Dave Preston is an AP Top 25 voter. Check out his ballots here.
Welcome to Brooklyn! The site of the Atlantic 10 Tournament (don’t worry, they come back to D.C. next year) hosts near-certain at-large team Dayton (despite a third-place finish in the conference) plus a Richmond team that won its first league championship since joining the A-10 in 2001 but also one that lost by 18 in its regular-season finale at George Mason.
That victory in Fairfax, Virginia, sends coach Tony Skinn’s Patriots (20-11, 9-9 Atlantic 10) to the Barclays Center with renewed optimism. This team has been streaky since conference play began, posting three different three-game losing streaks. They’ve beaten No. 16 Dayton and then lost to 10th place Fordham in the span of less than a week. But knowing they can beat the best the A-10 has to offer gives Mason a little momentum.
“To have your ups and downs when you lose a couple games that can really take you in a different direction,” Skinn said after the win over the Spiders. “That’s a testament to my staff and a testament to the guys we’ve brought in. All high-character guys that just stuck together when most teams don’t. And so for me I couldn’t be prouder.”
Two questions face this team: can they avoid turnovers (GMU ranked 12th in the A-10 in turnover margin), and how healthy will leading scorer and rebounder Keyshawn Hall be (he has missed three straight games)? Momentum can turn into a mirage, especially with a morning tipoff.
Meanwhile Richmond (24-7, 15-3) look to reset after their roughest outing of the season. But head coach Chris Mooney has led this program to a pair of A-10 Tournament titles in his tenure, including four wins in four days two years ago in D.C.
Even in years when he hasn’t had great teams, Mooney’s Spiders have posted at least one victory in six of their last seven trips to the A-10 Tournament.
“I’m confident because (after) the stumbling that we’ve had this year or the setbacks we’ve really responded well. This team has been poised. They haven’t hung their heads,” Mooney said. “They’ve met challenges. So I think that is something that I’m confident about.”
He also has Atlantic 10 Co-Player of the Year Jordan King operating on the perimeter plus A-10 Second Team selection Neal Quinn in the pivot.
The A-10 Tournament tipped off with a triple-header Tuesday, and George Washington (15-17) saw its season end with a 61-60 loss in the Atlantic 10 First Round to La Salle as Jhamir Brickus hits the game-winning shot with 20 seconds left. Anytime a guy named “Brickus” heats up for 21 points and eight rebounds it’s probably not your day (akin to getting struck out by former Tampa Bay pitcher Grant Balfour).
James Bishop IV missed a pair of shots in the final five seconds of regulation and wraps up his Revolutionaries career with 19 points in his final outing. Head coach Chris Caputo goes back to the drawing board after 31 wins in his first two seasons in Foggy Bottom with a solid young nucleus, pending of course any departures via the transfer portal.
Bids claimed last night
CAA: The College of Charleston (27-7) needed overtime to outlast Stony Brook 82-79 after going scoreless for the final 5:01 of regulation.
“Yeah, I didn’t realize it was that long but actually it probably seemed like two weeks,” Cougars coach Pat Kelsey said. “We regrouped in the huddle going into overtime. Such great leadership on our team. So many times and moments like that a lot of things are fixed before I even get in the huddle.”
Tournament MVP Reyne Smith scored 23 points, including the go-ahead bucket with 3:51 left in OT and a three off a steal that padded the cushion.
“That takes some ‘you know whats’ to do that,” Kelsey said. “And he’s just been ‘Big Game Reyne’ for us ever since he got to campus.”
The Cougars head to their second straight NCAA Tournament and are a No. 13 seed in most models.
Horizon: Oakland (23-11) beats Milwaukee for the third time this season, beating the Panthers 83-76 in a showdown that was at most either way a two-possession game. Trey Thompson tallies 38 points with 11 rebounds as the Golden Grizzlies make their first trip to the Big Dance since 2011.
Northeast: Last year, Merrimack won the conference tournament but was ineligible due to Division I transition rules. This year, they were eligible but fell to Wagner 54-47 as the Seahawks (16-15) held the Warriors to under 30% shooting while outrebounding them by 15. And Wagner might be just a game over .500, but they beat the top three seeds in their conference tournament to reach their first NCAA Tournament since 2003.
West Coast: No. 21 Saint Mary’s (26-7) ended No. 17 Gonzaga’s reign as champs, preventing a fifth straight title with a 69-60 victory that saw the Gaels outrebound the Bulldogs by 18. Mitchell Saxen nets 19 points with 15 boards as they atone for a double-digit defeat to the Zags at the end of the regular season. Both schools were already assured of NCAA berths and look to be on the sixth or seventh seed line.
Summit: South Dakota State (22-12) almost brought the tortoise and hare to real life in its 76-68 defeat of Denver as the Pioneers rallied from 21 down in the second half to make it a two-possession game with under a minute left in regulation. But the Jackrabbits hit 9 of 10 free throws in the final sixty seconds to preserve their second conference tournament title in three years. In their six previous trips to the NCAA Tournament, South Dakota State has been seeded 12th three times, 13th twice, and 16th once.
