NCAA Tournament: Sweet 16 Previews, Friday Games feature Duke, Gonzaga, Cardinals, Spartans

Sweet 16 Previews: Friday Games

South Region
7:15 pm (11) UCLA (22-13) vs (2) Gonzaga (34-2) CBS - The highest seed remaining in the tournament, UCLA will defend the honor of the PAC-12, which has done surprisingly well during the first two rounds, compiling a 7-1 mark from four teams (UCLA, UTAH, Arizona, and Oregon). What the Bruins face, however, is one of the best teams left in the tourney. Gonzaga hasn't been a "Cinderella" team for quite some time; they're established as a powerhouse on a national scale and perennial champions of the West Coast conference. Additionally, Gonzaga already has a win at UCLA in the books this season, a December 19, 87-74 victory.

9:45 pm (5) Utah (26-8) vs (1) Duke (31-4) CBS - As usual, the Blue Devils have raised their game as the tournament has proceeded. Under the tutelage of Mike Krzyzewski, nothing short of 100% is expected from the players on the floor and that's generally what he always gets. Duke can produce from the outside, raining down threes on the opposition or inside, using Jahlil Okafor's wide body for scoring and defense. The Utes will test the interior of Duke's defense, as they have significant size on their front line. Not an easy task for the Blue Devils and possibly a significant upset, should Utah prove too tough in the lane.

East Region
7:37 pm (8) NC State (22-13) vs (4) Louisville (26-8) TBS - An all-ACC meeting here in the East, and the edge belongs to the Wolf Pack, by virtue of a 74-65 win at Louisville during the regular season. Both teams are notable for athleticism and defense, and this will be as hard-nosed a game as one will see in the entire tournament. While Louisville was awarded a lower seed, there really isn't much differentiating these teams and the game could come down to fouls (who's left on the court) and free throws. If there's a "must see" game for potential upsetters of the status quo, this one is it.

10:07 pm (7) Michigan State (25-11) vs (3) Oklahoma (24-10) TBS - The Sooners and Spartans are both well-coached and highly regarded by the remaining competition. This game could turn into a brawl, with physicality in excess on both sides, but the duel between Michigan State's Travis Trice and Oklahoma's premier scoring threat, Buddy Hield, will be prominent. Oklahoma hasn't seen much in the way of serious competition, beating Albany, then Dayton, to advance, while the Spartans have made their way with a win over Georgia before upsetting the #2 seed in the region, Virginia, and doing so with apparent ease. Ought to be a good one leading up to Sunday's epic games.

NCAA Tournament: Sweet 16 Regional Semi-Final Thursday Night Previews, Looks Like Wildcat Night

Sweet 16 Regional Semi-Final Previews

Midwest Region
7:15 pm (7) Wichita State (30-4) vs (3) Notre Dame (31-5) CBS - This is likely to be the most entertaining game of the evening, as both teams like to get up and down the floor and can really light it up from beyond the arc.

The Irish are quite a dangerous commodity, presently, having beaten Duke and North Carolina to win the ACC tournament, and gutting out close wins over Northeastern (69-65) and Butler, beating the Bulldogs in overtime, 67-64.
Wichita State downed Indiana in their tourney opener and then stunned the region's #2 seed, Kansas, with a 78-65 whipping. The Shockers were fortunate to receive a seeding that kept them on the underside of the Kentucky bracket and there is little doubt that they can match up quite well with Notre Dame.

9:45 pm (5) West Virginia (25-9) vs (1) Kentucky (36-0) CBS - Knocked out of the Big 12 tournament in the first round by Baylor, Bob Huggins' Mountaineers may be the tournament's poster boys for overachievement, knocking off Buffalo, 68-62, and then Maryland, 69-59, to get to this game against the Wildcats.

The chances of West Virginia pulling off the upset over the nation's #1 team? Slim. Kentucky has too much size on the front line and too much skill in the back court, which can involve as many as four guards, including the twins, Andrew and Aaron Harrison. Since LSU nearly ended Kentucky's undefeated run on February 10 in a 71-69 loss, the closest any team has come to beating the Wildcats is Georgia, which lost, at home, 72-64. In the SEC tournament, won by 13, 24 and 15 points, and their average magin of victory in the NCAA tourney has been 18 points.

West Region
7:47 pm (4) North Carolina (26-11) vs (1) Wisconsin (33-3) TBS - A real heavyweight battle here between two teams that are perennial tournament participants. Wisconsin has been to the tourney 17 straight seasons and are likely to be moving forward here. Frank Kaminsky leads a veteran group that is notorious for closing out opponents. The Tar Heels have had a successful season up to this point, but they've often wilted in late stages of games. It will be noteworthy to watch what happens at about the seven-minute mark of the second half. That should be about the time the teams will either show up or give in to pressure.

