Colorado’s wild buzzer-beater upset No. 7 Florida after bouncing off every part of the rim

KJ Simpson’s game-winner couldn’t have been more dramatic.

It seems like we see it all too often at this point.

A team sneaks into the tournament via the First Four and makes a magical run much further than anyone expected. We’ve already watched VCU (2011), Wichita State (2016), Syracuse (2018) and UCLA (2021) do it.

Now we can add No. 10 Colorado (2024) to the list — and calling this team “magical” might be underselling how it held off No. 7 Florida on Friday.

After the Gators clawed their way back from down 12 with 4:30 left in regulation to knot the game at 100, KJ Simpson put up a step-back jumper with five seconds on the clock that looked like it would bounce forever before deciding to go in.

This sequence is peak March.

Seriously, the ball looked like it would deflate before it went through the net. What an unreal shot and make from Simpson, who finished with a team-high 23 points — none bigger than the final two.

Up next for the Buffaloes is a date with No. 2 Marquette on Sunday. We’ll find out soon enough if Colorado has a little more magic left.

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PHOTOS: Highlights from Florida’s NCAA Tournament loss to Colorado

Here’s a look at highlights from Florida’s final game of the 2023-24 campaign.

Florida basketball was unable to beat the Colorado Buffaloes on Friday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, falling to the No. 10 seed 102-100 to end the Gators’ 2023-24 campaign.

Todd Golden’s team got off to a strong start but their opponent’s interior game wore down their short-handed frontcourt, scoring copious points in the paint while shooting at an insanely high percentage. Florida made a push at the end to tie it up with six seconds remaining, but alas, they simply did not have enough to prevail.

Take a look below at highlights from Florida’s first-round exit from the NCAA Tournament against Colorado on Friday. More photos will be added as they become available.

CBS Sports gives its pick for Florida-Colorado in NCAA Tournament

Ahead of the action, CBS Sports published its picks for the day’s games, including the Gators-Buffaloes affair in Indianapolis.

The Florida Gators are getting set for their NCAA Tournament first-round matchup with the Colorado Buffaloes on Friday afternoon in what should be a fierce battle between two talented teams.

Ahead of the action, CBS Sports published its picks for the day’s games, including the Gators-Buffaloes affair in Indianapolis covered by Kyle Boone. Here is what he had to offer.

“A team from the First Four has made the second round of the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four years, and the Buffaloes seem best-equipped to keep that trend rolling,” Boone notes. “They scooted past a really talented Boise State team in the First Four on Wednesday with one of their best defensive outings of the season and have a number of weapons inside and out to keep Florida on alert.”

As a result, he is taking the Buffaloes by two points over the Gators.

“I like the Buffs by a smidge here, so I’ll take the free points.”

The Gators take on the Buffaloes in the first round on Friday, March 22, at 4:30 p.m. ET inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. The game will be broadcast on TBS.

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

March Madness: How to win $2.5K in USA TODAY’s Women’s NCAA Tournament Survivor Pool

Let the March Madness begin. College hoops expert Kevin Erickson is here to help you win the $2.5K NCAA Women’s Tournament Survivor Pool.

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The 2024 Women’s NCAA Tournament is here, and the field of 64 will be cut in half with 1st-round games Friday and Saturday as the top 16 seeds will host games during opening weekend.

You might have already filled out your brackets, but USA TODAY has another unique NCAA Tournament contest in which you can win $2,500.

Can you survive? USA TODAY Sports’ Men and Women’s Basketball Tournament Survivor Pools are here with a $2,500 prize for each contest! Free to enter, 21+. Terms apply, void where prohibited by law. See Official Rules. Play now!

As an employee, I’m not eligible to win, but there’s no rule against me helping you win $2.5K.

Here is my strategy of how to win the Women’s NCAA Basketball Tournament Survivor Pool.

Each round, you’ll pick a set number of teams. For the 1st round, you have to pick 3 teams to simply win their games — no spread involved. If one of your teams loses, you’re eliminated. However, once you select a team, similar to an NFL survivor pool, you can’t use that team again.

In the 2nd round, you must pick 2 teams to win outright. After that, you have to pick 1 team per round — in the Sweet 16, the Elite 8, the Final Four and the championship game.

Another tricky rule is that you earn points based on the seed number of your winning team. Successfully pick a No. 12 seed to knock off a 5 seed, and you get 12 points. Pick a No. 1 seed and you only get 1 point if it wins.

Starting with the 1st round, I’m not going to worry about points. My goal is to survive and advance. There are often too many upsets and I’m not going to take that risk of getting knocked out on Day 1.

