Comprehensive Championship Week Review

Conference Tournament Week is finally over and we are left with the 68 best teams in the country. We have put together a comprehensive wrap-up of anything and everything involving conference tournament week.

Use this page for all your March Madness research. We have provided a recap of every day of Championship Week, as well as a full tournament scoreboard so you can see what teams are hot, and what teams are not.

(NOTE: in the Championship Week Scoreboard section, tournament champions are highlighted in blue and teams that received at-large bids are italicized.)

Conference Tournament Week Recap:

The Real March Madness: Day 1
The Real March Madness: Day 2
The Real March Madness: Day 3
The Real March Madness: Day 4
The Real March Madness: Day 5
The Real March Madness: Day 6
The Real March Madness: Day 7
The Real March Madness: Day 8
The Real March Madness: Day 9
The Real March Madness: Day 10
The Real March Madness: Day 11
The Real March Madness: Day 12


News and Notes:

- Only eight regular season champions won their conference tournaments. Six of the regular season champions did not win a single game in their conference tournament.

- Xavier lost to No. 9 Dayton in the Atlantic-10 quarterfinals, Pittsburgh lost to No. 9 UConn in the Big East quarterfinals, UAB lost to No. 9 East Carolina in the Conference-USA quarterfinals, Murray State lost to No. 4 Tennessee Tech in the Ohio Valley Conference semifinals, and Arkansas State and Florida Atlantic lost to Arkansas-Little Rock and North Texas in the Sun belt quarterfinals.

- More No. 2 seeds (10) won conference tournaments than No. 1 seeds (8). Four No. 3 seeds won their conference tournaments, while three No. 4 seeds and two No. 5 seeds also won tournament titles. Akron was the only No. 6 seed to win a conference tournament, and UT-San Antonio was the only No 7 seed to win a conference tournament.

- Only three teams played more than four games during Championship Week. Akron and Arkansas-Little Rock won four games in four days to capture tournament championships from the No. 6 and No. 5-seeds respectively. UConn became the first team in NCAA history to win five games in five days. The Huskies were the highest seed (No. 9) to win a conference tournament this year.

- All eight teams that participated in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals received bids to the NCAA Tournament, and seven of the eight teams in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals did as well.

- UConn's Kemba Walker played 190 of a possible 205 minutes and scored a tournament-record 130 points during UConn's run to the Big East Tournament Championship.

- BYU's Jimmer Fredette was the only player from a non-championship team to win a tournament MVP award. Fredette scored a career-high, tournament-high and school-high 52-points against new Mexico in the Mountain West Conference semifinals. His personal best was greater than the single-game outputs of 45 teams during Championship week.


All-Championship Week Team:

Kemba Walker, UConn - Walker single-handily carried the UConn Huskies to their seventh Big East tournament championship. He averaged 26.0ppg, 6.4rpg, 4.2apg, and 2.8spg over the course of the five-game run, and hit a game-winning buzzer beater over No.1 Pittsburgh in the quarterfinals. He shot 41-87 (47%) from the field and was 46-54 (86%) from the charity stripe, but went only 2-19 (10%) from behind the arc. Nonetheless, Walker's five-game performance was sensational, and he was by far the best player in the country during Championship Week.

Nolan Smith, Duke - Smith score only seven points and injured his toe during the Blue Devils quarterfinal game against Maryland. His status was questionable going into the semifinal match-up against Virginia Tech, a team that had beaten them in the last week of the season. Smith fought through the pain and scored 27 points and had 6 assists in the 14-point win. In the ACC title game, against rivals North Carolina, Smith hit all seven of his free throws and scored 20 points and had 10 assists as the Blue Devils won their 19th ACC tournament title, a conference record.

Devin Gibson, UT-San Antonio - The senior guard was the only player in the country to record a triple-double during conference week, scoring 28 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists in the Southland Conference quarterfinals. Gibson nearly had back-to-back triple-doubles, as he recorded 26 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists in the semifinals against Sam Houston State. Over the three-game tournament stretch, Gibson averaged 23.0ppg, 8.3rpg, and 6.3apg.

Isaiah Thomas, Washington - For the second year in a row, Thomas led the Huskies to a Pac-10 Tournament Title and was named Tournament MVP. In the finals against Arizona, he scored 28 points, including the game-winning buzzer-beater in overtime on a beautiful step-back jumper. Thomas averaged 19.6ppg and 10.1apg during the Huskies three game stretch.

Jared Sullinger, Ohio State - The freshman big man recorded three double-doubles in three tournament games en route to Tournament MVP honors and a tournament title for the Buckeyes. Against Northwestern he had 20 points and 18 rebounds. Against Michigan he had 14 points and 13 rebounds and in the finals against Penn State he 15 points and 11 rebounds. Sullinger was constantly double-teamed and harassed down low, evidence by his free-throw numbers. he attempted at least ten free-throws in each game and went 25-38 from the line during the tournament.



Championship Week Scoreboard

America East Conference Tournament
Hartford, CT
March 3-12
Tournament MVP: John Holland, Boston

First Round
#9 Binghamton 91, #8 UMBC 65
Quarterfinals
#6 Hartford 66, #3 Maine 63
#5 Stony Brook 67, #4 Albany 61
#2 Boston 69, #7 New Hampshire 60
#1 Vermont 57, #9 Binghamton 46
Semifinals
#5 Stony Brook 69, #1 Vermont 47
#2 Boston 55, #6 Hartford 49
Final
#2 Boston 56, #5 Stony Brook 54



Atlantic Coast Conference
Greensboro, NC
March 10-13
Tournament MVP: Nolan Smith, Duke

First Round
#9 Miami 69, #8 Virginia 62
#7 Maryland 75, #10 NC State 67
#6 Virginia Tech 59, #11 Georgia Tech 43
#5 Boston College 81, #12 Wake Forest 67
Quarterfinals
#6 Virginia Tech 52, #3 Florida State 51
#4 Clemson 70, #5 Boston College 47
#2 Duke 87, #7 Maryland 71
#1 North Carolina 61, #9 Miami 59
Semifinals
#2 Duke 77, #6 Virginia Tech 63
#1 North Carolina 92, #4 Clemson 87 OT
Final
#2 Duke 75, #1 North Carolina 58