Wednesday’s Bids
Southland, 5 p.m., ESPN2
McNeese State (29-3) also benefited from the West Coast Conference’s mindset of handling its top teams with kid gloves as the top two seeds received byes into the semifinals. The Cowboys will face Nicholls (20-13), a team they beat by 27 in February. McNeese has won 10 straight with nine of those wins coming by double digits. They’re playing for their first NCAA bid since 2002 while the Governors haven’t gone dancing since 1998.
Patriot, 7:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network
Top seed Colgate (24-9) is playing for its fourth straight NCAA berth while the No. 6 seed Lehigh (14-17) has won twice on the road at Lafayette and Boston University to reach the title tilt for the first time since 2017 (The Mountain Hawks last made the Big Dance in 2012 when they upset Duke in the First Round). They’ve also played the Raiders well, losing a pair of three-point games in the regular season. Colgate leads the conference in shooting percentage as well as three-point range while also allowing the fewest points per game. They also rank first in rebounding margin and are led by Conference Player of the Year Braeden Smith.
Big Sky, 9:30 p.m., ESPN2
The land of upsets saw three of the top four seeds get bounced in the quarterfinal round, with last place Sacramento State coming close to bouncing No 5. seed Montana State (16-17) in the semifinals. Instead the Bobcats (who are seeking a third straight NCAA trip) will face No. 3 seed Montana (23-10) who they lost to twice during the regular season. The favored Grizzlies have made the tournament 12 times, most recently in 2019. The two schools are also just three hours apart, which is an achievement of sorts considering how big the state of Montana is (10 hours drive-time from east to west borders and six from north to south).
Wednesday’s games of note
Atlantic 10 Second Round, George Mason (20-11) vs. St. Joseph’s (19-12), 11:30 a.m., USA Network
The Patriots dropped the lone regular season meeting 75-73 on the road, despite 19 points and eight rebounds from Keyshawn Hall who missed a 3-pointer with five seconds left that would have given Mason the lead. GMU heads to Brooklyn leading the A-10 ranking first in scoring defense and second in turnover margin. Hawk to watch: forward Rasheer Fleming netted 23 points with nine rebounds in the regular season finale against Davidson.
ACC Second Round, Virginia Tech (18-13) vs. Florida State (16-15), noon, ESPN
Each team won on its home floor during the regular season, with the Hokies winning the battle of the boards in both games. Coach Mike Young’s team needs to win at least three games to even be near the conversation of being within shouting distance of the bubble, even with five wins in their last eight games. FSU is heading the other way with six losses in their last nine, and although they rank third in the ACC in turnover margin they’re the second worst rebounding team in the conference. Seminole to watch: Jamir Watkins averaged 17 points with seven rebounds against the Hokies this winter, shooting 43% from three-point range.
Atlantic 10 Second Round, VCU (19-12) vs. Fordham (13-19), 2 p.m., USA Network
It’s the Rams against the Rams! VCU won the lone regular season meeting by 15 on Feb. 6, but is in need of a major reset after wrapping up the regular season with three straight losses. And Fordham might be just the chicken soup they need: they’re the worst shooting team in the A-10 and rank last in the conference from three-point range, while VCU is the best in the league at defending the three. Ram to watch: Kyle Rose is their top scorer but he’s just as much of a force on the other side of the floor, making the conference’s All-Defensive Team.
Big Ten First Round, Maryland (15-16) vs. Rutgers (15-16), 6:30 p.m., Peacock
The Terps make their debut in the Dreaded First Round (after today, only Michigan State and Purdue have avoided Wednesday action). The two teams split the regular season series, winning in the other school’s gym. And both arrive at chilly Minneapolis even more frigid: the Terps have lost five of six while the Scarlet Knights have dropped six of seven. Expect a defensive duel as these two teams rank 13th and 14th in the Big Ten in scoring, shooting, and three-point shooting. Scarlet Knight to watch: Jeremiah Williams scored 14 points in a Rutgers win at Maryland, while being held to six points on 3-9 shooting in a loss to the Terps.
Big East First Round, Georgetown (9-22) vs. Providence (19-12), 6:30 p.m., FS1
Head coach Ed Cooley has to face the school he left one more time this winter in a season that can’t end soon enough for the Hoyas. But he and his new team can play spoiler against a club that’s won just once since Feb. 21 and is squarely on the NCAA Tournament bubble. Both of the games in the series were four-point games, giving one reason to believe. But recent history casts a sad shadow: with the exception of the COVID year where they won four games in four days the Hoyas haven’t won a Big East Tournament game since 2016. Friar to watch: Devin Carter averaged 27 points on 61% shooting against Georgetown during the regular season.
Presented by FanDuel Sportsbook.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
© 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
