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“Survive and advance” is a basketball mantra that’s been around forever and probably took hold in 1983 when the North Carolina State men needed a good showing in the ACC Tournament to even make the field. Then-coach Jim Valvano’s Wolfpack wound up winning three straight at the Capital Centre before running the NCAA table en route to the National Championship.
The field of potential NCAA Tournament participants gets trimmed daily this week, and while most of the locals are on the outside looking in regarding at-large berths, as long as you’re still playing you’re still in the game. Here’s what happened during a roller coaster Wednesday:
Maryland (16-16) beat Rutgers 65-51 in the Big Ten Tournament’s First Round (broadcast on Peacock), holding the Scarlet Knights to 31% shooting and 5-21 from three point range. Fifth year senior Donta Scott scored 16 points to pace a balanced attack (Julian Reese adding 12 while Jamir Young nets 11). Now before you get too excited, take into account that the Terrapins have won just twice in seven games since Valentine’s Day and both have been against a reeling Rutgers team that finished the season with seven losses in eight games. But this year’s team gets one more day to play their way into tomorrow.
Georgetown (9-23) saw its season end with a 74-56 loss to Providence, trailing for the final 36 and a half minutes of Coach Ed Cooley’s first year at the helm. Jayden Epps was the only player to score in double figures with 30 points, but the sophomore missed eight of 11 free throws and the Hoyas would make just 4-19 from the charity stripe. Cooley and company now hit the transfer portal to prevent a repeat of the most recent winter of discontent.
George Mason (20-12) saw its season end with a 64-57 loss to Saint Joseph’s in the Atlantic 10 Second Round, never leading after allowing the first basket of the game. The Patriots would trail by as many as 18 before Baraka Okojie’s bucket made it a one-possession game with 1:25 left, followed by an Okojie steal with 54 seconds left. Unfortunately a turnover and a missed three (they went 1-13 on the afternoon) in the final 40 seconds of regulation sealed their fate. It didn’t help that leading scorer Keyshawn Hall was limited to four minutes due to injury and shot 0-3 from the field. But despite the defeat, Coach Tony Skinn’s first season guiding his alma mater was a success that he’ll try to build on in the offseason.
Virginia Tech (18-14) tipped off at noon against Florida State in the ACC Tournament Second Round, so once one got the Mason loss out of their system they could process a second half fade by the Hokies who came up short 86-76. FSU scored 25 points off 13 Tech turnovers.
“We had five at the half, I thought we were in pretty good shape,” Coach Mike Young said. “Then we had some bad ones. And it is persistent and it’s active, and we had a couple of head-scratchers, that’s a credit to the Seminoles.”
After shooting 64% in the first half they made 36% of their shots after intermission.
“They’re length kind of makes it hard to finish around the rim so it kind of baits you into taking tough shots and 50-50 passes,” Sean Pedulla said (24 points before fouling out late in the second half). “So we just didn’t do a good enough job offensively in the second half down the stretch.”
On the other end of the floor Jamir Watkins tallied a career-high 34 points while grabbing 10 rebounds.
“His tendencies are very obvious, it doesn’t take you long (to figure him out),” Young said. “He is going to drive the ball with his right hand and he want to get to the middle of the floor and he wants to use his power and his length and his athleticism to get over top of you and score. And we allowed him to do that a little bit.”
The loss removes any remaining hope the Hokies had of qualifying as an at-large team in the NCAA Tournament, but Young welcomed the opportunity to play in the NIT.
VCU (20-12) survived a scare from Fordham in the Atlantic 10 Conference second round. The Rams-Rams rematch was at most a two-possession game either way for 39 minutes before VCU pulled away 69-62. Max Schulga scores 14 points and his free throws with 1:37 put VCU ahead for good. The D earned an A down the stretch as they held Fordham without a field goal for the final 6:25 of regulation (FU shot 0-5 with two turnovers down the stretch). The three-game losing streak that ended the regular season? A distant memory. Struggling to defeat a team from the bottom of the bracket? It’ll have to be a distant memory as they play UMass Thursday.
Bids awarded
Southland: McNeese State (30-3) beat Nicholls 92-76 behind 27 points from Shanda Wells, shooting 61% from the field and 11-20 from three point range. In former VCU Coach Will Wade’s first season at the helm the Cowboys reach their first NCAA Tournament since 2002. They’ve been a 14 and a 16 seed in their previous appearances and are ticketed as a No. 15 by most models this year.