Atlantic-Sun Conference Tournament
Macon, GA
March 2-5
Tournament MVP: Mick Hedgepeth, Belmont

Quarterfinals
#6 North Florida 68, #3 Jacksonville 64
#5 Mercer 73, #4 Lipscomb 63
#2 East Tennessee State 54, #7 Campbell 53
#1 Belmont 72, #8 Kennesaw State 57
Semifinals
#6 North Florida 59, #2 East Tennessee State 55
#1 Belmont 80, #5 Mercer 72
Final
#1 Belmont 87, #6 North Florida 46



Atlantic-10 Conference Tournament
Atlantic City, NJ
March 8, 11-13
Tournament MVP: Kevin Anderson, Richmond

First Round
#12 St. Joseph's 71, #5 George Washington 59 OT
#10 La Salle 75, #7 St. Bonaventure 73 2OT
#9 Dayton 78, #8 UMass 50
#6 Rhode Island 70, #11 St. Louis 61
Quarterfinals
#12 St. Joseph's 93, #4 Duquesne 90 OT
#9 Dayton 68, #1 Xavier 67
#3 Richmond 55, #6 Rhode Island 44
#2 Temple 96, #10 La Salle 76
Semifinals
#9 Dayton 64, #12 St. Joseph's 61
#3 Richmond 58, #2 Temple 54
Final
#3 Richmond 67, #9 Dayton 54



Big East Conference Tournament
New York City, NY
March 8-12
Tournament MVP: Kemba Walker, UConn

First Round
#15 South Florida 70, #10 Villanova 69
#13 Rutgers 76, #12 Seton Hall 70 OT
#11 Marquette 87, #14 Providence 66
#9 UConn 97, #16 DePaul 71
Second Round
#11 Marquette 67, #6 West Virginia 61
#9 UConn 79, #8 Georgetown 62
#7 Cincinnati 87, #15 South Florida 61
#5 St. John's 65, #13 Rutgers 63
Quarterfinals
#9 UConn 76, #1 Pittsburgh 74
#4 Syracuse 79, #5 St. John's 73
#3 Louisville 81, #11 Marquette 56
#2 Notre Dame 89,. #7 Cincinnati 51
Semifinals
#9 UConn 76, #4 Syracuse 71 OT
#3 Louisville 83, #2 Notre Dame 77 OT
Final
#9 UConn 69, #3 Louisville 66



Big Sky Conference Tournament
Greeley, CO
March 5-9
Tournament MVP: Devon Beitzel, Northern Colorado

Quarterfinals
#4 Northern Arizona 65, #5 Montana State 62
#3 Weber State 79, #6 Eastern Washington 70
Semifinals
#2 Montana 57, #3 Weber State 40
#1 Northern Colorado 73, #4 Northern Arizona 70
Final
#1 Northern Colorado 65, #2 Montana 60



Big South Conference Tournament
Conway, SC
March 1-5
Tournament MVP: Matt Dickey, UNC-Asheville

Quarterfinals (at higher seed)
#7 High Point 66, #2 Liberty 60
#4 VMI 78, #5 Winthrop 73
#3 UNC-Asheville 72, #6 Charleston Southern 63
#1 Coastal Carolina 83, #8 Gardner-Webb 72
Semifinals
#3 UNC-Asheville 62, #7 High Point 45
#1 Coastal Carolina 89, #4 VMI 81
Final
#3 UNC-Asheville 60, #1 Coastal Carolina 47



Big Ten Conference Tournament
Indianapolis, IN
March 10-13
Tournament MVP: Jared Sullinger, Ohio State

First Round
#8 Northwestern 75, #9 Minnesota 65
#7 Michigan State 66, #10 Iowa 61
#6 Penn State 61, #11 Indiana 55
Quarterfinals
#7 Michigan State 74, #2 Purdue 56
#6 Penn State 36, #3 Wisconsin 33
#4 Michigan 60, #5 Illinois 55
#1 Ohio State 67, #8 Northwestern 61 OT
Semifinals
#6 Penn State 61, #7 Michigan State 48
#1 Ohio State 68, #4 Michigan 61
Final
#1 Ohio State 71, #6 Penn State 60



Big-12 Conference Tournament
March 9-12
Kansas City, MO
Tournament MVP: Marcus Morris, Kansas

First Round
#10 Oklahoma 84, #7 Baylor 67
#9 Oklahoma State 53, #8 Nebraska 52
#6 Missouri 88, #11 Texas Tech 84
#5 Colorado 77, #12 Iowa State 75
Quarterfinals
#5 Colorado 87, #4 Kansas State 75
#3 Texas A&M 86, #6 Missouri 71
#2 Texas 74, #10 Oklahoma 54
#1 Kansas 63, #9 Oklahoma State 62
Semifinals
#2 Texas 70, #3 Texas A&M 58
#1 Kansas 90, #5 Colorado 83
Final
#1 Kansas 85, #2 Texas 73



Big West Conference Tournament
Anaheim, CA
March 10-12
Tournament MVP: Orlando Johnson, UC-Santa Barbara

Quarterfinals
#7 UC-Riverside 70, #2 Cal Poly 66 OT
#5 UC Santa Barbara 79, #4 Pacific 67
#3 CS-Northridge 75, #6 Cal St. Fullerton 54
#1 Long Beach State 79, #8 UC Irvine 72
Semifinals
#5 UC-Santa Barbara 83, #3 CS-Northridge 63
#1 Long Beach State 74, #7 UC-Riverside 63
Final
#5 UC-Santa Barbara 64, #1 Long Beach State 56



Colonial Athletic Association Tournament
Richmond, VA
March 4-7
Tournament MVP: Frank Hassell, Old Dominion

