Category: March Madness (Page 54 of 56)

#1 UConn vs. #11 George Mason

How about George Mason?

From the start, UConn looked a lot more into the game than they did against Washington, building an early seven point lead. But the Patriots weathered the early Husky storm and were able to take the lead, 29-28, with 3:08 to play in the first half. UConn came right back with a 15-5 run to take a 43-34 lead at halftime.

Though I desperately needed UConn to win this game (and the title) to win my pool, I still found myself rooting for the underdog. George Mason’s feisty, resilient play is infectious and puts UConn’s often lackadaisical demeanor to shame.

The Patriots fought back in the second half, eventually taking the lead 52-51 on a three point basket by Lamar Butler. On the next possession, Butler hit a rare four point play when he was fouled on another long range shot. But the Huskies showed some fortitude as well, riding Rudy Gay in the second half to stay in the game. Down 74-72 with five seconds to go, Marcus Williams pushed the ball up court to Denham Brown, who drove baseline, lofting up a reverse layup that seemed to hang on the rim forever. Finally, it fell through, forcing an overtime.

In the extra period, George Mason jumped out to a four point lead and UConn was playing catchup the entire time. With six seconds left and the Patriots up two, Jai Lewis had an opportunity to ice the game, but missed both free throw attempts. Brown brought the ball up again with an opportunity to tie, but instead went for the win and his three missed its target.

I never thought I’d type this – George Mason is going to the Final Four. As a #11 seed they are officially a Cinderella story. They shoot the ball well and play good defense. They also have good guard play with Butler and Tony Skinn and good interior play with Lewis and Will Thomas. Looking forward to a matchup with Florida and Villanova, it is not likely that the Patriots will go quietly.

#1 Memphis vs. #2 UCLA

The Bruins jumped out to a quick lead, but were unable to capitalize on opportunities (6 of 17 from the free throw line) that would have given them more of a cushion going into halftime. Ryan Hollins is a prime example. The center scored 9 rebounds and grabbed 4 boards but went only 1-7 from the free throw line. The Bruins led 28-21 at the half.

Memphis cut the lead to three with 15:40 to play in the second half, but that’s as close as the Tigers could make it. UCLA continued to clamp down on defense, and while they had a hell of a time scoring, Memphis had more trouble scoring on them. Hollins had a tremendous game, scoring 14 points (despite 2-10 shooting from the free throw line) and grabbing nine rebounds. Arron Afflalo provided much of the scoring punch in the second half, finishing with 15 points (9-10 from the line). UCLA defended their way to the victory, 50-45.

UCLA will play LSU in one semifinal next Saturday. The way both teams play defense, the over/under might be around 80.

#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.