Let’s treat this as a short marathon, not a 60-yard dash. We’ll earn our points in the later rounds.

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First-round picks

PICK 1: VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES (24-7)

Who they play: Marshall Thundering Herd (26-6)

When: Friday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2)

Where: Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, Va.

The 4th-seeded Hokies are a strong play on their home court against the 13th-seeded Thundering Herd.

Virginia Tech, No. 12 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, won all 15 games on its home court this season, while Marshall posted a 12-5 road mark. The Sun Belt representative will be facing its 2nd ACC team this season. Back on Dec. 21, Marshall suffered a 66-59 loss at Wake Forest, and you can expect a double-digit loss in this one.

The Thundering Herd has a 3 tremendous offensive weapons with guards Abby Beeman (16.8 points per game), Breanna Campbell (15.0 PPG) and Aislynn Hayes (14.8 PPG). The trio can hang with most anybody. Plus, Marshall creates plenty of offensive boards to get 2nd and 3rd opportunities on offense. However, the Herd are pretty poor in the free-throw department — ranking 301st at 67.1%, per NCAA.com — and in close games, it can be their undoing.

Virginia Tech is an elite team led by C Elizabeth Kitley (22.8 PPG, 11.4 RPG) and G Georgia Amoore (19.2 PPG, 6.9 APG). They are one of the best one-two punches in the nation. Kitley missed the ACC Tournament due to a left knee injury, so that’s a bit of a concern heading into the Big Dance. But this team ranks 17th in assist-to-turnover rate (1.33) and 9th in blocks (5.5 per game) in playing suffocating defense. If it is down Kitley, the Hokies are still the play.

THE BRACKETS ARE BACK! The USA TODAY Sports Bracket Challenge is back! $1 MILLION grand prize for a perfect bracket, $25,000 prize for top bracket. Free to enter, 21+. Terms apply, void where prohibited by law. See Official Rules. Play now!

PICK 2: COLORADO BUFFALOES (22-9)

Who they play: Drake Bulldogs (29-5)

When: Friday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPNews)

Where: Bramlage Coliseum, Manhattan, Kan.

This is a dangerous matchup for the Buffaloes as this might seem like a road game as the Bulldogs faithful should travel well since it’s a short jaunt from Des Moines to Kansas.

Drake can score at a feverish pace, with G Katie Dinnebier (17.9 PPG), F Grace Berg (17.0 PPG) and F Anna Miller (13.6 PPG, 10.1 RPG) serving as a talented 3-headed offensive monster. The Bulldogs feature one of the best field-goal percentages at 48.7%, ranking 7th in the nation. Plus, they are good free-throw shooting team (77.4% to rank 24th), which is good news in close games.

Colorado is ranked No. 17 in the Coaches Poll, yet scored just a No. 5 seed, which seems criminally low. The Buffaloes roared into the season with an opening 92-78 win over defending national champ LSU on a neutral floor in Las Vegas, announcing to everyone their arrival. They also scored wins over ranked teams Stanford, No. 1 seed USC and Utah.

The Buffs can score, especially C Aaronette Vonleh (14.1 PPG) — the younger sister of former NBA player and Indiana Hoosiers standout Noah Vonleh. CU struggles on free throws (72.8%, ranking 123rd), but it’s a good team taking care of the ball, while ranking highly in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.36, ranking 13th).

Stream select live college basketball games and full replays: Get ESPN+

PICK 3: NC STATE WOLFPACK (27-6)

Who they play: Chattanooga Mocs (28-4)

When: Saturday, 2:30 p.m. ET (ESPNU)

Where: Reynolds Coliseum, Raleigh, N.C.

The 14th-seed Mocs of the SoCon have to play this one on the home court of the 3rd-seeded Wolfpack, who are No. 11 in the Coaches Poll.

Chattanooga announced its arrival with a win over a ranked Mississippi State team back in early December, bolstering the team’s NCAA Tournament resume early. The Mocs ended up winning the SoCon regular season and the conference tournament to earn their Big Dance ticket.

The Mocs are led by G Jada Guinn (19.7 PPG) and F Raven Thompson (14.3 PPG) and this squad can be a dangerous shooting team, particularly behind the 3-point line where they converted 37.5% of their attempts to rank 9th in the country. However, expect a lack of size to be their undoing.

NC State is outstanding all around with G Aziaha James (15.8 PPG), G Saniya Rivers (12.4 PPG), F Mimi Collins (11.2 PPG) and G Madison Hayes (11.1 PPG) giving the Pack a very balanced attack. NC State doesn’t make a lot of silly miscues — only 13.3 turnovers per game — and will have a tremendous advantage with its size, particularly in the rebounding department. NC State also has a lockdown defense — holding opponents to 59.9 PPG — which will make it awfully tough for Chattanooga to get good looks offensively.