First Round
#11 William & Mary 72, #6 James Madison 68
#9 Georgia State 58, #8 UNC Wilmington 52
#7 Delaware 60, #10 Northeastern 58
#5 Drexel 75, #12 Towson 69
Quarterfinals
#4 VCU 62, #5 Drexel 60
#3 Hofstra 72, #11 William & Mary 56
#2 Old Dominion 59, #7 Delaware 50
#1 George Mason 68, #9 Georgia State 45
Semifinals
#4 VCU 79, #1 George Mason 63
#2 Old Dominion 77, #3 Hofstra 69
Final
#2 Old Dominion 70, #4 VCU 65



Conference USA Tournament
El Paso, TX
March 9-12
Tournament MVP: Joe Jackson, Memphis

First Round
#10 Rice 58, #7 SMU 57
#8 East Carolina 75, #9 UCF 60
#6 Marshall 97, #11 Houston 87
#5 Southern Miss 63, #12 Tulane 47
Quarterfinals
#8 East Carolina 75, #1 UAB 70 OT
#4 Memphis 66, #5 Southern Mississippi 63
#3 UTEP 77, #6 Marshall 65
#2 Tulsa 81, #10 Rice 72
Semifinals
#4 Memphis 76, #8 East Carolina 56
#3 UTEP 66, #2 Tulsa 54
Final
#4 Memphis 67, #3 UTEP 66



Horizon League Tournament
Milwaukee, WI
March 1-8
Tournament MVP: Matt Howard, Butler

First Round (at higher seed)
#6 Wright State 60, #7 Green Bay 50
#5 Detroit 90, #8 Loyola 69
#4 Valparaiso 80, #9 Youngstown State 71
#3 Cleveland State 73, #10 Illinois-Chicago 61
Second Round (Milwaukee, WI)
#4 Valparaiso 88, #5 Detroit 78
#3 Cleveland State 73, #6 Wright State 59
Semifinals
#2 Butler 76, #3 Cleveland State 68
#1 UW-Milwaukee 70, #4 Valparaiso 63
Final
#2 Butler 59, #1 UW-Milwaukee 44



Mid-American Conference Tournament
Cleveland, OH
March 8-12
Tournament MVP: Zeke Marshall, Akron

First Round
#8 Buffalo 64, #9 Central Michigan 50
#7 Bowling Green 74, #10 Northern Illinois 54
#6 Akron 67, #11 Eastern Michigan 53
#5 Ohio 74, #12 Toledo 57
Quarterfinals
#6 Akron 82, #3 Miami (OH) 75 2OT
#4 Ball State 76, #5 Ohio 73 OT
#2 Western Michigan 67, #7 Bowling Green 56
#1 Kent State 73, #8 Buffalo 62
Semifinals
#6 Akron 79, #2 Western Michigan 68
#1 Kent State 79, #4 Ball State 68
Finals
#6 Akron 66, #1 Kent State 65  OT



MAAC Tournament
Bridgeport, CT
March 4-7
Tournament MVP: Jeron Belin, St. Peter's

First Round
#9 Marist 73, #8 Niagara 61
#7 Siena 68, #10 Manhattan 66 OT
Quarterfinals
#4 St. Peter's 70, #5 Loyola 60
#3 Rider 79, #6 Canisius 64
#2 Iona 94, #7 Siena 64
#1 Fairfield 55, #9 Marist 31
Semifinals
#4 St. Peter's 62, #1 Fairfield 48
#2 Iona 83, #3 Rider 59
Final
#4 St. Peter's 62, #2 Iona 57



Mideastern Athletic Conference Tournament
Winston-Salem, NC
March 8-12
Tournament MVP: Darrion Pellum, Hampton

First Round
#10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 87, #7 Florida A&M 85 2OT
#9 South Carolina State 64, #8 Delaware State 59
#6 Norfolk State 68 #11 Howard 53
Quarterfinals
#6 Norfolk State 55, #3 Coppin State 53
#4 Morgan State 77, #5 North Carolina A&T 59
#2 Hampton 77, #10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 55
#1 Bethune-Cookman 66, #9 South Carolina State 50
Semifinals
#4 Morgan State 61, #1 Bethune-Cookman 48
#2 Hampton 85, #6 Norfolk State 61
Final
#2 Hampton 60, #4 Morgan State 55



Missouri Valley Conference Tournament
St. Louis, MO
March 3-6
Tournament MVP: Aaron Carter, Indiana State

First Round
#10 Bradley 63, #7 Drake 48
#8 Southern Illinois 57, #9 Illinois State 54
Quarterfinals
#5 Creighton 60, #4 Northern Iowa 57
#3 Indiana State 52, #6 Evansville 50
#2 Wichita State 70, #10 Bradley 56
#1 Missouri State 58, #8 Southern Illinois 56
Semifinals
#3 Indiana State 61, #2 Wichita State 54
#1 Missouri State 60, #5 Creighton 50
Final
#3 Indiana State 60, #1 Missouri State 56



Mountain West
Las Vegas, NV
March 9-12
Tournament MVP: Jimmer Fredette, BYU

First Round
#9 TCU 70, #8 Wyoming 61
Quarterfinals
#5 New Mexico 67, #4 Colorado State 61
#3 UNLV 69, #6 Air Force 53
#2 San Diego State 64, vs. #7 Utah 50
#1 BYU 64, #9 TCU 58
Semifinals
#2 San Diego State 74, #3 UNLV 72
#1 BYU 87, #5 New Mexico 76
Final
#2 San Diego State 72, #1 BYU 54



Northeast Conference Tournament
At higher seeds
March 3-9
Tournament MVP: Jamal Olasewere, Long Island

