Tag: NCAA Men’s Basketball

South Carolina Upstate hit a (nearly) buzzer-beating 3-pointer to stay alive in Big South tournament

Gardner-Webb went from covering a four-point spread to losing at the buzzer in just 10 seconds.

South Carolina State’s hopes of making the NCAA Tournament as an automatic qualifier remain alive.

The four-seeded Spartans advanced to the semifinal in the Big South men’s basketball tournament in dramatic fashion on Friday, taking down five-seeded Gardner-Webb on a go-ahead three-point shot with just 0.1 seconds to play.

USC Upstate survived despite trailing by five points with just 10 seconds to play in one of our first tastes of March Madness in 2023. To make matters worse for anyone who potentially bet on the Bulldogs, they were a four-point favorite in this one.

To go from winning and covering to losing outright in the final 10 seconds? Brutal.

It’s hard to sum that up any better than Upstate coach Dave Dickerson did after the game.

We’re all wondering the same thing.

To keep their postseason hopes alive, the Spartans will have to knock off top-seeded UNC Asheville, which sits at 25-7 on the season, in Saturday’s semifinal round.

Feature image courtesy of ESPN

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Bruce Pearl’s furious 3-word interview soundbite perfectly summed up Auburn’s awful night

Pearl was SO mad, and Auburn just couldn’t buy a whistle.

It was a rough night for Auburn’s men’s basketball team.

In a road rivalry matchup with No. 2 Alabama, the Tigers seemed to have everything going. At one point in the second half, they even held a 17-point lead. But that margin wouldn’t hold, and they’d lose 90-85 in overtime — much to the chagrin of head coach Bruce Pearl.

(But hey, at least a dog didn’t poop on their homecourt.)

Pearl’s agony (and fury) over the Tigers’ performance (and what might have been a favorable whistle for Alabama) was captured live during a late-game radio interview.

And if you think it doesn’t escalate after Pearl yells “SMASHED,” phew, I really, really urge you to listen until the end for another three-word outburst.

Oh wow, for “IT’S A JOKE” to be captured live is just perfect. Not necessarily for Pearl or Auburn, but it’s perfect nonetheless.

Put yourself in Pearl’s shoes. If your team blows a 17-point lead in a big conference game, shoots seven fewer free throws while committing nine more fouls, and loses in overtime … how would you feel? Not happy, I’d bet!

It’s just unfortunate for the coach that he was being interviewed in the middle of a collapse.

Shaka Smart literally jumping for joy after a big Marquette win was so pure

Smart can REALLY jump.

Marquette men’s basketball coach Shaka Smart showed some massive ups on Tuesday night as he celebrated a key victory for his Golden Eagles.

No. 10 Marquette topped No. 19 Creighton 73-71, which gives Smart’s squad a nice rĂ©sumĂ© boost ahead of the NCAA Tournament. As the final horn sounded, Smart jubilantly leaped into the air as his team secured the victory. He quickly readjusted for the postgame handshakes, which was pretty impressive when considering how hyped up he was for the win.

Marquette could be a problem for teams in March if they keep up this level of play, which could inspire plenty of more Smart celebrations.

Now that’s an impressive jump for joy. Smart has built a career as one of the most tournament-ready coaches of his generation, and Marquette should be his next team to get a chance for spring glory.

Until then, he’ll hopefully put his energy into more sideline celebrations.

ESPN’s Rece Davis hilariously delivered a line about community bacon after a missed free throw

Winning free bacon is really that special.

There was more on the line than an important ACC conference game between the men of Miami and Virginia Tech on Tuesday night. As the second half of a tight battle winded down, a usual Virginia Tech promotion from the company Smithfield came into focus.

If Miami would miss consecutive free throws, everyone at Cassell Coliseum would go home with free bacon. It came down to the Hurricanes’ Jordan Miller with a little over 4:30 left, who missed a first free throw and set everything into motion.

As Miller stepped to the line for his second shot, ESPN’s Rece Davis — who was announcing the game — set the moment up. And when Miller missed the second shot, Davis had a hilarious reaction.

I don’t know whether “bacon for everybody!” or “sizzle ’em up” in the frying pan” makes me laugh more, but I’m happy Davis just allowed me to have that debate.

Miami would go on to win 76-70, but I think Virginia Tech fans and us, by extension, still got the essential bacon victory.

4-star SG Jamari Phillips on committing to Arizona: ‘They fit me and I fit them’

The Arizona Wildcats have kickstarted their 2024 recruiting class with a bang.

The Arizona Wildcats have kickstarted their 2024 recruiting class with a bang. On Sunday, Modesto Christian (Calif.) Junior Jamari Phillips told On3 that he’s committed to Arizona. Phillips (6-foot-3, 190 pounds) is ranked No. 6 among shooting guards and No. 25 nationally in his class. He’s also ranked fourth overall in the State of California.

Phillips says that he picked Arizona for the fit, per Joe Tipton at On3.

