tech, 76-72, but the Cowboys' 7-9 conference record really hurts their chances.

This pair of games leaves the doors wide open for Texas A&M, Oklahoma and long-shot Nebraska.

No surprises so far in the SEC Tournament opening round. South Carolina slipped by LSU, 77-73, and Vanderbilt cruised to a 93-82 win over Auburn.

Portland State Gets a Bid; Arizona Advances

Late Results from March 12 West Coast games

Portland State 67 Northern Arizona 51
The Portland State Vikings earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament with a win in the championship game of the Big Sky conference tourney. It's the fist ever invitation for the Vikings, who dominated the Big Sky with a 14-2 regular season record, losing only road games at Weber State and CSU Fullerton. The Vikings have won five straight and 14 of their last 15.

Arizona 87 Oregon State 56
The Arizona Wildcats demolished Oregon State in the opener of the PAC-10 tournament, shooting 54% from the field, including 9-of-17 three-pointers. The Wildcats face Stanford in the second round, Thursday night. A win there might put them on the radar for an at-large bid, though they will have to counteract their 8-10 regular season conference record.

California 84 Washington 81
The Golden Bears clung to their slim hopes of earning an NCAA at-large bid with a narrow escape in the first round of the PAC-10 tourney. Due to a 6-10 regular season PAC-10 record, for Cal to even be considered for a bid they'd likely have to win the entire tournament, meaning they'll have to defeat #3-ranked UCLA on Thursday in the second round.

Big East First Round Results; Mt. Saint Mary's Shocks Northeast

Villanova 82 Syracuse 63
That should do it for the Wildcats... and for Syracuse. Villanova used a 12-3 spurt midway through the second half to turn a close game into a runaway and secure an at-large bid for the NCAA tournament. For Syracuse, the loss was the culmination of a frustrating, injury-filled season that will likely end in the NIT Tournament.

Scottie Reynolds led all scorers with 22 points, including 4-of-7 three-pointers. Corey Stokes pitched in 18, hitting 4-of-8 from three-point range. The game was the opener for the Big East Tournament, which showcases one of the nation's great conferences through the weekend at Madison Square Garden. Villanova moves on to face top-seeded Georgetown in the second round on Thursday.

West Virginia 58 Providence 53
Joe Alexander scored 22 points and Da'Sean Butler added 18 points and nine rebounds to pace the Mountaineers past Providence and into the second round of the Big East tournament. Next up for the Mountaineers is Connecticut, who topped West Virginia 79-71 on March first at UConn. The second round game is slated for a 2:00 pm tip. West Virginia finished 11-7 in the conference during the regular season and may still need a win in order to receive a NCAA at-large bid. They are battling Pitt and Villanova for the probable 6th and 7th seeds from the Big East. Both the Panthers and Wildcats won opening round games on Wednesday.

Pittsburgh 70 Cincinnati 64
The Panthers finally closed out a stubborn Bearcats team to move into the second round of the Big East tourney. Pitt faces Louisville on Thursday night. A win over Louisville would almost certainly earn an NCAA bid for the Panthers, while a loss would still leave some doubt.

Marquette 67 Seton Hall 54
Marquette was probably going to get an NCAA invite whichever way this game turned, but winning it, and moving into the next round against Notre Dame, is certainly preferable. The Golden Eagles split a pair of games with the Irish this season, each team winning at home. On a neutral court, Marquette may rate a slight edge.

Marquette's Jerel McNeil was the game's high scorer with 21 points.


Mt. Saint Mary's Captures Northeast Title, Earns Bid

It's been a long, strange trip for the Mountaineers from Mt. Saint Mary's, but it's about to get even longer. The Mountaineers, who began the season with four straight losses, and found themselves at 8-11 on January 24, avenged earlier, regular season losses to Robert Morris and Sacred Heart and swept through the Northeast Conference tournament to capture an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

The Mountaineers finished the regular season in 4th place at 11-7, behind Robert Morris (16-2), Wagner (15-3) and Sacred Heart (13-5). After knocking off Quinnipiac, 80-70 in the opening round of the conference tourney, they thundered past Robert Morris, 83-65 on Sunday, and downed Sacred Heart, 69-55, in the final, Wednesday.