Quarterfinals
#4 Central Connecticut State 64, #5 St. Francis (NY) 62
#3 Robert Morris 78, #6 Wagner 74
#2 Quinnipiac 78, #7 Mt., St. Mary's 59
#1 Long Island 90, #8 St. Francis (PA) 75
Semifinals
#3 Robert Morris 64, #2 Quinnipiac 62
#1 Long Island 69, #4 Central Connecticut State 67
3/9 - Final
#1 Long Island 85 #3 Robert Morris 82 OT



Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
Nashville, TN
March 2-5
Tournament MVP: DeMonte Harper, Morehead State

First Round
#8 Tennessee-Martin 68, #5 Tennessee State 64
#7 Southeast Missouri 65, #6 Eastern Kentucky 49
Quarterfinals
#4 Tennessee Tech 83, #8 Tennessee-Martin 59
#3 Austin Peay 76, #7 Southeast Missouri State 60
Semifinals
#4 Tennessee Tech 64, #1 Murray State 59
#2 Morehead State 68, #3 Austin Peay 49
Final
#2 Morehead State 80, #4 Tennessee Tech 73



Pac-10
Los Angeles, CA
March 9-12
Tournament MVP: Isaiah Thomas, Washington

First Round
#9 Oregon State 69, #8 Stanford 67
#7 Oregon 76, #10 Arizona State 69
Quarterfinals
#7 Oregon 76, #2 UCLA 59
#3 Washington 89, #6 Washington State 87
#4 USC 70, #5 Cal 56
#1 Arizona 78, #9 Oregon State 69
Semifinals
#3 Washington 69, #7 Oregon 51
#1 Arizona 67, #4 USC 62
Final
#3 Washington 77, #1 Arizona 75 OT



Patriot League Tournament
At higher seeds
March 2-11
Tournament MVP: Mike Muscala, Bucknell

Quarterfinals
#6 Lafayette 77, #3 Holy Cross 70
#4 Lehigh 87, #5 Navy 75
#2 American 69, #7 Colgate 53
#1 Bucknell 78, #8 Army 51
Semifinals
#6 Lafayette 73 #2 American 71 2OT
#1 Bucknell 66, #4 Lehigh 64
Final
#1 Bucknell 72, #6 Lafayette 57



Southeastern Conference Tournament
Atlanta, GA
March 10-13
Tournament MVP: Darius Miller, Kentucky

First Round
#5E Tennessee 74, #4W Arkansas 68
#4E Georgia 69, #5W Auburn 51
#3W Ole Miss 66, #6E South Carolina 65
#3E Vanderbilt 62, #6W LSU 50
Quarterfinals
#3E Vanderbilt 87, #2W Mississippi State 81
#2E Kentucky 75, #3W Ole Miss 66
#1W Alabama 65, #4E Georgia 59
#1E Florida 85, #5E Tennessee 74
Semifinals
#2E Kentucky 72, #1W Alabama 58
#1E Florida 77, #3E Vanderbilt 66
Final
#2E Kentucky 70, #1E Florida 54



Southern Conference Tournament
Chattanooga, TN
March 4-7
Tournament MVP: Noah Dahlman, Wofford

First Round
#5N UNC-Greensboro 71, #4S Davidson 64
#3N Appalachian State 65, #6S Georgia Southern 57
#3S Furman 61, #6N Samford 48
#4N Elon 85, #5S The Citadel 74
Quarterfinals
#1N Western Carolina 77, #5N UNC-Greensboro 66
#2S Wofford 69, #3N Appalachian State 59
#3S Furman 61, #2N Chattanooga 52
#1S Charleston 78, #4N Elon 60
Semifinals
#2S Wofford 86, #1N Western Carolina 72
#1S Charleston 63, #3S Furman 58
Final
#2S Wofford 77, #1S Charleston 67



Southland Conference
Katy, TX
March 9-12
Tournament MVP: Devin Gibson, Texas-San Antonio

Quarterfinals
#7 Texas-San Antonio 97, #2 Northwestern State 96
#4 Texas State 72, #5 Southeastern Louisiana 68
#3 Sam Houston State 61, #6 Stephen F. Austin 45
#1 McNeese State 61, #8 Nicholls State 54
Semifinals
#7 Texas-San Antonio 79, #3 Sam Houston State 70
#1 McNeese State 91, #4 Texas State 83
Final
#7 Texas-San Antonio 75, #1 McNeese State 72



Southwest Athletic Conference
Dallas, TX
March 9-12
Tournament MVP: Tremayne Moorer, Alabama State

Quarterfinals
#6 Grambling State 65, #3 Mississippi Valley State 62
#4 Alabama State 81, #5 Alabama A&M 61
#2 Jackson State 50, #7 Prairie View A&M 38
#1 Texas Southern 50, #8 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 45
Semifinals
#6 Grambling State 81, #2 Jackson State 75 OT
#4 Alabama State 73, #1 Texas Southern 66
Final
#4 Alabama State 65, #6 Grambling State 48



Summit League
Sioux Falls, SD
March 5-8
Tournament MVP: Keith Benson, Oakland

Quarterfinals
#5 South Dakota State 85, #4 IPFW 75
#3 IUPUI 79, #6 UMKC 55
#2 Oral Roberts 72, #7 North Dakota State 65
#1 Oakland 82, #8 Southern Utah 66
Semifinals
#2 Oral Roberts 88, #3 IUPUI 73
#1 Oakland 110, #5 South Dakota State 90
Final
#1 Oakland 90, #2 Oral Roberts 76



Sun Belt Tournament
Hot Springs, AR
March 5-8
Tournament MVP: Solomon Bozeman, Arkansas-Little Rock

First Round
#6E Florida International 53, #3W Denver 49
#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 82, #4E South Alabama 68
#4W North Texas 83, #5E Troy 69
#3E Western Kentucky 66, #6W Louisiana-Monroe 50
Quarterfinals
#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 59, #1W Arkansas State 52
#4W North Texas 78, #1E Florida Atlantic 64
#3E Western Kentucky 81, #2W Louisiana-Lafayette 76
#2E Middle Tennessee 73, #6E Florida International 38
Semifinals
#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 65, #2E Middle Tennessee 56
#4W North Texas 81, #3E Western Kentucky 62
Final
#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 64, #4W North Texas 63



