We'd start with another 7-10 matchup as Cincinnati, fresh off winning the American conference tournament, was taking an Iowa team that began the season hot, but stumbled down the stretch. The Hawkeyes did just enough to get into the tournament and they were looking to take advantage of the new opportunity they had been given. For most of the game, it looked like the Bearcats were the superior team. Despite never building a huge lead over Iowa, Cincy maintained a small lead on the Hawkeyes for the first 28 minutes of action. But a 13-5 run turned things around for Iowa and suddenly we had a nail-biter on our hands. The two teams traded the lead back and forth before the Hawkeyes put together one last 12-5 run in the closing minutes. The Big 10 remained dominant in this year's tournament as Iowa moves on to round 2.
That game was followed by two blowouts (Texas Tech by 15 and Oklahoma by 23), but we'd have our first upset alert in the last game of the early afternoon session. Kansas State won a share of the Big 12 regular season title, but they had a formidable for facing them in round 1. The Anteaters from UC Irvine had 30 wins on the season, including 16 in a row coming into the tourney. There weren't many teams who came in as hot as them. Kansas State tried to hit them with a knockout blow early, jumping out to a 10 point lead in the first half. But UC Irvine held steady and by halftime, they were even with the Wildcats. Kansas State was able to get ahead by 5 in the second half, but the Anteaters caught fire, going on a 15-2 run to take control of the game. The Wildcats were able to close within a bucket a few times late, but that was the best they could do. UC Irvine would be the first #13 seed to advance to round two with a 6 point win over Kansas State.
UMBC was the first #16 seed to ever defeat a top seed when they took down Virginia last year. The Cavs were a #1 seed again this year and most believed that they would use last year's humiliation as inspiration to clobber their 16th-seeded opponent this year, Gardner Webb. Or history could repeat itself. It certainly looked that way when the unheralded Bulldogs jumped out to a 10 point lead late in the 1st half. Virginia trimmed the lead to 6 by halftime, but everyone watching had to wonder whether the pressure would be too much for them yet again. The Cavs turned to what they do best in the second half, playing suffocating defense. Gardner Webb only managed 5 points in the first 10 minutes after intermission and by that point, Virginia had the game in hand. The Cavs would cruise from there to a 15 point victory.
Another highly touted team dressed in orange also encountered some unexpected trouble in round 1. Tennessee was the #1 team in the nation for a portion of the season, so you wouldn't think Colgate would pose much of a problem, especially when they lost their top scorer and rebounder to an eye injury in the first half. But wacky things happen in March and the Vols found themselves down 2 with 11 minutes to play. Michigan State fought off a feisty 15 seed on Thursday, could Tennessee do the same? They could. The Vols simply had too much firepower late for a valiant Colgate squad. Tennessee would move on after a 7 point win.
Arizona State did not look good on Wednesday night, but luckily for them, St. John's looked even worse. They were not as fortunate on Friday as they got pummeled by Buffalo. That left Wisconsin and Oregon as the final game of the afternoon. Who would win? The Big 10 was undefeated so far in the tournament, so 1 vote Wisconsin. Oregon started the season 15-12, but they were a completely different squad down the stretch, winning 8 in a row, capped off by a 20 point victory in the Pac 12 Championship game. 1 vote Oregon. We have a tie! No really, after 20 minutes of basketball, we had a tie, each team putting up 25 points before the break. In the second half, one team asserted themselves and that team has a Duck for a mascot. While there wasn't much scoring in the first half, Oregon went wild in the final 20 minutes, scoring 47 points. That was 18 more than Wisconsin could muster as the Big 10 suffered their first defeat of the tournament. Another 12 seed would be moving on to round 2.
Only one game in the early evening session worth noting. Washington beat Utah State by 17. Houston beat Georgia State by 29. And even though North Dakota State led for most of the first half against Duke (see, it's not just a Virginia thing!), the Blue Devils would eventually prevail by 23. It would be the final 5-12 matchup of round 1 that would provide some excitement. Mississippi State was the 5 seed, but they couldn't shake 12 seed Liberty. This game was super tight for 30 minutes. That's what made the Bulldogs 10-0 run look like a game breaker. The Flames were forced to call a timeout to halt Mississippi State's momentum. Right when it looked as though Liberty might be headed home, Caleb Homesley took over. He was fouled on a three-pointer and then sank all three free throws. He followed that with two threes and a dunk, and suddenly Liberty had reclaimed the lead from the favored Bulldogs. It became a free throw shooting contest in the final minute and 8 out of 10 would prove to be good enough for the Flames. Liberty would get their 1st tournament win ever, taking out Mississippi State.
The last set of games were eerily likes the set that preceded them. Was there a 9 seed blowing out an 8 seed? UCF checked that box with a 15 point win over VCU. Was there a game where the last 15 minutes were never in doubt? Virginia Tech checked that box with a 14 point victory over Saint Louis that was much more of a rout than the final score indicated. Was there a 1 seed from the ACC asleep at the wheel in the first half? UNC trailed Iona by 5 at the break, but they woke up in the second half, pulling away to win by 15. The final game of round one would be Iowa State and Ohio State. Iowa State won the Big 12 conference tournament, while Ohio State snagged one of the final at-large bids in the field. This was another one of those games that was tight, but every time you looked at the scoreboard, it seemed that one team always held a small lead. The Cyclones were able to grab a one point lead here and there, but Ohio State held the advantage for most of this game. The Buckeyes were up three late and had a chance to put the game away on the free throw line, but they missed the front end of a 1-and-1. That gave Iowa State a final chance to send the game to overtime. The Cyclones got a clean look at a tying three, but the shot was off. Another Big 10 team heads to round two as Ohio State will face Houston for a spot in the Sweet 16.
Quick round 1 recap:
- #1 seeds in first-half trouble: 3
- #4 seeds eliminated: 1
- #5 seeds eliminated: 3 (although Auburn tried to make it 4)
- #6 seeds eliminated: 1
- #7 seeds eliminated: 3
- #8 seeds eliminated: 4 (which is why you never get bonus points for a 9 beating an 8)
On to the standings, where a long time participant had a very good day to take control of the Safety School pool. Fred Alcaro selected Iowa, Liberty, Oregon, and UC Irvine to win and he was rewarded handsomely, taking an 8 point lead on the field. Things are tighter in the other pool, but once again a long time participant has ascended to the top spot with Nate Heffner leading by 2. Here are your leaders after round one:
Safety School:
- Fred - 45 points
- Alex Peerenboom - 37 points
- Mark Grimes and Will Peerenboom - 36 points
Paid For My Kids SATs:
- Nate Heffner - 39 points
- Dwight Crowley - 37 points
- James Dematteo - 36 points
For full standings, click here.
We're down to 32! (Ok, we're down to 24, but the Day 3 recap still needs to be written up.) Check in tomorrow to see how the first 8 games of the weekend affected the standings.
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