At 18-14, the Mountaineers will probably be a 16 seed and cannon fodder for one of the four #1's in the tournament. They've won five straight and seven of their last eight.

A Trio from the WCC?

With unlikely wins over both St. Mary's and then Gonzaga - in the West Coast Conference tournament final - the San Diego Toreros earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and sent the college basketball world officially into the Madness that is March.

The Toreros finished third in the WCC regular season, but came through in the tourney to better the top two finishers. Both Gonzaga (13-1 conference, 25-7 overall), which won the WCC regular season, and St. Mary's (12-2, 25-6) have the credentials to receive at-large bids, but both will have to sweat it out until Selection Sunday, March 16.

Other teams, from other conferences will be sweating along with them. With only 34 at-large bids available after the champions of 31 conferences get automatic bids, a handful of teams from major conferences find themselves on the proverbial "bubble" for tourney bids.

If the WCC sends all three, which seems likely, that leaves only 32 at-large bids to go around.

At the moment, the teams in the most precarious positions are Pittsburgh, Villanova and Syracuse in the Big East; Virginia Tech, Miami and Maryland in the ACC; Oklahoma and Texas A&M in the Big 12; Creighton and Southern Illinois in the Missouri Valley Conference; Arizona State and Oregon in the PAC-10; and Arkansas in the SEC. Florida, last year's national champion, was likely eliminated with their regular season finale loss at Kentucky.

Of the majors, the Big East and PAC-10 tournaments open on Wednesday, while the ACC, SEC, Big 12 and Big Ten tourneys tip on Thursday.

The first to fall will probably be either Villanova or Syracuse, who face off at noon Eastern on Wednesday.

#12 Butler 70 Cleveland St. 55
The Butler Bulldogs earned an NCAA automatic bid Tuesday night by capturing the Horizon League title with a win over stubborn Cleveland State in the tournament final. In addition to banging home key three-pointers late in the game, the Bulldogs repeatedly stepped to the foul line and converted, hitting 24 of 32 free throws, while the Vikings of Cleveland State tried only 19 freebies, hitting 13 of them.

Butler's Mike Green led the scoring parade with 24 points, including converting 11-of-13 from the foul line.

Tar Heels Repel Duke, Capture ACC Title

#1 North Carolina 76 #6 Duke 68
With Ty Lawson back in the lineup, the Tar Heels (14-2, 29-2) took care of business in enemy territory and captured the ACC regular season title. Carolina bloked 15 shots, held the Blue Devils to 33% shooting and controlled the boards, 53-44. Duke remains the second-best team in the conference, and the tournament will only help determine which other teams - maybe as many as 4 more - get into the NCAA field.

Richmond 61 #8 Xavier 86
The Musketeers (26-5, 14-4) completed their Atlantic-10 regular season without point guard Drew Lavender, who was rested for this somewhat meaningless game, nursing a sore ankle. Xavier gets a bye for the first round of the A-10 tourney, and will next hit the hardwood on Thursday, in Atlantic City.

Cincinnati #13 Connecticut
This season-ender for both teams was postponed by bad weather and was rescheduled for 6:00 pm on Sunday.

IL Chicago 50 #14 Butler 66
Butler moves on the the Horizon League tourney finals against Cleveland State on Sunday.

#19 Notre Dame 67 South Florida 60
The Irish close out the regular season 14-4 in the Big East and 24-6 overall. They look like a solid 4, 5, or 6 seed.

Washington 73 #23 Washington State 76
This game only settles which is the better team in the state, which was pretty much already established. The Cougars are just waiting in the wings to do some damage in the NCAA tourney. Despite their ranking, they could forge a path to the Elite Eight.

Saturday's Season Finales Offer a Little Insight

#12 Louisville 52 #11 Georgetown 55
A little too much inside and outside by the Hoyas as they wrap up the Big East regular season title and win their 20th straight home game.

UAB 56 #2 Memphis 94
Another walk-through for the Tigers. 3rd straight 30-win season. Playing in Conference-USA will do that.

#16 Vanderbilt 73 Alabama 78
Vandy hitting a little bit of a rough patch after upsetting Tennessee last week. Second loss in their last three outings, both on the road. The Commodores were less-than-interested participants here, as a NCAA bid is already a foregone conclusion. Their performance in the SEC tournament will decide their seeding level.