Western Athletic Conference Tournament
Las Vegas, NV
March 9-12
Tournament MVP: Brockeith Payne, Utah State

First Round
#8 San Jose State 75, #5 Hawaii 74
#6 Nevada 90, #7 Fresno State 80
Quarterfinals
#8 San Jose State 74, #4 Idaho 68
#3 New Mexico State 66, #6 Nevada 60
Semifinals
#2 Boise State 81, #3 New Mexico State 63
#1 Utah State 58, #8 San Jose State 54
Final
#1 Utah State 77, #2 Boise State 69



WCC Tournament
Las Vegas, NV
March 4-7
Tournament MVP: Marquise Carter, Gonzaga

First Round
#8 Loyola Marymount 72, #5 Portland 68
#6 Pepperdine 84, #7 San Diego 81
Quarterfinals
#4 Santa Clara 76, #8 Loyola Marymount 68
#3 San Francisco 76, #6 Pepperdine 59
Semifinals
#2 Gonzaga 71, #3 San Francisco 67
#1 St. Mary's 73, #4 Santa Clara 64
Final
#2 Gonzaga 75, #1 St. Mary's 63

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The Real March Madness: Day 10

Everyone loves the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Four straight days jam-packed with 12 hours of do-or-die college hoops is more than most people can handle.

But for junkies like us, the next 13 days are just as good, for it is when the true Madness takes place. Over the course of these two weeks, we whittle some 347 teams down to 30 conference champions (the Ivy doesn't have a tournament). Auto-bids will be won. Bubbles will be burst. Buzzers will be beaten. And most importantly, a 68 team bracket will be made.

For a comprehensive listing off all the conference tournaments, follow this link or click the "Complete Conference Tournament Schedules" page at the top of the screen. To become more acquainted with the teams that have already sealed up auto-bids, follow this link.

Here is what happened on Thursday:
Kemba Walker had the most vicious buzzer-beater you will ever seen, Colorado gets off the bubble, and a few teams got theirs busted.


Game of the Day: UConn 76, Pittsburgh 74

And to think, there is a coach out there that doesn't believe Kemba Walker was good enough to make the Big East All-Conference First-Team. Walker scored 24 points including a step-back game-winning buzzer-beater to defeat top-seed Pittsburgh in the Big East Quarterfinals. On the final possession, Walker got the ball at the top of the key, burned the clock, and set up for a final drive. What happened next was instant-YouTube-gold:



The final play was designed for Walker to take the final shot. He had the option to pass it up to Jamal Coombs-McDaniel, but Walker had done so against Notre Dame, and Donnell Beverly could not handle the pass, and the Huskies lost 67-70. This time, Walker kept the ball and criss-crossed Gary McGhee like a new pair of shoelaces. Along with his 24 points, Walker also contributed five assists, grabbed five rebounds and had two steals. Pittsburgh led for most of the first half, getting up by as many as 12, but the Huskies clamped down on defense in the second and forced the Panthers to lose composure.

Alex Oriakhi was a big contributor in the second half. He sat during most of the first due to foul trouble, but was able to grab five of his seven rebounds in the second half. But the story of the game was Walker's shot. The whole sequence, Walker slicing-and-dicing McGee, taking a monster-step-back jumper to win the game, was one of the prettiest end-of-game sequences we may ever see.

They were good too:

- Miami (Fl) 69, Virginia 62 OT: Neither of these teams are going to the tournament unless they win the ACC tournament. But Miami put on a comeback of March Madness magnitude. The two teams were tied at 39 with six minutes to go when the Hurricanes hit a cold-streak. They went roughly five minutes, and by the time they scored their next point, they trailed 50-40. That's when The Cavaliers fell apart at the seems and Miami scored 10 points in just under 50 seconds.



The Hurricanes had scored only 12 second-half points up until that point. In overtime, Miami hit all five of their shots and was able to pull away for a seven point win.


- Norfolk State 55, Coppin State 53: Rob Hampton hit a layup with 2 seconds remaining to lift No. 6 Norfolk State over No. 3 Coppin State 55-53 in the quarterfinals of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament. Coppin State rallied back from an 11-point first half deficit, and took the lead with eight minutes left in the game. Norfolk State trailed 51-44 with six minutes left before scoring seven unanswered points, tying it at 51 with less than four minutes to go. Coppin State missed the potential go-ahead jumper with 48 seconds left, and Kyle O'Quinn grabbed the rebound, setting up the final possession. O'Quinn, the six-foot-ten center for the Spartans, led the way with 10 points, 13 rebounds and 5 blocks.


Team of the Day: Colorado Buffaloes

The Buffs locked up an at-large bid with their huge win over No. 4 Kansas State in the quarterfinals of the Big-12 tournament. Kansas Stat was riding a six-game win streak coming into the game, but the duo of Alec Burks and Cory Higgins were too much for the Wildcats. The two wings combined for 52 points of the team's 87 points, and Andre Roberson grabbed 14 rebounds to go along with his 11 points (Roberson also threw down a filthy dunk). With the win, the Buffs complete the season sweep of Kansas State.


They were good too:

- East Carolina Pirates: The No. 8 Pirates defeated top-seeded UAB in the quarterfinals of the Conference-USA tournament, 75-70 in overtime. The Pirates had lost both regular season games against the Blazers, but were able to outscore the No. 1-seed in overtime 18-15. UAB's Aaron Johnson scored a career-high 39 points on 12-22 shooting. But the rest of UAB shot a combined 9-43. East Carolina bursted UAB's bubble, and the Pirates will have the chance to do it to another bubble team, when they face No. 4 Memphis in the semifinals on Friday.