10:17 pm (6) Xavier (23-13) vs (2) Arizona (33-3) TBS - Viewers on the East coast haven't likely seen much of the Wildcats, but they're about to get an eyeful from this well-balanced and very dangerous team. Arizona has won 13 straight, their last loss an 81-78 defeat at in-state rival Arizona State on February 7. That's history, and the Wildcats steamrolled through the PAC-12 tourney with wins of 22, 14, and 28 points, slaughtering Oregon, 80-52 in the final. A 93-72 win over Texas Southern in their first toruney game and a ho-hum, 73-58 rout of Ohio State has them here.

Xavier hasn't met much competition in the tourney, beating Ole Miss in their opener and handling upstart Georgia State (a 14 seed) in the next round. Teams from the Big East have a 5-5 record in the tournament through the last round, while the PAC-12 boasts a 7-1 mark.

Tomorrow: Friday games previewed.

Two's Blues: Virginia, Kansas Out; Blue Devils Blast San Diego St., Advance to Sweet 16 on Jahlil Okafor's Big Effort

Round of 32 Sunday Games

and Player of the Day for Sunday, March 22, 2015

(7) Michigan St 60, (2) Virginia 54 - The ACC had won 10 games without a loss, and the streak had to end somewhere. No surprise, it was Tom Izzo's Michigan State Spartans that rose to the occasion. A near-fixture in the Sweet 16, Elite 8 and Final Four under Izzo's tutelage, Spartan players turned on the defensive jets and smother Virginia, holding them to 18 first half points and a woeful 29% shooting for the game.

On the other end of the floor, Travis Trice was irrepressible, scoring a game-high 23 points on 7-15 shooting, including 4-8 from three-point range and 5-6 from the foul line in 39 minutes of court time.

(1) Duke 68, (8) San Diego State 49 - As is often the case in the tournament, while other teams are floundering and falling by the wayside, the Duke Blue Devils simply play on and continue mowing down the opposition. Such was the case against San Diego State, who could not deal with Jahlil Okafor inside. Duke's freshman superstar was 12-16 from the field for a game-high 26 points, adding six rebounds, two assists, a steal and three blocked shots.

(7) Wichita State 78, (2) Kansas 65 - Kansas had appeared vulnerable due to losing the Big 12 final to Iowa State (eliminated by UAB Thursday night) and, indeed, they were. The Shockers didn't exactly shock anyone; they are a quality team and they know it, and now, so does everyone else. The Jayhawks got into trouble late in the first half, when they scored just four points - all from the foul line - in the last six minutes leading up to the break and left the court down, 29-26. They never got any closer.

Wichita State opened up their offense and basically outran Kansas, quicker to the ball in every aspect and scoring repeatedly on breakaways, steals and sloppy defense. All five starters scored for the Shockers, led by Tekele Cotton's 19 points. The Jayhawks became the second #2 seed to lose in the tourney; earlier in the day, Michigan State (also a #7 seed) knocked off Virginia in the East region.

(3) Oklahoma 72, (11) Dayton 66 - The Sooners got all they could handle from Dayton, but managed to make key plays in the closing minutes to edge away from the fiesty Flyers and advance to the round of 16, where they will meet up with the Michigan State Spartans.

(2) Gonzaga 87, (7) Iowa 68 - A complete mismatch and a blowout for the Zags, who were never threatened once they established a lead. Led by Kevin Wiltjer's 24 points and seven rebounds, the Bulldogs were a model of consistency, hitting 61.5% from the field, 62.5% on threes and 61.9% from the foul line. Dazzling.

(1) Wisconsin 72, (8) Oregon 65 - The Ducks' Joseph Young led all scorers with 30 points, but the Badgers kept to task and eliminated the only PAC-12 representative to take to the hardwoods on the day. Though the score was close, Wisconsin actually led almost all the way. The only times they didn't was at 0-0 to start the game and 52-all with 5:56 left to play. The Badgers will meet North Carolina in the Sweet 16.

(5) West Virginia 69, (4) Maryland 59 - Nearing the midpoint of the second half, Maryland's sensational point guard, Melo Trimble, suffered a concussion-like injury and left the game, not to return. The Terrapins, without one of their leading scorers and main play-maker, suffered from the loss and the Mountaineers gradually pulled away for the victory. Tremble finished with a team-high 15 points. Devin Williams led the Mountaineers with 16.