Wofford 49 #25 Davidson 82
20 game win streak for the Davidson Wildcats, who may enter the NCAAs with the longest winning streak in the nation. They are a very dangerous team, likely to get a 12 or 13 seed. Losses to North Carolina, Duke and UCLA by 4, 6, and 12, respectively, look pretty good on their resume.

#7 Stanford 64 USC 77
The Cardinal has lost their last two, both on the road in SoCal, but this one really showed where the team is, mentally and physically. A 4 or 5 seed at best and hopes of making the Sweet 16 seem to be about all they' can expect.

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Creighton 67 #20 Drake 75
This hurts Creighton's chances of becoming the 4th team from the MVC to earn a bid, but only a little as Drake is the probable favorite over Illinois State in Sunday's MVC Tourney Final. Drake, Southern Illinois and Illinois State all seem likely to receive bids. This conference is very solid and it would be a shame if they don't send at least three teams, but Creighton as the fourth would even be better.

#10 Wisconsin 65 Northwestern 52
Badgers wrap up the Big 10 title with their 7th straight win. As solid as they come, Wisconsin finishes up 16-2 and 26-4 overall.

California 80 #3 UCLA 81
Bruins didn't need this one, but battled to the end, winning on a wild, behind-the-basket shot by Josh Shipp. UCLA will damage some PAC-10 teams' hopes during the conference tourney.

#5 Kansas 72 Texas A&M 55
An absolute rout and furthers the belief that the Aggies will not get an invitation to the Big Dance. Their fifth loss in their last seven games drops A&M to 8-8 in the conference and does not impress anyone, especially not the selection committee.

Kansas clinched at least a tie for the Big 12 title with Texas, who plays Oklahoma St. tomorrow in the regular season finale.

#21 Marquette 72 Syracuse 87
The Orangemen are in the most precarious position of probably any team in the nation concerning the NCAA selection process. This win was huge, making them 9-9 in the conference, and 19-12 overall. With a win over Georgetown figured in, the Orange probably need to win at least two games in the Big East tournament.

With five teams already in from the conference, Syracuse will be vying with Pitt, West Virginia, Cincy and Villanova for a final one or two spots. In all likelihood, the Big East sends seven, but just who goes is still up in the air. Stay tuned.

UCLA Is Ready, Downs Cardinal 77-67

#7 Stanford 67 #3 UCLA 77, OT
The UCLA Bruins wrapped up their third consecutive PAC-10 regular season title with a comeback overtime win over the very game Stanford Cardinal. Darren Collison led the Bruins, and all scorers, with 24 points. Russell Westbrook added 19 and Kevin Love chipped in 17.

UCLA will likely receive the #1 seed in the Western region of the upcoming NCAA tournament, though that could change in the meantime, depending on results of the PAC-10 tourney.

The Bruins are 15-2 in the conference with one home game with California remaining on Saturday. and their regular season record stands at 27-3. Stanford is locked into second in the conference at 13-4 and 24-5 overall.

Other probable entries to the NCAAs from the PAC-10 include a pair of 10-7 teams, USC and Washington State. Arizona, Arizona State and Oregon, all 8-9, will vie for one or possibly two more invitations for the conference. For them, the every remaining game is critical.

Failing Grades? #8 Xavier, #13 Connecticut, #24 Clemson Lose Focus

8 Xavier 66 St. Joseph's 71
This one has been in the offing for some time. The Musketeers ran away with the Atlantic-10 and St. Joe's (9-6, 17-10) needed the win. Xavier was 7-13 from the foul line, St. Joe's 17-20. Game over. On to the conference tourney.

#13 Connecticut 76 Providence 85
Road blues for UConn, probably not interested since they've already earned a 1st round bye in the Big East tournament.

#24 Clemson 75 Georgia Tech 80
Another game without meaning for a team heading to both their conference tourney and the big dance.

It's tough to read anything into these losses except for a real lack of preparedness for road opponents bent on making statements. The most interesting by far is the St. Joseph's story, the only winner tonight with an outside shot at making the NCCA field.

If you're looking for bubble teams, the Hawks are a good choice. Their chances will improve with each successive conference tournament victory.