Player of the Day: Devin Gibson, Texas-San Antonio

A day after Gibson logged a career-high 28 points en route to his second triple-double of the season, the senior guard was just four assists shy of doing it again. Gibson finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists as the No. 7 UT-San Antonio Roadrunners upset No. 3 Sam Houston State in the semifinals of the Southland Conference tournament. Gibson was 6-12 from the field and 11-15 from the charity stripe. UTSA will now face top-seeded McNeese State in the championship game.

They were good too:

- Michael Thompson, Northwestern: John Shurna, the Wildcats leading scorer had only two points, but Michael Thompson made up for it by providing a Big Ten tournament-record 35 points, as No.8 Northwestern defeated No. 9 Minnesota in the first round of the Big Ten tournament 75-65. Thompson was 11-22 from the field including 5-12 from behind the arc. He also made all eight of his foul shots. His previous scoring high was 23 points, which he scored against American back in December.

- Klay Thompson, Washington State: The Washington Huskies avoided being swept by the Cougars in the first round of the Pac-10 tournament, but they could not stop Klay Thompson, who recorded a tournament-record 43 points. Thompson sat out the last game of the regular season due to a suspension related to a marijuana arrest. Thompson was 15-29 from the field, including 8-17 from behind the arc.


Bubble Banter

- Boston College took care of business against Wake Forest, and if they can defeeat Clemson, another bubble team, BostoN College would probably secure one of the last at-large bids.

- Colorado did what they needed to do, as they beat Kansas State 87-75. If bid-theives stay at bay, Colorado is likely to lock up one of the final at-large bids. A semifinal win over Kansas would almost guarantee them a spot in March Madness.

- Colorado State's bubble is officially busted. They lost to New Mexico in the first round of the MWC tournament. The Rams would have had an outside shot at an at-large bid, but that is no longer the case.

- Georgia defeated Auburn in the first round of the SEC tournament, setting up a BubbleBuster match up against the Alabama. a win would likely put the Bulldogs in the "last four in" and a lost will send them packing for the N.I.T.

- Marquette was blown out by Louisville in the quarterfinals of the Big East torunament, but are probably safe. They got the win they needed on Wednesday night when they defeated West Virginia.

- Memphis' tournament hopes remain alive for now. They defeated No. 5 Southern Miss in the quarterfinals of the C-USA tournament. Memphis now faces No. 8 East Carolina in the semifinals. They will need to beat the Pirates in order to strengthen their chances at an at-large bid.

- Michigan State survived a scare against No. 10 Iowa in the first round of the Big Ten tournament. Despite the win, the Spartans have still lost five of their last ten games. They will now face No. 2 Purdue, and a win on Friday would almost guarantee them a spot in the tournament.

- Any outside shot that Oklahoma State may have had is now gone, thanks to a missed game-winning shot in their 63-62 loss to Kansas in the Quarterfinals of the Big-12 Tournament. Their bubble is officially busted.

- UAB, the top-seed in the C-USA tournament was considered on the bubble. But not anymore. They lost to No. 8 East Carolina in overtime and are now N.I.T-bound.

- UCLA's tournament status is now up in the air thanks to a head-scratching 17-point loss to Oregon. The Bruins last three losses have all come against non-tournament teams.

- USC beat Cal 70-56 to reaffirm their bubble-status. Another win for them would be ideal. But I think barring a bid-theft or two, the Trojans will get in.

- Everybody''s favorite bubble team, Virginia Tech, moved step closer to finally locking up an at-large bid by defeating Georgia Tech in the first round of the ACC tournament. A win today against Florida State would make them a near-lock.

- Washington would have been bubble-bound with a loss to Washington State, but the Huskies escaped 89-87, and wil now have a chance to cement their tournament spot with a quarterfinal win over No. 7 Oregon.

- If Washington still has a shot at an at-large bid, then Washington State definitely doesn't. A win last night would have given the Cougars three wins over Washington this season, and would have given them an outside-shot. But now, the NCAA tournament is out of reach.


Thursday Results

Atlantic Coast Conference First Round

#9 Miami 69, #8 Virginia 62
#5 Boston College 81, #12 Wake Forest 67
#7 Maryland 75, #10 NC State 67
#6 Virginia Tech 59, #11 Georgia Tech 43


Big East Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#9 UConn 76, #1 Pitt 74
#4 Syracuse 79, #5 St. John's 73
#2 Notre Dame 89,. #7 Cincinnati 51
#3 Louisville 81, #11 Marquette 56


Big-Ten Conference Tournament First Round

#8 Northwestern 75, #9 Minnesota 65
#7 Michigan State 66, #10 Iowa 61
#6 Penn State 61, #11 Indiana 55


Big-12 Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#1 Kansas 63, #9 Oklahoma State 62
#5 Colorado 87, #4 Kansas State 75
#2 Texas 74, #10 Oklahoma 54
#3 Texas A&M 86, #6 Missouri 71


Big West Conference Tournament Quartefinals

#1 Long Beach State 79, #8 UC Irvine 72
#5 UC Santa Barbara 79, #4 Pacific 67
#7 UC-Riverside 70, #2 Cal Poly 66 OT
#3 CS-Northridge 75, #6 Cal St. Fullerton 54


Conference-USA Tournament Quarterfinals

#8 East Carolina 75, #1 UAB 70 OT
#4 Memphis 66, #5 Southern Mississippi 63
#3 UTEP 77, #6 Marshall 65
#2 Tulsa 81, #10 Rice 72


Mid-American Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#2 Western Michigan 67, #7 Bowling Green 56
#6 Akron 82, #3 Miami(OH) 75 2OT
#1 Kent State 73, #8 Buffalo 62
#4 Ball State 76, #5 Ohio 73 OT


Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference First Round

#6 Norfolk State 55, #3 Coppin State 53
#4 Morgan State 77, #5 North Carolina A&T 59


Mountain West Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#1 BYU 64, #9 TCU 58
#5 New Mexico 67, #4 Colorado State 61
#2 San Diego State 64, vs. #7 Utah 50
#3 UNLV 69, #6 Air Force 53