(4) Louisville 66, (5) Northern Iowa 53 - The Panthers made a game of it, but the final game of the weekend ended with a whimper instead of a thunderous dunk. Louisville's starting five was simply too good, scoring all but five of the Cardinal points. Sophomore, Terry Rozier, was stunning, scoring a game-high 25 points to go with five boards and seven assists.

Conference Power Scoreboard

Conference	W-L	Winners (# of Ws)
ACC	12-1	Notre Dame (2), NC State (2), North Carolina (2), Arkansas (1), Virginia (1). Louisville (2), Duke (2)
Big East	5-5	Butler (1), Xavier (2), Villanova (1), Georgetown (1)
Big Ten	7-5	Ohio State (1), Michigan St. (2), Maryland (1), Iowa (1), Wisconsin (2)
Big 12	5-5	Kansas (1), West Virginia (2), Oklahoma (2)
Pac-12	7-1	UCLA (2), Arizona (2), Utah (2), Oregon (1)
SEC	3-4	Ole Miss (1), Kentucky (2)
All Others	13-30	Hampton(1), Robert Morris (1), Dayton (1), UAB (1), Georgia St. (1), Cincinnati (1), N. Iowa (1), Wichita St. (2), San Diego State (1), Gonzaga (2), Dayton (1)

NCAA Tournament Round of 32: ACC 10-0, PAC-12 7-0; Tony Parker Leads Bruins into Sweet 16; Kentucky, Notre Dame, Tar Heels Advance

Round of 32 Saturday Games

and College Hoops Player of the Day for Saturday, March 21, 2015

(11) UCLA 92, (14) UAB 75 - There were those who said that UCLA didn't belong in the tournament, but the Bruins are having them eat their words, blowing out the Blazers to become the first team in the tourney to reach the level of Sweet 16 and posting the third-highest point total of the tourney, behind Arizona and Villanova, both of which had 93 in their openers. Tony Parker led everyone with 28 points and 12 rebounds, turning away three shots in UCLA's win to garner today's Player of the Day honors.

(1) Kentucky 64, (8) Cincinnati 51 - The Bearcats wanted to dance with the Wildcats, but it was Kentucky showing off the fancy footwork, smothering Cincy with defense. The Bearcats shot just 32%.

The Wildcats ended the first half on a 10-0 run and went into the break with a seven-point cushion, holding Cincinnati scoreless the final 3:43 of the first half. Leading the entire second half, the Wildcats expanded their lead to as many as 19 points, cruising to their 36th straight win.

(2) Arizona 73, (10) Ohio State 58 - The Buckeyes led most of the first half, but didn't score the final 3:13, and trailed 26-25 at intermission. Arizona used a 16-6 run early in the second half to open a ten-point lead and were never threatened after that. Gabe York and T.J. McConnell each had 19 for Arizona.

(6) Xavier 75, (14) Georgia State 67 - Representing the Sun Belt as well as they could, the Panthers finally fell too far behind the Musketeers in the late stages of the game and were eliminated after sending #3 seed Baylor home early in the previous round. Even though Georgia State shot 53.5% from the field, Xavier was fr better, clicking at 67.6% (23-34) and also made 22 of 25 from the line (88%).

(8) NC State 71, (1) Villanova 68 - Stunning the top seed in the East, the Wolfpack was relentless and held the lead throughout the second half after leading 32-28 at the break. Trevor Lacey was brilliant, with 17 points, six boards and four assists, and both Lennard Freeman and Abdul-Malik Abu each registered double-doubles for NC State. The closest Villanova came was with just 1.9 seconds left, when they closed to within a point, but Ralston Turner's two free throws sealed the win.

(5) Utah 75, (4) Georgetown 64 - The Hoyas opened up a 21-10 lead, making five threes in the first 6:28 of the game, but the Utes clawed back to tie the game at 32 into half time. Utah never fell behind after that and gradually pulled away in the latter stages of the game, shooting 58% from the field.

(4) North Carolina 87, (5) Arkansas 78 - Arkansas made this a tight one, but the athleticism, size and talent of the Tar Heels prevailed. Marcus Paige had 22 points, six rebounds and five steals for North Carolina.

(3) Notre Dame 67, (6) Butler 64 - For the bleary-eyed who managed to stay up late for this one, the loss of a little sleep was well worth it, as the Irish and Bulldogs played a back-and-forth classic that could only be decided in overtime. Steve Vasturia had a career high 20 points on 6-for-11 shooting, including the clinching three-pointer in overtime. He added 6-for-6 from the line and six rebounds.

