Category: College Basketball (Page 143 of 153)

#2 Texas vs. #4 LSU

Texas got off to a quick start but LSU fought back, forcing the Longhorns to go to a 2-3 zone that was not consistently effective defensively. LaMarcus Aldridge didn’t shoot the ball well in the first half, going 1-7 after going 8-8 in the first half against West Virginia. Texas had the opportunity to go into halftime with the lead but a sloppy final possession led to a LSU steal and layup to tie the game 26-26 at half.

Freshman Tyrus Thomas was phenomenal for LSU in the second half but was sent to the bench with leg cramps with about seven minutes remaining. With 33 seconds to play and Texas trailing by three, Daniel Gibson hit a shot from behind the arc after a helter skelter sequence to force overtime. In the extra period, LSU dominated offensively and defensively, en route to a 70-60 win.

The Tigers just showed more heart than Texas. They executed better on offense and got to more loose balls than the Longhorns. LSU is going to be a very tough out in the Final Four. They defend well and with Glen Davis and Tyrus Thomas roaming the middle, they’ll be a force to reckon with.

#1 Villanova vs. #4 Boston College

Boston College jumped out to a 9-0 lead in the first half and actually led by 16 points before Villanova put on a run to get back into the game late in the first half. BC did a great job in the first half of containing Allan Ray and Randy Foye, who combined for 4-15 shooting in the first half (including 0-8 from behind the arc). The Eagles went into halftime with a 28-24 lead.

Villanova continued to fight the entire second half to stay in the game, trailing by as many as nine before coming back to take a 51-48 lead. But BC’s Jared Dudley hit a three with 28 seconds to go. Villanova was unable to score and the game went to overtime. In the extra period, the Wildcats jumped out to a five point lead with 3:23 to play, but BC’s gritty play gave them a one-point lead on a Craig Smith layup with 12 seconds to play. Villanova was in a bad way, taking the ball out underneath the basket with no timeouts, down one and only three seconds on the clock. Somehow, Will Sheridan slipped free (Sean Marshall blew the help assignment) and a goaltending call gave Villanova the lead. BC’s Louis Hinnant’s desperation shot at the buzzer fell short, giving the Wildcats the win in another great game.

#7 Wichita State vs. #11 George Mason

The Patriots, basically playing at home, jumped all over the Shockers, pushing the ball up the court and hitting long jump shots. George Mason is one of the best shooting teams in the tourney and they lived up to that reputation, going 7-10 from three point range en route to a 35-19 halftime lead.

George Mason kept the Shockers at bay the entire second half. Wichita State managed to cut the lead to seven, but that was with 22 seconds to play. The difference in the game was three point percentage – George Mason went 8-16 while Wichita State went 3-23.The Patriots will enjoy a home court advantage in the regional final game on Sunday, with a Final Four birth on the line.

#1 Connecticut vs. #5 Washington

UConn was flat from the start and Washington was able to build a ten point lead late in the first half. UConn came back a bit with some good three point shooting to tighten the game, but Washington led by five at halftime behind 21 points from Brandon Roy and Jamaal Williams. Jim Calhoun continued to substitute freely throughout the half, and his star player, Rudy Gay, never really got into a flow.

UConn looked equally bad in the second half, turning the ball over left and right. But Washington was never really able to put them away and UConn kept it close for most of the half. Washington rode Jamal Williams for most of the second half since Brandon Roy was forced to the bench after getting a dumb technical foul for facing off with Rudy Gay.

It’s so hard to root for UConn (for bracket reasons) as they seem to hate their coach and each other. They were asleep for most of the game but woke up when Rashard Anderson hit a three to tie the game with 1.8 seconds left, forcing an overtime. In the extra period, the battle of attrition started to take its toll on Washington as five players fouled out. Hilton Armstrong played well in the overtime, making a tough layup and hitting two foul shots to put UConn up by 5. Washington’s Ryan Appleby hit a long three and stole the inbounds pass, but UConn’s Marcus Williams stole the ball back and iced the game with two free throws. In all, UConn shot 47 free throws as compared to Washington’s 23 attempts. UConn escapes with a 98-92 win and moves on to play a feisty George Mason squad on Sunday.

#3 Florida vs. #7 Georgetown

The Hoyas played well to start the game, building a 21-12 lead with 8:41 remaining behind some good play from Ashanti Cook. But the Gators fought back to only trail 30-28 at halftime. It was a half of good defense with neither team shooting more than 42% from the field.

In the second half, the game was tight the whole way with neither team leading by more than 5 points. With the Gators trailing 53-52, Corey Brewer made a circus shot and drew the foul. After a made free throw, Georgetown’s Darrel Owens missed a three pointer and Florida’s Al Horford secured the rebound. Two made free throws later, Florida has the win, 57-53. They have a date with Villanova on Sunday.