Pac-10 Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#4 USC 70, #5 Cal 56
#1 Arizona 78, #9 Oregon State 69
#7 Oregon 76, #2 UCLA 59
#3 Washington 89, #6 Washington State 87


Southeast Conference Tournament First Round

#4E Georgia 69, #5W Auburn 51
#3W Ole Miss 66, #6E South Carolina 65
#5E Tennessee 74, #4W Arkansas 68
#3E Vanderbilt 62, #6W LSU 50


Southland Conference Tournament Semifinals

#7 Texas-San Antonio 79, #3 Sam Houston State 70
#1 McNeese State 91, #4 Texas State 83


Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#4 Alabama State 81, #5 Alabama A&M 61
#6 Grambling State 65, #3 Mississippi Valley State 62


Western Athletic Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#8 San Jose State 74, #4 Idaho 68
#3 New Mexico State 66, #6 Nevada 60


Friday Slate of Games

Patriot League Tournament
Finals (at higher seed)
4:45PM - #6 Lafayette at #1 Bucknell


Southland Conference Tournament
Finals (Katy, TX)
3:00PM - ESPN2 - #1 McNeese State #7 Texas-San Antonio


ACC Tournament
Quarterfinals (Greensboro, NC)

12:00PM - #1 UNC vs. #9 Miami
2:30PM - #4 Clemson vs. #5 Boston College
6:30PM - #2 Duke vs. #7 Maryland
9:00PM - #3 Florida State vs. #6 Virginia Tech


Atlantic-10 Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Atlantic City, NJ)

12:00PM - #1 Xavier vs. #9 Dayton
2:30PM - #4 Duquesne vs. #12 St. Joseph's
6:30PM - #2 Temple vs. #10 La Salle
9:00PM - #3 Richmond vs. G#6 Rhode Island


Big East Conference Tournament
Semifinals (New York City, NY)

7:00PM - #4 Syracuse vs. #9 UConn
9:30PM - #2 Notre Dame vs. #3 Louisville


Big Ten Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (indianapoli, IN)

12:00PM - #1 Ohio State vs. #8 Northwestern
2:30PM - #4 Michigan vs. #5 Illinois
6:30PM - #2 Purdue vs. #7 Michigan State
9:30PM - #3 Wisconsin vs. #6 Penn State


Big-12 Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Kansas City, MO)

7:00PM - #1 Kansas vs. #5 Colorado
9:30PM - #2 Texas vs. #3 Texas A&M


Big West Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Anaheim, CA)

6:30PM - #1 Long Beach State vs. #5 UC-Santa Barbara
9:00PM - #3 CS-Northridge vs. #7 UC-Riverside


Conference-USA Tournament
Semifinals (El Paso, TX)

3:00PM - #4 Memphis vs. #8 East Carolina
5:30PM - #2 Tulsa vs. #3 UTEP


Mid-American Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Cleveland, OH)

7:00PM - #2 Western Michigan vs. #6 Akron
9:30PM - #1 Kent State vs. #4 Ball State


Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournnament
Semifinals (Winston-Salem, NC)

6:00PM - #1 Bethune-Cookman vs. #4 Morgan State
8:30PM - #2 Hampton vs. #6 Norfolk State


Mountain West Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Las Vegas, NV)

9:00PM - #1 BYU vs. #5 New Mexico
11:30PM - #2 SDSU vs. #3 UNLV


Pac-10 Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Los Angeles, CA)

9:00PM - #1 Arizona vs. #4 USC
11:40PM - #3 Washington vs. #7 Oregon


Southeast Conference Tournament
Quartefinals (Atlanta, GA)

1:00PM - #1W Alabama vs. #4E Georgia
3:30PM - #2E Kentucky vs. #3W Ole Miss
7:30PM - #1E Florida vs. #5E Tennessee
10:00PM - #2W Mississippi State vs.#3E Vanderbilt


Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Garland, TX)

2:30PM - #2 Jackson State vs. #6 Grambling State
8:00PM - #1 Texas Southern vs. #4 Alabama State


WAC Tournament
Semifinals (Las Vegas, NV)

8:00PM - #1 Utah State vs. #8 San Jose State
10:30PM - #2 Boise State vs. #3 New Mexico State


Continue reading...

The Real March Madness: Day 9

Everyone loves the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Four straight days jam-packed with 12 hours of do-or-die college hoops is more than most people can handle.

But for junkies like us, the next 13 days are just as good, for it is when the true Madness takes place. Over the course of these two weeks, we whittle some 347 teams down to 30 conference champions (the Ivy doesn't have a tournament). Auto-bids will be won. Bubbles will be burst. Buzzers will be beaten. And most importantly, a 68 team bracket will be made.

For a comprehensive listing off all the conference tournaments, follow this link or click the "Complete Conference Tournament Schedules" page at the top of the screen. To become more acquainted with the teams that have already sealed up autobids, follow this link.

Here is what happened on Wednesday:

Two more auto-bids were handed out, some Big-12 bubbles got busted, and a Big East tournament game was marred by poor officiating


Game of the Day: St. John's 65, Rutgers 63

For the second day in a row, the Scarlet Knights were involved in a tightly-contested game that ended with an exciting-yet-controversial finish.



This game did not start to get interesting until the final two minutes. St. John's led for the majority of the second half, and was up by as many as ten points. But for the second day in a row, Rutgers faught back, and forced the game to be decided in the final minute. Instead of trying to break down the controversial ending to the game, click here to read more (Seriously folks, I have never seen anything like this). Dwight Hardy led the way for the Johnnies with 17 points and Sean Evans scored 13 point and nine rebounds coming off the bench.

They were good too:

- UT-San Antonio 97, Northwestern State 96

The No. 7-seed Roadrunner of UT-San Antonio rallied back from tweleve points with under five minutes to play to beat No. 2 Northwestern State in the quarterfinals of the Southland Conference tournament. Jeremie Hill scored the game-winning dunk with 2.5 seconds left after teammate Devin Gibson drove into the lane and fed the ball inside to him while unguarded, giving UTSA the lead for only the second time in the game.