Conference Power Scoreboard

Conference	W-L	Winners (# of Ws)
ACC	10-0	Notre Dame (2), NC State (2), North Carolina (2), Arkansas (1), Virginia (1). Louisville (1)
Big East	5-5	Butler (1), Xavier (2), Villanova (1), Georgetown (1)
Big Ten	5-3	Ohio State (1), Michigan St. (1), Maryland (1), Iowa (1), Wisconsin (1)
Big 12	3-4	Kansas (1), West Virginia (1), Oklahoma (1)
Pac-12	7-0	UCLA (2), Arizona (2), Utah (2), Oregon (1)
SEC	3-4	Ole Miss (1), Kentucky (2)
All Others	11-27	Hampton(1), Robert Morris (1), Dayton (1), UAB (1), Georgia St. (1), Cincinnati (1), N. Iowa (1), Wichita St. (1), San Diego State (1), Gonzaga (1), Dayton (1)

Round of 64 Late Friday Games; Joseph Young and Ducks Soar in Win over Ok. St.; Frank Kaminsky, Badgers Advance

Round of 64 Late Friday Scores and Highlights

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, March 20, 2015

(8) Oregon 79, (9) Oklahoma State 73 - A statistically close game, as the score indicates, the real difference was that Oregon simply shot the lights out, especially late in the contest, hitting a cool 55% from the field, and from the foul line, where they went 14-for-18 (78%). Of all the Ducks, the loudest quacks came from Joseph Young, who led all scorers with 27 points.

Young played all 40 minutes, hit eight of 15 from the field, including 3-for-6 from beyond the arc, and was 8-for-8 from the charity stripe. Young also had four rebounds, four assists, a steal and did not commit a single foul. Exceptional.

Of the seven teams that came to the tourney from the Big 12, Oklahoma State was the fourth to lose in the opening round, joining Iowa State, Baylor and Texas on the bus back home. Kansas, West Virginia and Oklahoma remain alive.

(1) Duke 85, (16) Robert Morris 56 - As expected, the Blue Devils simply blew out their opponents from the Northeast Conference, blistering the nets at a 63% rate for the game. Quinn Cook had 22, Jahlil Okafor, 21.

(7) Iowa 83, (10) Davidson 52 - Iowa shot 51% for the game and turned this 7-10 match-up into a complete rout, registering the biggest blowout of the day. The win was the first in the tournament for the Hawkeyes since 2001.

(3) Oklahoma 69, (14) Albany 60 - The Sooners took a nine-point lead into half time and maintained it to move forward.

(1) Wisconsin 86, (16) Coastal Carolina 72 - The more resembled a scrimmage or shoot-around from Wisconsin's perspective, as they were never threatened. Frank Kaminsky was tops in scoring, rebounding and assists, with 27, 12 and 4.

(8) San Diego St 76, (9) St. John's 64 - With 6:25 left in the first half, Dwayne Polee II connected on a three-pointer to give the Aztecs a two-point advantage and they were never tied nor gave up the lead after that, holding the Red Storm at a comfortable distance throughout the remainder of the game.

(2) Gonzaga 86, (15) North Dakota St. 76 - The Bison hung in for the first seven minutes of the game, at which point the Zags took the lead for good. Gonzaga established and maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of the festivities.

(11) Dayton 66, (6) Providence 53 - Representing well for the Atlantic 10, Dayton kept the Friars at bay throughout the second half and were not threatened late.

Conference Power Scoreboard

Conference	W-L	Winners (# of Ws)
ACC	7-0	Notre Dame (1), NC State (1), North Carolina (1), Arkansas (1), Virginia (1), Duke (1), Louisville (1)
Big East	4-2	Butler (1), Xavier (1), Villanova (1), Georgetown (1)
Big Ten	5-2	Ohio State (1), Michigan St. (1), Maryland (1), Iowa (1), Wisconsin (1)
Big 12	3-4	Kansas (1), West Virginia (1), Oklahoma (1)
Pac-12	4-0	UCLA (1), Arizona (1), Utah (1), Oregon (1)
SEC	2-3	Ole Miss (1), Kentucky (1)
All Others	11-24	Hampton(1), Robert Morris (1), Dayton (1), UAB (1), Georgia St. (1), Cincinnati (1), N. Iowa (1), Wichita St. (1), San Diego State (1), Gonzaga (1), Dayton (1)

NCAA Tournament: Round of 64 Early Friday Results and Highlights; Fred Van Vleet's 27 Points Paces Wichita State

NCAA Tournament: Round of 64 (Friday early games) Results and 

Player of the Day for Friday, March 20, 2015

(2) Kansas 75, (15) New Mexico St 56 - Frank Mason III paced the Jayhawks to a cakewalk win over New Mexico State, scoring 17 points with nine boards. Mason played 31 minutes, which was the most of any Kansas starter, as the Jayhawks established an early lead and cruised, leading by 23 points on multiple occasions in the second half. Starters got plenty of rest for Sunday's third round game.