All right. Let’s get these 3 wins, rack up a few points and then make sure to check back before Round 2 for our next winning picks. Play now!

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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

College sports coverage from USA TODAY Sports Media Group:
Alabama / Arkansas / Auburn / Clemson / Colorado / Florida / Georgia / Iowa / LSU / Michigan / Michigan State / Nebraska / North Carolina / Notre Dame / Ohio State / Oklahoma / Oregon / Penn State / Rutgers / Tennessee / Texas / Texas A&M / USC / Wisconsin /
College Sports Wire: Men’s hoops / Women’s hoops / High School

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Boise State extends unfortunate record of futility after another NCAA Tournament loss

The Boise State Broncos are the first college basketball team to go 0-10 in the NCAA Tournament after losing to Colorado on Thursday.

Leon Rice and the Boise State Broncos faded down the stretch on Thursday, ultimately falling to Colorado in the play-in game, 60-54, and sending the Buffs into a matchup against No. 7 seed Florida on Friday.

For the Broncos it extended an unfortunate college basketball record as they are now 0-10 in NCAA Tournament contests – the first and only program to play 10 games in the big dance and failing to win a single one of them.

“This is a really, really tough draw and then a tough, tough, tough loss that we’ll have trouble with for the rest of our lives,” Rice said after the game. “That’s the way it is.”

The Mountain West as a conference has struggled to find success in the tournament, outside of San Diego State’s run to the national championship last year, and Boise State has been a big part of that.

Despite going dancing three years in a row, and five of the last 14 seasons under coach Rice, they have yet to advance in the field of 68. They had plenty of opportunities on Thursday but shot just 34% from the field and 2-18 (11.1%) from three while only getting to the free throw line six times.

Colorado will take on Florida Friday at 4:30 PM ET on TBS.

How to buy First Four NCAA Tournament tickets

How to get your hands on 2024 NCAA Tournament First Four tickets in Dayton, Ohio.

The NCAA Men’s College Basketball Tournament begins on Tuesday, March 19 with the First Four in Dayton, Ohio.

College basketball fans have been waiting all year for the best week in sports, and now we know who will be kicking off March Madness.

SHOP: NCAA men’s college basketball First Four tickets

Four No. 16 seeds and four No. 10 seeds will face off on Tuesday and Wednesday, whittling the bracket from 68 down to 64.

In the South region No. 10 Boise State will take on No. 10 Colorado, with the winner earning a date with the No. 7 Florida Gators.

In the Midwest region, No. 10 Virginia Cavaliers matchup against No. 10 Colorado State. The winner will square off against No. 7 Texas.

Also in the Midwest region, No. 16 Grambling faces off against No. 16 Montana with the right to play No. 1 Purdue on the line.

Finally, in the West region, No. 16 Howard will play against No. 16 Wagner, with the winner having to play No. 1 North Carolina in the Round of 64.

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Tickets are still available for Tuesday and Wednesday’s action, each ticket gets you access to both games on a day, and there is an all-sessions pass that allows access to all four games for as little as $129.

Tuesday’s ticket gives access to the first two games. Tickets are still available for as little as $52.

Wednesday’s tickets gives access to the third and fourth First Four games. Tickets are still available for as little as $45.

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How to buy First Four NCAA Tournament tickets

How to get your hands on 2024 NCAA Tournament First Four tickets in Dayton, Ohio.

The NCAA Men’s College Basketball Tournament begins on Tuesday, March 19 with the First Four in Dayton, Ohio.

College basketball fans have been waiting all year for the best week in sports, and now we know who will be kicking off March Madness.

SHOP: NCAA men’s college basketball First Four tickets

Four No. 16 seeds and four No. 10 seeds will face off on Tuesday and Wednesday, whittling the bracket from 68 down to 64.

In the South region No. 10 Boise State will take on No. 10 Colorado, with the winner earning a date with the No. 7 Florida Gators.

In the Midwest region, No. 10 Virginia Cavaliers matchup against No. 10 Colorado State. The winner will square off against No. 7 Texas.

Also in the Midwest region, No. 16 Grambling faces off against No. 16 Montana with the right to play No. 1 Purdue on the line.

Finally, in the West region, No. 16 Howard will play against No. 16 Wagner, with the winner having to play No. 1 North Carolina in the Round of 64.

