March Madness 2019 - Day 3

Everyone loves when some small school knocks off one of the big guys in round 1.  But we don't know who the true Cinderellas are until round 2.  When teams have a week to prepare for their opponent and come in completely fresh, they can fire their best bullet.  But turning around in 2 days and taking on another major team is a whole different animal.  Not only has the round 1 game taken a physical toll on the underdog, it likely has (more importantly) an effect on their emotional states as well.  It can't be easy going from the euphoria of an upset to practice to game time again all within a span of 48 hours.  Many of these teams likely played round 1 with a chip on their shoulders, but after that initial victory, they probably feel pretty good about themselves.  Their edge is gone.  So even if the team they play in round 2 isn't much different in terms of skill level, the mountain they must climb has gotten quite a bit higher.

As a result, we say goodbye to many of our round 1 heroes in round 2.  And usually, that exit isn't pretty.  A flat performance from an underdog can mean blowout city.  What we saw on Day 3 was that mid-majors aren't the only ones who can fall prey to losing their edge when they need it the most.  6 of the 8 games played on Saturday wound up being snoozers with 5 of those games essentially over at halftime.  So let's focus on the two early games that were worth watching for the entire 40 minutes.

Maryland and LSU kicked things off and this game looked like it would fall into the category of "favorite beats up on flat team" as LSU held a 15 point lead with 16 minutes to go.  But the Terrapins dominated the next 10 minutes with a 26-9 run that put them ahead by a bucket.  The last 6 minutes were very entertaining as the two teams traded the lead back and forth.  The game was tied in the waning seconds as LSU held the ball for a shot to send them to the Sweet Sixteen.  As the seconds ticked down, guard Tremont Waters drove to the hoop.  He glided past a couple of big men and put up an underhand scoop as the Terrapins' defenders desperately tried to block his shot.  The ball went underneath their arms, off the backboard and in.  The Tigers had the lead with only a second to go.  Maryland inbounded the ball and heaved a shot down to the other end, but the prayer was not answered.  LSU is the first team headed to the second weekend of the tournament.

The most anticipated little school/big school matchup of the day was Wofford vs Kentucky.  Wofford was a polarizing team in this tournament.  The claim was that they hadn't played anybody, so they shouldn't have been ranked in the Top 25.  They definitely weren't going to be able to hang with a national championship contender like Kentucky.  The Wildcats were about to expose how overrated the Terriers were, even though they were down a man as starter PJ Washington was out with an injury.  Wofford made it clear early on that they were not intimidated by Kentucky as they held the lead for most of the first half.  Kentucky made a small run before the intermission to hold a 2 point edge.  Still the Terriers had to feel good about where they stood.  Their best player, Fletcher Magee, had missed every 3-pointer he took in the first half and he was the all-time NCAA leader in 3-pointers made.  Their big man, Cameron Jackson, also sat out much of the first half due to foul trouble.  Kentucky should have been way ahead, yet they were only up by a deuce.  The game continued to be tight for the 1st 5 minutes of the second half, but a quick 8-0 spurt by the Wildcats left Wofford looking deflated.  This was probably the moment when Kentucky's athleticism was going to prove to be too much.  But the Terriers were a gritty bunch.  They would not let the Wildcats pull away.  In fact, they grinded away, pulling within 2 again with about 40 seconds to play.  Rather than foul, they decided to rely on their defense for a stop.  It looked like they might have done that, but a whistle came in on a missed shot by Kentucky with 18 seconds to go.  Replays showed it was a very borderline call.  The Wildcats took advantage of the opportunity, knocking down two free throws to extend their lead to 4.  Fittingly, the Terriers last stand would come on Fletcher Magee's 12th consecutive missed 3-pointer.  The NCAA record holder picked the wrong day to go ice cold.  Kentucky would hold off their scrappy challenger, moving on to the Sweet 16 after a 6 point victory.

As for the other 6 games...well...you didn't miss much:

• Florida was only down by 4 at halftime against Michigan, but they never got closer than that as the Wolverines went on to win by 15.
• Florida State let Ja Morant get his, but they put the clamps on his teammates.  The Seminoles extinguished Murray State's hopes of being a Cinderella, winning by 28.
• Gonzaga led by 16 at halftime and held Baylor at bay while winning by a comfortable 12 point margin.
• Michigan State showed no mercy to fellow Big 10 member Minnesota, romping by 20.
• Purdue left no doubt that there would be a new champion this year, leading Villanova by as many as 35 before taking their foot off the gas and only winning by 26.
• 26 was the margin at halftime of the Auburn-Kansas game as the Tigers were hitting everything against the Jayhawks.  Kansas found their scoring touch in the second half, but it wasn't enough as Auburn would coast to a 14 point victory.

On to the standings, where the Safety School standings didn't change much and the Pay For Play standings remained fairly bunched:

Safety School:

1. Fred Alcaro - 55 points
2. Alex Peerenboom - 49 points
3. Aiden Schweitzer - 48 points

Paid For My Kids SATs:

1. James Dematteo - 50 points
2. Nate Heffner - 49 points
3. Aiden Schweitzer and Chris Belden - 46 points

For full standings, click here.

That's it for now.  Enjoy the last games of the weekend as the Sweet 16's final spots are determined!