Tar Heels Cement #1 Ranking; Ohio St. Saves Season

Florida St. 77 #1 North Carolina 90
Just a day after regaining the #1 ranking in the nation, North Carolina showed why they deserved the top spot with a routine home win over Florida State.

North Carolina was ranked #1 from preseason through the January 14 poll, after which they suffered their first loss of the season, 82-80, to Maryland. Since then, Memphis and Tennessee had assumed the lead, but both lost key games and with only one other loss - to Duke - the Tar Heels were the obvious choice, especially since Ty Lawson is fully recovered from injury and playing again.

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North Carolina will get their final test of the regular season and a chance to make amends at Duke on Saturday. The Blue Devils upended North Carolina a month ago, 89-78 at Chapel Hill. Lawson was inactive for that game, but he will be ready to put in his best effort in a game that will determine the ACC regular season champion, if Duke takes care of business Wednesday night at Virginia.

Lawson scored 10 points in 20 minutes against the Seminoles, and looks to be ready to play 30 or more minutes against Duke's guards, Greg Paulus and Jon Scheyer.

#15 Purdue 77 Ohio State 80 OT
The Buckeyes have been knocking on the Big Ten door the last few games and finally they just knocked it down with a big win that could pave the way for an Ohio State entry into the NCAA field.

The Buckeyes held Purdue to 41% shooting while hitting 48% themselves. Jamar Butler led all scorers with 25 points as Ohio State battled into overtime with one of the co-leaders of the conference.

The loss dropped the 14-3 Boilermakers a 1/2-game behind 14-2 Wisconsin and a 1/2-game ahead of 13-3 Indiana.

While the game certainly had implications to the tight Big Ten title race, it was the most important win of the season for the Buckeyes, who improved to 9-8 in conference play and 18-12 overall with a final regular season game and the Big Ten tourney ahead.

Ohio State had lost four straight and sorely needed a win to stay in consideration for post-season play.

Nebraska 66 #9 Texas 70
A good showing by the Cornhuskers wasn't enough to keep them on the bubble for the big dance as they dropped to 6-9 in conference play. The Longhorns play their final game of the regular season at home Sunday against Oklahoma State.

Florida Gulf Coast 37 #21 Marquette 67
This was like practice for Marquette, which is ranked, plays most of their games in the Big East and is looking ahead to the post season. The Golden Eagles starters only played 21-30 minutes, no player from Florida Gulf Coast scored more than six points as their record fell to 10-21. Not nice.

Kansas Routs Texas Tech, 109-51

Texas Tech 51 #5 Kansas 109
Nothing like a little home cooking - and 60% shooting - to get ready for the rigors of postseason play and the Jayhawks chalked up an enormous victory, notching their season high in points as Kansas humbled the Red Raiders by 58 points.

Kansas also held Tech to 29% shooting, while putting six players in double figures. None of the Jayhawks' starters played more than 21 minutes as Kansas built at 51-26 halftime lead and made the second half even more miserable for Patrick Knight and his troops.

The loss may have ruined any chance the Red Raiders had for making the NCAA tournament, as they dropped to 7-8 in Big 12 play and 16-13 overall. Kansas completes the regular season at Texas A&M on Saturday, and unless Texas loses to either Oklahoma State or Nebraska, KU and the Longhorns will likely finish the regular season tied for the conference title.

if that occurs, Texas can lay claim to bragging rights due to a Feb. 11, 72-69 win over the Jayhawks, so the #1 Midwest seed should come down to whichever team performs better in the Big 12 tourney.

Weekend Update: Spartans, Red Raiders upset Hoosiers, Longhorns

We are officially just two weeks away from Selection Sunday and the start of the NCAA tournament.

A number of games over the weekend helped and/or hurt teams' chances to make the Big Dance, but none was bigger than Michigan State's enormous win over Indiana.

Sunday

#12 Indiana 74 #19 Michigan St. 103
This win should be good enough to put the Spartans into the NCAA field. Totally unexpected, Michigan State, the win ended a three-game losing streak against ranked conference opposition. At 11-5 with a pair of road games remaining, the Spartans really needed this confidence builder.

They now move from the bubble to the "Most Likely" category for a bid, probably a 6 or 7, making them upset material.

Michigan State shot 61% for the game, including 13-24 three-pointers, registering a season-high single-game score.