(7) Michigan St. 70, (10) Georgia 63 - The Spartans got off to a slow start, but took the lead near the midpoint of the first half and never looked back. Georgia closed to within two points in the second half but could never tie or overtake Michigan State. Spartan defense was key, holding the Bulldogs to 33.3% shooting (19-57).

(5) Northern Iowa 71, (12) Wyoming 54 - Champions of the Missouri Valley conference, Northern Iowa put a whipping on Wyoming, hitting half of their three-point attempts (9-18) and going 16-18 from the foul line.

(5) West Virginia 68, (12) Buffalo 62 - This one was predicted to be close, and though the score shows a six-point win for the Mountaineers, it was only tied once, at 62-all with just over two minutes left to play. West Virginia raced off to a 7-0 lead and cruised ahead for almost the entire game, then scored the final six points of the game for the win.

(7) Wichita State 81, (10) Indiana 76 - This game was tight throughout, but the Shockers took the advantage just past the middle of the second half and held off Indiana the rest of the way. Fred VanVleet scored a game-high 27 points and contributed two boards, four assists and two steals.

(2) Virginia 79, (15) Belmont 67 - Belmont's Craig Bradshaw kept the Bruins in the game with 25 points, but the Cavaliers clamped down on defense and pulled away late for the win. Belmont shot 47% from the field - quite an accomplishment against Virginia - but the Cavaliers forced 12 turnovers and out-rebounded Belmont, 35-29.

(4) Louisville 57, (13) UC Irvine 55 - The Anteaters put a serious scare into the Cardinals, actually taking a two-point lead with 1:08 to play, but Wayne Blackshear's layup and two free throws by Quentin Snyder got Louisville out of danger and into the round of 32.

(4) Maryland 65, (13) Valparaiso 62 - Tight throughout, Maryland took control late and held the Crusaders without a shot in the waning seconds to capture the win, joining Michigan State and Ohio State as winners out of the Big Ten.

Conference Power Scoreboard

Conference	W-L	Winners (# of Ws)
ACC	6-0	Notre Dame (1), NC State (1), North Carolina (1), Arkansas (1), Virginia (1). Louisville (1)
Big East	4-0	Butler (1), Xavier (1), Villanova (1), Georgetown
Big Ten	3-2	Ohio State (1), Michigan St. (1), Maryland (1)
Big 12	2-3	Kansas (1), West Virginia (1)
Pac-12	3-0	UCLA (1), Arizona (1), Utah (1)
SEC	2-3	Ole Miss (1), Kentucky (1)
All Others	8-19	Hampton(1), Robert Morris (1), Dayton (1), UAB (1), Georgia St. (1), Cincinnati (1), N. Iowa (1), Wichita St. (1)

NCAA Round of 64 Late Thursday Game Results; ACC, Big East, PAC-12 Unbeaten After Day One

Round of 64 Late Thursday Game Results

East Region

(1) Villanova 93 (16) Lafayette 52

(8) NC State 66 (9) LSU 65

Midwest Region

(8) Cincinnati 66 (9) Purdue 65 - Cincinnati lived very dangerously here, tying the game on a layup at the buzzer in regulation and winning it in overtime by the narrowest of margin.

(1) Kentucky 79 (16) Hampton 50 - The Wildcats certainly didn't let down their fans, running away from the Pirates after building a 41-22 score at the half.

West Region

(4) North Carolina 67 (13) Harvard 65 - This was much closer than the Tar Heels would have liked. In fact, Harvard hoisted a three-pointer as time ran out that could have reversed the outcome, but, fortune fell on North Carolina, surviving barly their first tournament challenge.

(5) Arkansas 56 (12) Wofford 53


South Region

(5) Utah 57 (12) Stephen F. Austin 50 - many a TV pundit picked this as the upset for the first day, but they were proven wrong.

(4) Georgetown 74 (13) Eastern Washington 64

Conference Power Scoreboard

Conference	W-L	Winners (#of Ws)
ACC	4-0	Notre Dame (1), NC State (1), North Carolina (1), Arkansas (1)
Big East	4-0	Butler (1), Xavier (1), Villanova (1), Georgetown
Big Ten	1-1	Ohio State (1)
Big 12	0-3	0000
Pac-12	3-0	UCLA (1), Arizona (1), Utah (1)
SEC	2-2	Ole Miss (1), Kentucky
All Others	6-13	Hampton(1), Robert Morris (1), Dayton (1), UAB (1), Georgia St. (1), Cincinnati (1)