After Gonzaga’s brutal 73-71 loss to UCLA yesterday, college basketball is wondering if one of their favorite sons is going to turn pro. It appears that Morrison hasn’t made up his mind quite yet.

“It’s going to be a family decision,” Morrison said in Gonzaga’s somber locker room. “I’ve got to hear from the people who write the checks. … I have no idea [when]. I’ve got to go back to Spokane and not do anything. I have no idea what I’m going to decide.”

All season, the general consensus has been that Morrison will turn pro. NBADraft.net has him projected to go third in the draft (behind UConn’s Rudy Gay and Texas’ LaMarcus Aldridge) to the Portland Trailblazers. If he were to come back for his senior year, he’d be risking a ton of money.

But the way that Gonzaga lost last night might mean more than the fact they lost. The Bulldogs were so close to advancing to the Elite Eight that Morrison might see it as a personal challenge to try to get his team back there next season. Throw in the fact that he missed three consecutive jumpers in the last three minutes and he’s going to have a hell of a time getting over this loss.

I like to see players of Morrison’s caliber come back for their senior seasons, but it has to be difficult to turn down lottery money. Any number of injuries could happen in his senior year that would jeopardize his future, and with the loss of J.P. Batista to graduation, there’s no guarantee that Gonzaga will be able to contend next season.

That said, Morrison is a pensive character and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he decided to stay another year.

#1 Duke vs. #4 LSU

The Tigers kept J.J. Redick bottled up for most of the first half, allowing the All-American only three points. He has always had trouble with long, athletic defenders, and LSU has a plethora of guys to run at him. Despite the fact that Glen Davis missed most of the first half due to two quick fouls, LSU went into halftime with a 33-27 lead.

The second half was pretty ugly, with neither team really able to build much of a lead. Redick continued his poor shooting, finishing with 11 points on 3 for 18 shooting. LSU did a terrific job of bothering him all game long. But the game came down to two key plays. With over two minutes to play and Duke up one, Josh McRoberts made a beautiful fake handoff to break free, but blew the easy layup. The other key play occurred with less than a minute in the game. There was a loose ball on LSU’s end and one of the officials called a phantom foul on Greg Paulus. For those that think that Duke gets all the calls, they really got jobbed on this one. Down the stretch, LSU made their free throws and, on the ones they missed, Duke uncharacteristically failed to box out, leading to a 62-54 victory. Duke is the first #1 seed to be bounced out of the tournament.

#1 Memphis vs. #13 Bradley

After a strong start by Memphis, Bradley rallied later in the first half to tie the game at 29-29. But a late run gave the Tigers a 35-30 lead at halftime. Memphis just had too much athleticism in the second half, flushing dunk after dunk, putting the would-be Cinderellas away, 80-64.

#2 Texas vs. #6 West Virginia

LaMarcus Aldridge – remember that name. The Longhorn (and future lottery pick) went 8-8 in the first half, killing the Mountaineer defense with his turnaround jumper. West Virginia stayed in the game via the three-pointer, but still trailed at halftime, 39-27.

But the Mountaineers are all heart, and they came out on fire in the second half, going on a 8-0 run to cut the lead to four. The game was back and forth for the remainder of the game. With 13 seconds to go and Texas leading, 71-68, Kevin Pittsnogle broke free at the top of the key for a three pointer to tie it at 71. Texas inbounded the ball with six seconds remaining and hurried it up court. The ball ended up in Kenton Paulino’s hands and he hoisted a desperation 23 footer at the buzzer that found nothing but the bottom of the net. Texas wins, 74-71, but I question how much heart the Longhorns really have.

#2 UCLA vs. #3 Gonzaga

UCLA looked lost in the first half, both offensively and defensively. The Bruins are extremely challenged on offense and looked especially so against the Bulldogs. Gonzaga, on the other hand, had no problems scoring against a normally stout UCLA defense en route to a 13-point lead at halftime.

Gonzaga kept control for most of the second half. With the Bulldogs leading, 71-62 with just 3:13 remaining, things were looking grim for the Bruins. But UCLA showed a lot of grit scoring the next eight points to cut the lead to one with ten seconds to go. During the run, Adam Morrison missed three consecutive shots that would have, in hindsight, sealed the game for Gonzaga. The Bulldogs had the ball with ten seconds to go when the Bruins stole it from J.P. Batista and scored the go ahead layup. Gonzaga tried to push the ball up court, but ended up turning the ball over again, giving UCLA the most improbable of victories.

Summary

It’s a shame to see Duke lose, though I’m sure all the haters are happy. Love ’em or hate ’em, the tournament is always more exciting when the Blue Devils are still alive and kicking. The late games were two of the best games of the tournament with Texas getting a win at the buzzer and UCLA making a furious comeback to shock Gonzaga.

On Saturday, we’ll have Texas/LSU at 4:40 (ET) and UCLA/Memphis at 7:05 (ET), with Final Four births on the line.

So who will rise to the challenge? Only time will tell.