Patriot: Colgate (25-9) routs Lehigh 74-55 to win its fourth straight tournament (and fifth in six years). Regular season Player of the Year Braeden Smith nets 15 points with 11 rebounds and five assists as the Raiders shoot 56% from the field while out-rebounding the Mountain Hawks 43-27. Probable seed? They’ve been a 14 or a 15 during their recent run. And a No. 15 is likely again this March.
Big Sky: Montana State (17-17) wraps up the upset-riddled tournament with an 85-70 win over No. 3 seed Montana, putting 53 points on the board in the second half against the Grizzlies. Robert Ford III tallies 22 points with nine rebounds as the Bobcats make it three straight trips to the NCAA Tournament. After 25 and 27-win teams earned 14 seeds the previous two years, this .500 squad is projected as a No. 15 seed.
Bid Break: for the next two days there won’t be any conference tournament championship games. Brace yourselves for Saturday’s onslaught of 13.
Thursday’s games of note
Atlantic 10 Second Round, Richmond (24-7) vs. Saint Joseph’s (20-12), 11:30 a.m., USA Network
The Spiders took the lone meeting in the series at home, 73-66, the night they wrapped up a share of their first regular season conference championship since joining the league in 2001. Neal Quinn may have tallied 21 points that night, but don’t be surprised if this late-morning matchup has more of a high noon shootout feel: Erik Reynolds II leads the conference with 3.2 three-pointers made per game, while Jordan King ranks third in that category. Hawk to watch: don’t sleep on freshman guard Xyavier Brown, who’s averaging 16 points per game over the last month while making 46% of his threes in that stretch.
Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals, VCU (20-12) vs. UMass (20-10), 2 p.m., USA Network
The Rams lost the regular season meeting 74-52 on Feb. 20, in a game that proved to be the tiebreaker at the end of the regular season. Frank Martin’s team finished the season with three wins in four games to catch the Rams, and while they lead the A-10 in scoring they’re also doing it with defense and rebounding: UMass leads the A-10 in rebounding margin and ranks third in turnover margin. Minuteman to watch: Josh Cohen tallied 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists in the regular season matchup. He also combines with Matt Cross to be one dynamic duo on the glass (Cross is tied for second while Cohen ranks fourth in the A-10).
Big Ten Second Round, Maryland (16-16) vs. Wisconsin (19-12), 2:45 p.m., BTN
If the Terps faded down the stretch (2-8 to end the regular season), what do we call what happened with the Badgers? A 3-8 implosion turned a Top 10 team into an afterthought. They’ve also had issues defending, ranking last in the conference at defending the three and 13th in overall field goal defense. Wisconsin also has had issues in close games, going 2-5 in two-possession (six point differential or less) affairs. Maryland’s just as bad, only with more opportunities at 4-10. One of those close losses was a 74-70 defeat in Madison on Feb. 20, where the Terps tumbled despite 18 points and seven rebounds for Julian Reese, plus 20 points for Jahmir Young. Badger to watch: Tyler Wahl tallied 18 points in the regular season meeting and ranks second on the team in scoring and rebounding.
MEAC Quarterfinals, Howard (15-16) vs. Morgan State (11-19), 6 p.m., ESPN+
The Bison beat the Bears on the final Saturday of February by six when the two schools were part of a five-way tie for second place in the conference. HU enters the tournament with four wins in five games while MSU lost four of six to end their regular season. The two schools have combined to win three MEAC Tournaments this century, with Howard making the NCAA Tournament last year and Morgan State enjoying back to back trips in 2009-10. Bear to watch: Wynston Tabbs tallied 20 points in a January win over the Bison but was held to 5-19 shooting with four turnovers in their February meeting.
ACC Quarterfinals, Virginia (22-9) vs. Boston College (19-14), 9:30 p.m., ESPN
While the start time might be listed as “9:30,” we all know better. The last game of most quadruple-headers never actually begins “on time.” I’m projecting a 9:52 start this evening. These two teams met Feb. 28 in Chestnut Hill, with the Cavaliers winning 72-68 behind 18 points from Reece Beekman. Despite all of their losses coming by 10+ points with an average margin of 19, U.Va. leads the conference in scoring defense as well as turnover margin and defending the three. And while the Eagles have won four straight, two of those wins have come against 14th place Miami with another coming at last-place Louisville. The fourth was in the ACC Tournament against Clemson — the only original ACC school (dating to 1953) that hasn’t won the conference tournament. Eagle to watch: Seven-foot center Quinten Post tallied 24 points with 10 rebounds in the regular season matchup, and the Netherlands native is heating up in March by netting 30 points with 10 boards per game.
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