[afflinkbutton text=”Shop First Four All Sessions Pass” link=”https://stubhub.prf.hn/l/AJym39X”]

Tickets are still available for Tuesday and Wednesday’s action, each ticket gets you access to both games on a day, and there is an all-sessions pass that allows access to all four games for as little as $129.

Tuesday’s ticket gives access to the first two games. Tickets are still available for as little as $52.

Wednesday’s tickets gives access to the third and fourth First Four games. Tickets are still available for as little as $45.

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Photo Gallery: Ducks cap magical run with Pac-12 Tournament championship

Photo Gallery: Oregon defeats Colorado to win last Pac-12 tournament

Well, that a bit unexpected. But Oregon isn’t going to turn down a dance invitation.

The Ducks are officially in the NCAA tournament after defeating Colorado 75-68 in the last Pac-12 tourney in Las Vegas. It was the first time Oregon has won three straight games since January and it picked a heck of a time putting it all together.

And it wasn’t like they beat three lowly teams. Oregon was a combined 1-5 against UCLA, Arizona, and the Buffaloes before this weekend. After the win, most of the attention was on it being the last game for the Conference of Champions with memories and highlight videos dominating Vegas. Advancing to the Big Dance was almost an afterthought.

But the Ducks are dancing and will find out who they play, where they’ll play and what seed was assigned to them on Sunday afternoon. Here are some of the best photos from the big celebration from Sin City.

Former Ohio State tight end finds a new home at Colorado

Grad transfer Sam Hart is heading home. #GoBucks

Sam Hart came to Ohio State in 2021 as a four-star recruit from Colorado. Now the former Buckeye is heading back home as he announced on his personal X account (formerly Twitter) that he will be transferring to Boulder.

Hart entered the transfer portal in January as a grad transfer after three seasons in Columbus. During his time in scarlet and gray, Hart saw action in five games as a redshirt freshman but is still looking for his first collegiate reception. He’ll have a chance to do so under Coach Prime when enrolls at Colorado in June.

With the departures of Cade Stover, Joe Royer, and Hart, Ohio State will lean on Gee Scott Jr, Jelani Thurman, and Bennett Christian to man the tight end position. The Buckeyes will also welcome in freshman Max LeBlanc and Damarion Witten, as well as transfer Will Kacmarek from Ohio University.

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. 

Eric Bieniemy hired across town as UCLA football offensive coordinator

This caught a lot of people by surprise.

Eric Bieniemy left his offensive coordinator position with the Washington Commanders to become the associate head coach and offensive coordinator for the UCLA Bruins under new head coach DeShaun Foster.

Bieniemy explained his decision to step away from the NFL in an e-mail shared by ESPN: “I have had countless conversations and interviews with many teams, and I have been applauded and lauded.  I can’t say why certain decisions were or were not made but it had nothing to [do] with a lack of anything on my end.

“My self-dignity, worth, integrity, personhood, manhood will never be questioned or compromised. It is not always about money, either. With everything in life, it is often all about timing. At this time in my life, the opportunity affords me the pleasure of continuing to be a maker and leader of men, to do what I love, follow my passion and my dreams while not compromising on who I am as a man.”

Before becoming the associate head coach and offensive coordinator for the Commanders, Bieniemy had been working under Andy Reid in Kansas City since 2013, starting as the running backs coach and being promoted to offensive coordinator with the Chiefs in 2018. Despite frequent mentions for head coaching positions in the NFL, Bieniemy has yet to secure one.

Bieniemy’s college coaching career began at his alma mater, the University of Colorado. From 1987-1990, he was a standout running back for the Buffaloes, helping them win the national championship in 1990. After playing nine years in the NFL with the Chargers, Bengals, and Eagles, he returned to Colorado as the running backs coach in 2001. He then joined Karl Dorrell’s staff at UCLA from 2003-2005 as the running backs coach, where he developed running back Maurice Jones-Drew. After testing the NFL coaching waters as the running back coach/assistant head coach, Bieniemy returned to Colorado for his first offensive coordinator position from 2011-2012.

On February 12, the Bruins announced DeShaun Foster as their new head coach. UCLA officials believe that Foster will bring energy to recruiting and the program. They might be trying to steal some of the energy the Trojans have been receiving across town when they hired away the Bruins’ 2023 defensive coordinator, D’Anton Lynn.

Bieniemy, who has been passed up for many head coaching positions in the NFL, emphasized in an email that his goal is to assist Foster in being a successful head coach. This move to UCLA could be the next step for Bieniemy to become a college head coach in the near future.

UCLA Wire has more coverage of Eric Bieniemy.

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