Tag: Final Four

Wisconsin legend Bo Ryan immortalized in Kohl Center rafters

Wisconsin legend Bo Ryan immortalized in Kohl Center rafters

This story was updated to change a photo.

For the first time, a Wisconsin coach has been immortalized in the Kohl Center rafters.

That is program legend Bo Ryan, who was honored with a ceremony at halftime of the Badgers’ matchup against the No. 9-ranked Arizona Wildcats on Friday.

Ryan and the rest of Wisconsin’s 2014 and 2015 Final Four teams were honored as the 2024-25 team battled the Wildcats — a team that lost to Wisconsin during each of those Final Four runs.  The occasion was the 10-year anniversary of the first run, as well as Ryan being inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Ryan’s name now hangs in the rafters alongside program legends Frank Kaminsky, Michael Finley and Ab Nicholas.

The banner only includes his name and his coaching tenure — both assistant and head coach. An expansion to include career honors, records and awards would stretch far past the allotted length.

Nov 15, 2024; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Former Wisconsin men’s basketball coach Bo Ryan (sport coat front) is shown with his family while being honored at halftime of their game Friday, November 15, 2024 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin.Unranked Wisconsin upset Arizona 103-88. Mandatory Credit: Mark Hoffman/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

Ryan’s Hall of Fame career includes a 394-157 overall record (364-130 at Wisconsin), three Big Ten tournament titles, four Big Ten regular season titles, 14 NCAA Tournament appearances in 14 seasons, four Big Ten Coach of the Year awards and, as highlighted, those two Final Four runs in 2014 and 2015.

He was the driving force behind the most successful run in Wisconsin basketball history.

Wisconsin now returns for the second half looking to repeat Ryan’s success against the Wildcats. The Badgers built a 55-44 halftime lead in what was a high-flying opening period.

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USC instantly learns how tough it will be to make the Final Four

USC does have elite talent, but the Ole Miss opener immediately reinforced the reality that talent alone isn’t enough to be great.

The USC women’s basketball team is undeniably talented and versatile. There are lots of ways in which this team can win. USC was able to dig deep on defense and make plays late in the fourth quarter to escape with a 68-66 win over Ole Miss on Monday in Paris. Yet, for all the talent on this team, no one can walk away from this game thinking that USC will just be able to show up and win on talent alone. The Trojans realized against Ole Miss that they have to be precise and detail-oriented on a consistent basis if they want to make the 2025 Women’s Final Four in Tampa.

Let’s tell the truth about the Ole Miss game: USC got rattled and remained rattled for most of the second half before rallying late to win. USC was up 15 at 43-28. After the next dozen minutes or so, USC trailed 64-60. Ole Miss put USC in jail with lockdown defense for more than a full quarter. USC needed free throws and rugged defense to survive. It became very hard for USC to execute a simple pass or dribble handoff. It was that bad for 12 to 15 minutes in the second half.

Talent alone won’t carry USC to the Final Four. The Trojans need to make quicker, more immediate adjustments. They have to shrug off one or two bad possessions and come back with a crisp halfcourt set. JuJu Watkins needs to not shoot off-balance shots. Kiki Iriafen can’t pass up layups as she did in the fourth quarter. Talia von Oelhoffen needs to find ways to contribute — not necessarily as a scorer but in some way to create a good shot or open space for a teammate. Every Trojan can look at the film of this game and identify areas for improvement on offense. Fixing these issues could give USC the basketball education needed to become a poised, adaptable, more resourceful team over the next several months.

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Notre Dame women’s basketball ranks sixth in AP Top 25 Preseason Poll

Get on the bandwagon right now.

The expectations for the Notre Dame women’s basketball team couldn’t be higher. This roster is stacked, and everybody is taking notice. If this year’s Irish don’t get to at least the Final Four, this season widely will be seen as a disappointment.

The AP Top 25 Preseason Poll has been released, and the Irish rank very highly on it. Specifically, they rank sixth, which is the highest they’ve been ranked in this particular poll since they began the 2018-19 season as the top-ranked team fresh off their most recent national championship.

This season will mark the return of [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag], the former national player of the year runner-up who missed all of last season with a knee injury. She’ll be teamed in the backcourt with [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag], who herself was a national player of the year runner-up a season ago. This could be the most lethal guard combo in program history.