Indiana dropped a game behind co-Big Ten leaders Purdue and Wisconsin, both at 14-2.

Kentucky 60 #1 Tennessee 63
This could have been a blowout, but the Wildcats battled back from being down as many as 15 in the first half to make a game of it, actually taking a short lead midway through the second half. Kentucky just doesn't stack up on paper, but they're going to be in the tournament as the best team with less than 20 wins and more than 10 losses because they are 10-4 in the SEC. Weird. They could be one and done or win three games. They're the most enigmatic team in the nation.

#17 Notre Dame 98 DePaul 91
The Irish clinched a first round bye in the upcoming Big East tournament and still has an outside chance at winning the regular season title. Generally, Notre Dame doesn't play well on the road, but they got this one at DePaul and have just two games left - St. John's and at South Florida.

They're game-ready for Madison Square Garden.

Villanova 54 #13 Louisville 68
The Cardinals were just too dominant inside for gritty Villanova, which really could have used a win. At 7-9 and 17-11 overall, the Wildcats need to win the last two regular season games and at least one in the Big East tourney to have even a chance at consideration for more playing time.

#4 UCLA 68 Arizona 66
Arizona almost pulled off this upset - and it would have been huge - but the Bruins escaped and the Wildcats are bubbling badly at 7-9 and 17-12. The PAC-10 would have to send six teams for Arizona to sneak in, and that's questionable.

Saturday

2 Memphis 76 Southern Miss. 67
Good showing by Southern Miss (11-3, 21-8) means they'll be the second team from Conference-USA. Others may include Houston and UCF, but no more than four total.

#3 UNC 90 Boston College 80
Just another day at the office for the Tar Heels, who could be ranked #1 come Monday afternoon.

#5 Texas 80 Texas Tech 83
Shocker of the day as the Red Raiders swarmed the Longhorns and made their case for inclusion in the field of 65. But was it too late. Tech is 7-7 and 16-12 overall, but hold wins over both Kansas and Texas.

Kansas St. 74 #6 Kansas 88
Chalk up consecutive loss #4 for the Wildcats, who are fading faster than a tie-died t-shirt. Kansas takes back the lead in the Big 12. At 18-10, K-State has gone from a tournament lock a bubble team in just two weeks.

#7 Duke 87 N.C. St. 86
Wolfpack controlled this game for 39 minutes. Coach K gets win #800 as the Duke boys never quit.

George Washington 56 #9 Xavier 66
No surprise. The X-Men are good for a #3 or 4 seed.

#22 Washington St. 53 #8 Stanford 60
Look out for the Cardinal, winners of four straight and 11 of their last 12. They've beaten Wash St. twice now and get a rematch with UCLA Thursday night.

#11 Georgetown 70 #21 Marquette 68
Despite the loss, Marquette cemented their status as an invitee to the NCAA tourney. Georgetown struggled, but winning ugly becomes this very dangerous team.

Detroit 31 #14 Butler 65
It's Official. Butler is the Horizon League champion.

W. Virginia 71 #15 Connecticut 79
The Mountaineers didn't need this game at 9-7 and 20-9 overall, though it certainly would have helped. They're likely to get a bid, probably a 9 or 10.

Northwestern 43 #16 Purdue 68
Purdue and Wisconsin remain tied for the Big Ten lead at 14-2.

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#18 Vanderbilt 73 Arkansas 78
This was an enormous win by the Razorbacks. Vandy was coming off an upset of Tennessee and Arkansas may have caught them a little flat-footed. But, in the very contentious SEC, Arkansas needed a Top 25 win and got it when it counted.

Wichita St. 63 #20 Drake 73
Ho-hum. Drake clinched the MVC about a month ago.

#23 Kent St. 83 Bowling Green 89
Bit of an upset, but Kent State still looks like the team to beat in the Mid-American. Top 25 ranking? I don't know.

#25 St. Mary's 76 #24 Gonzaga 88
Talk about rising to the occasion! The Zags avenged an earlier loss to the Gaels and can wrap up the West Coast Conference title with a win over Santa Clara on Monday.

Pittsburgh 82 Syracuse 77
Pitt came from 14 down late in the second half to salvage what's left of their season. Still on the bubble at least until the Big East Tourney. Syracuse is out.