“I chose Arizona because they fit me and I fit them,” Phillips said. “I believe in the coaching staff and they believe in me. I can see myself going there and being really successful in that program. I know it’s going to feel like home. When it’s my time to come in, I’m going to make the best of it and really go after it.”

Phillips put himself in the conversation with a breakout Sophomore season. He played 33 games for the Crusaders, averaging 23 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. He shot 51% from the floor, 40% from three and 77% from the line.

On the court, his strengths include a magnificent step-back mid-range jumper for his age, deep three-point range and he can finish in transition.

15 other schools made offers, including Kansas, UCLA and Arizona State.

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The 15 must-watch NBA draft prospects you need to see in March Madness

If your team sucks like mine, you should probably read this list.

March Madness is finally upon us, folks. The tournament officially started this week and, soon, we will have yet another national champion.

A lot of us are here for this for different reasons. Some of us have a favorite team we’re rooting for. Some of us are just here riding for a particular team hoping our brackets don’t get busted. Others? They’re just rooting for the chaos. Bring us upsets, baby.

But, if you’re anything like me and your favorite NBA team stinks, you’re here for a completely different reason. And that reason is you need to figure out who your team is drafting this summer.

This tournament is filled with NBA prospects that are sure bets for the NBA’s draft lottery this year should they choose to come out.

Here are the top 15 you need to watch this March.

Which region is the hardest in the 2022 men’s NCAA tournament bracket?

Which region is the easiest in the 2022 men’s bracket? Which is the hardest?

The 2022 Men’s NCAA Tournament officially gets underway tonight with two First Four games as 16-seeds Texas A&M-CC and Texas Southern and 12-seeds Indiana and Wyoming fight for a spot in the main bracket.

Each region has its own intriguing matchups and Cinderella potentials, but which one is the hardest? Which 1-seed has the easiest path to the Final Four? Which non-top seeded team has the best opportunity to score an upset?

We take a look at each region — ranking them from hardest to easiest — and which has the best odds to make the Final Four. All odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook.

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A dumb NCAA rule is the reason Bellarmine won’t make March Madness despite winning the ASUN tourney

A weird rule is keeping the Knights from the Big Dance.

The Bellarmine Knights defeated Jacksonville University in the ASUN Conference championship game, 77-72. They won’t, however, be going to the NCAA tournament thanks to a weird rule. Bellarmine made the jump to Division I on July 1 of 2020, moving all 22 varsity programs up from the lower division.

Since the men’s basketball team is within the four-year window of making the change up to D1, the Knights are not eligible for postseason play in the NCAA tournament this year.

Bellarmine stunned Liberty in the ASUN semifinals, and Jacksonville upset top-seeded Jacksonville State to set up Tuesday night’s title game. The Knights held off a late push by the Dolphins with strong free throw shooting, but they won’t get to celebrate like we’d all hope.

In the weirdest twist possible, the representative for the ASUN isn’t even Jacksonville. It’s Jacksonville State. Since the Dolphins fell in the championship to an ineligible team, the Gamecocks — which won the ASUN regular season — will take the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Bellarmine will finish with 20 wins at 20-13 overall in just their second D1 season.

According to the ESPN2 broadcast, they do get to claim the title and trophy that comes with being ASUN champs, just not the coveted auto-bid.

Come on, NCAA. Let Bellarmine dance.

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Virginia’s Tony Bennett honors Mike Krzyzewski in classy pregame moment

What a heartwarming moment.

Wednesday night’s trip to Charlottesville was Duke men’s basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final game in John Paul Jones Arena. With the stands packed with orange-clad fans, Virginia’s Tony Bennett took to the microphone at mid-court prior to the national anthem and lineups to thank Coach K for his contributions to the game, the conference and wish him well in retirement.

Bennett also presented him with a plaque to commemorate the occasion.

The long-time coach hasn’t gotten a warm welcome at every stop, notably receiving boos and some choice swear words in his final game at rival UNC.

This is the final season for Krzyzewski after over 40 years with the Blue Devils, and his No. 7 Duke squad is trying to send him out with his sixth NCAA title.

What a wonderfully classy moment!

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Bad Beat: Unlucky bettor misses 25-leg parlay payout by one point

One bettor narrowly missed out on a huge payout on a multi-leg college basketball parlay.

Parlays are one of the more fun ways to bet, but stringing together correct pick after correct pick is immensely difficult. This is especially true the more involved the parlay. One bettor put together a 25-leg college basketball parlay on February 22, and they were SO close to hitting paydirt.

At +307697 odds for the parlay, the bettor stood to make $3076.97 on their $1 bet.

The bettor in question went with the favorites in 23-of-25 picks, going with the underdog for UNLV (+125) at Nevada and San Diego State (+106) at Boise State. UNLV won comfortably by eight, but a one-point loss by SDSU cost them the whole payout.

Not only was it a one-point loss, the Aztecs were leading by one until a missed free throw by SDSU led to a foul on the rebound. This sent Abu Kigab to the line with a chance to win the game, and he hit both to give Boise State the 58-57 victory.

Absolutely BRUTAL way to lose.

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