The Irish have some injury issues of course, but every team will go through those. They’ll be ready no matter who’s available:

The regular season tips off Nov. 4 against Mercyhurst. It should be a fun few months of Irish women’s basketball.

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WATCH: Alabama officially reveals 2024 Final Four banner

The first look at the 2024-25 Alabama Crimson Tide came Friday night.

Basketball fans got their first glimpse of the 2024-25 Alabama Crimson Tide on Friday night inside Coleman Coliseum, as the program took to the court for the first time this season.

While not in action against another team, the Crimson Tide did do a few things that included a three-point contest and dunk contest. Mark Sears won the three-point contest, while five-star freshman Derrion Reid was victorious in the dunk contest.

In addition to that, the Crimson Tide also celebrated the program’s first-ever Final Four appearance from last season. As a part of this, Alabama unveiled the newest addition to the rafters in Coleman Coliseum, as the program’s first Final Four banner was revealed.

The video of the banner reveal can be found below:

https://twitter.com/yea_ala/status/1844924167470088463

Alabama’s debut on the court will come Friday, October 18 in preseason action against Wake Forest in Birmingham. The Crimson Tide will also play a preseason game October 28 against Memphis in Huntsville prior to officially opening the season November 4 at home against UNC Asheville.

Alabama announces date for 2024 Final Four banner reveal

Alabama will celebrate its’ 2024 Final Four team in October.

The reveal date for the Alabama Crimson Tide’s 2024 Final Four banner was officially announced Thursday afternoon, as the program is set to unveil the newest addition to Coleman Coliseum on Friday, October 11.

In addition to revealing the banner, the Crimson Tide will also introduce the 2024-25 team that night as well.

During the 2023-24 season, Alabama made their first-ever trip to the Final Four, where they would fall to eventual national champion UConn in the national semifinal, 86-72.

This put the finishing touches on what was a March run to remember for Nate Oats and Co. that included four consecutive wins over College of Charleston, Grand Canyon, North Carolina, and Clemson.

Alabama’s 2024-25 season is set to officially begin November 4 when the Crimson Tide host UNC Asheville. It was also reported that the Crimson Tide will play a preseason exhibition game in Huntsville against Memphis, which will take place nearly a week before on October 28.

Notre Dame women’s hoops sells 1,000 new season tickets for 2024-25

Time to jump on the bandwagon!

Notre Dame’s women’s basketball team in 2024-25 will have its highest expectations since [autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag] took over the program. Fans have taken notice of that, and they want to watch the Irish play at Purcell Pavilion. If you need proof of this, look no further than this announcement the Irish made on social media:

If you haven’t gotten on board with Notre Dame women’s basketball, now is the time. [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] is coming off being named First Team All-American as a freshman. All-American [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] will be back after missing all of last season. [autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag] and [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] also are returning, and the Irish added two quality transfers in [autotag]Liatu King[/autotag] and [autotag]Liza Karlen[/autotag].

Anything less than the Final Four for the Irish in 2024-25 will be a disappointment. Ivey has been blessed with the most talent she’s had while leading the program, and it’s up to her to get that talent to mesh.

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Former Sooner Buddy Hield joining Golden State Warriors

Oklahoma Sooners men’s basketball legend Buddy Hield is now a Golden State Warrior.

Former Oklahoma Sooners men’s basketball star [autotag]Buddy Hield[/autotag] has found his new team for the 2024-2025 NBA season.

The OU legend will be joining the Golden State Warriors on a sign-and-trade deal with his former team, the Philadelphia 76ers. ESPN NBA analyst Adrian Wojnarowski took to social media on Thursday to announce the news.

Hield’s new contract in the Bay Area is a guaranteed two years and $21 million. He will get $18 million in first two years, a $3 million partial guarantee in the third year and player option on a non-guaranteed fourth year. The Sixers will receive a 2031 second round pick.

“Buddy Love” led the Sooners all the way to the Final Four in 2016, headlining [autotag]Lon Kruger[/autotag]’s best team in Norman. In that storied senior season, Hield averaged 25 points per game on better than 50% shooting. His run in the NCAA Tournament is the lasting image of OU hoops in the 2010s.

Hield was a consensus All-American in 2016, winning the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award. He was also the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] Player of the Year. He led the Sooners to their fifth and most recent trip to the Final Four. Oklahoma also made the Final Four in 1939, 1947, 1988 and 2002.

Hield is one of the faces of Oklahoma basketball in the modern era, along with recently retired [autotag]Blake Griffin[/autotag] (2007-2009) and Atlanta Hawks star [autotag]Trae Young[/autotag] (2017-2018). He’ll join Golden State as a three-point shooting replacement for Klay Thompson, whom the Warriors lost in free agency earlier this offseason.

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Alabama F Jarin Stevenson withdraws from NBA draft and is set to return to Alabama

Jarin Stevenson announces to return to Alabama forego 2024 NBA draft

Wednesday was a massive day for [autotag]Nate Oats[/autotag] and the Alabama Crimson Tide as both [autotag]Mark Sears[/autotag] and now officially [autotag]Jarin Stevenson[/autotag] withdrew from the NBA draft and will return to Tuscaloosa in 2024.

Many people were projecting the Tide to be a top-five team going into next season as things stood, but now, with two massive contributors coming back, the majority of people will view Alabama as the No. 1 team in the country.

Stevenson’s decision to enter the draft came as a bit of a surprise after starting just five games in 2023-24 and averaging 5.3 ppg and 2.7 rpg. The Chapel Hill native was a five-star and top-50 recruit coming out of high school so all of the potential is there, but I think another year in Oats system with real minutes will be the best thing for his development. He will eventually find himself playing in the NBA so I don’t think there was any reason to rush into it this cycle. However, that almost means with 100% certainty he will be gone next summer.

After having the No. 1 overall seed in the 2023 Tournament and obviously their legendary Final Four run in 2024, Alabama is no longer going to be sneaking up on anyone. The target is on the Tide’s back and a national title is the goal.

 

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Florida lacrosse to play in first Final Four since 2012

This is a huge weekend for Florida lacrosse’s program as they play in their second Final Four.

The Florida lacrosse program will be competing for a national championship for just the second time in history and the first time since 2012 this weekend at Wakemed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina. There, the Gators will face off with the top-seeded Northwestern Wildcats in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament Final Four.

It is the 11th career meeting between these two schools, with the Orange and Blue holding the edge in the all-time series, 6-4. They have not faced each other in a full decade, however, and the last time they met was on May 17, 2014, in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament

UF lost that game in overtime by a score of 12-11. This will also be the third neutral site matchup between the two programs, with Florida dropping the previous two.

Florida took down the fourth-seeded Maryland Terrapins, 15-9, last Thursday afternoon to earn the berth in the Final Four; Northwestern is making its fifth consecutive Final Four appearance this weekend.

The matchup is slated for Friday, May 24, with the opening draw set for 3 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU.

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ESPN’s Way-Too-Early NCAAM top 25 ranks Alabama No. 6 in the country

Alabama ranked No. 6 in ESPN College Basketball Expert’s way-too-early top 25

While the NBA draft process may still be ongoing, the transfer portal window is closed and we can start to assess what teams are going to look like next year. For [autotag]Nate Oats[/autotag] and the Alabama Crimson Tide, it was a wildly successful spring as they landed four key transfers in Aden Holloway from Auburn, Clifford Omoruyi from Rutgers, Chris Youngblood from USF and Houston Mallette from Pepperdine. Oats also earned a commitment from the No. 32 ranked player in the 2024 class in former Kansas commit Labaron Philon.

Grant Nelson announced his decision to return to the Crimson Tide next year, but we are still nervously waiting on a decision from Mark Sears. It sounds more likely than not that Sears, Alabama’s best player from a season ago, will be back in Tuscaloosa, but nothing is official yet. Freshman Jarin Stevenson also entered his name in the draft process, but we haven’t heard much about his status yet.

With one of the best coaches in the sport and a top two or three roster, the expectations will be high for Alabama coming off the programs first ever Final Four. In ESPN college basketball expert Jeff Borzello’s Way-Too-Early top 25, the Crimson Tide are ranked No. 6 in the country.

Borzello says of Alabama, “Nate Oats spent the first part of the offseason overhauling the perimeter group. Aaron Estrada, Rylan Griffen — and perhaps Mark Sears — are out the door, while Aden Holloway (Auburn), Chris Youngblood (South Florida) and Houston Mallette (Pepperdine) have arrived. The past couple of weeks, however, he’s been focused on the frontcourt, first getting starting forward Grant Nelson back and then beating out North Carolina for Rutgers transfer Clifford Omoruyi.”

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama basketball throughout the 2024 offseason.

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