- San Jose State 75, Hawaii 74

Adrian Oliver, the WAC player of the year, hit a pull-up jumper with five seconds left to lift No. 8 San Jose State over over No. 4 Hawaii in the first round of the WAC tournament. Oliver's jumper did end the game however. The Rainbow Warriors responded, as Jeremiah Ostrawski launched a desperation heave that was tipped-in at the buzzer by Bill Amis, but was reviewed by referees and was ruled no good.


Team of the Day: Northern Colorado Bears

The Bears deafeated reigning-champions Montana in the finals of the Big Sky Conference tournament 65-60. Devon Beitzel, the MVP of the regular season and the tournament, led the Bears with 27 points, 13 of which came in the final five minutes. Montana won last season's tournament championship thanks to an unforgettable second-half rally that saw the Grizzlies erase a 22-point deficit. Northern Colorado made sure that this year would be different. The Grizzlies tried their best to erase a seven-point deficit with under 50 seconds left, but Beitzel hit a long 3-pointer to seal the deal. This was the first tournament championship in school history. Northern Colorado has just four postseason wins since 1994, one of which came when it was a member of the Division II Northern Central Conference

They were good too:

- Marquette Golden Eagles

If there were any questions as to wether or not Marquette was on the bubble, they answered them last night with a gutsy win against West Virginia in the second round of the Big East tournament. The Golden Eagles got a tremendous performance from Junior Cadougan, who led the team with 15 points, and Darius Johnson-Odom provided late-game heroics, sinking two clutch 3-pointers in the final minutes of the game. The key to Marquette's victory was their defense. They held the Mountaineers to just 6-27 (27.2%) from the field in the second half after a first half which saw them make 14-24 (58.3%).


Player of the Day: Devin Gibson, UT-San Antonio

Gibson logged his second triple-double of the season as the Roadrunner's defeated the Demons of Northwestern State in the first round of the Southland Conference tournament. Gibson's final assist, the stat that gave him the triple-double was the most important stat of the day. He fed a wide-open Jeromie Hill down low who made the game-winning dunk with five seconds left. Gibson finished with a career-high 28 points, along with ten rebounds and ten assists. He also had three steals.

They were good too:
.
- Alec Burks, Colorado

The sophomore forward scored 25 of his 29 points in the second half to lead the Buffs to a must-needed win over Iowa State in the first round of the Big-12 Tournament. The unanimous pick for the Big-12 first team all-conference was 9-16 from the field and 11-14 from the charity stripe. He also grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds and dished out six assists.

- Malik Story, Nevada

Story hit all six of his 3-point attempts en route to scoring a career-high 34 points as the No. 6 Nevada Wolfpack beat the No. 7 Fresno State Bulldogs in the first round of the WAC tournament. Story was 11-14 from the field and made 11-15 from the charity stripe. He had not scored more than 15 points in six games, when he set a then career-high of 29 against San Jose State.


Bubble Banter

- Colorado kept their tournament hopes alive by withstanding a strong comeback from Iowa State. A win against No. 4 Kansas State tonight would do them wonders.

- Any shot that Baylor had is now certainly gone after they were trounced by Oklahoma in the first round of the Big-12 tournament, 84-67. The Bears may very well have locked up the title of "most dissapointing team of the year".

- Nebraska's outside chances were dashed due to end-of-game mismanagement against Oklahoma State. The 'Huskers needed at least one tournament win to pad their resume, and they didn't get it.

- Marquette cemented their tournament status with a huge win against West Virginia in the night-cap at Madison Square Garden.


Wednesday Results


Northeast Conference Tournament Finals

#1 Long Island 85 #3 Robert Morris 82 OT


Big Sky Conference Tournament Finals

#1 Northern Colorado 65, #2 Montana 60


Big East Conference Tournament Second Round

#9 UConn 79, #8 Georgetown 62
#5 St. John's 65, #13 Rutgers 63
#7 Cincinnati 87, #15 South Florida 61
#11 Marquette 67, #6 West Virginia 61


Big-12 Conference Tournament First Round

#9 Oklahoma State 53, #8 Nebraska 52
#5 Colorado 77, #12 Iowa State 75
#10 Oklahoma 84, #7 Baylor 67
#6 Missouri 88, #11 Texas Tech 84


Conference-USA Tournament First Round

#8 East Carolina 75, #9 UCF 60
#5 Southern Miss 63, #12 Tulane 47
#6 Marshall 97, #11 Houston 87
#10 Rice 58, #7 SMU 57


Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#1 Bethune-Cookman 66, #9 South Carolina State 50
#2 Hampton 77, #10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 55
#6 Norfolk State 68, #11 Howard 53

Mountain West Conference Tournament First Round

#9 TCU 70, #8 Wyoming 61


Pac-10 Conference Tournament First Round

#9 Oregon State 69, #8 Stanford 67
#7 Oregon 76, #10 Arizona State 69


Southland Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#7 Texas-San Antonio 97, #2 Northwestern State 96
#3 Sam Houston State 61, #6 Stephen F. Austin 45
#1 McNeese State 61, #8 Nicholls State 54
#4 Texas State 72, #5 Southeastern Louisiana 68


Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#2 Jackson State 50, #7 Prairie View A&M 38
#1 Texas Southern 50, #8 Arkansas-Pine Bluff 45


Western Athletic Conference First Round

#8 San Jose State 75, #5 Hawaii 74
#6 Nevada 90, #7 Fresno State 80


Thursday Slate of Games


ACC Tournament
First Round (Greensboro, NC)

12:00PM - #9 Miami vs. #8 Virginia
2:30PM - #12 Wake Forest vs. #5 Boston College
7:00PM - #10 NC State vs. #7 Maryland
9:30PM - #11 Georgia Tech vs. #6 Virginia Tech


Big East Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (New York City, NY)

12:00PM - #1 Pitt vs. #9 UConn
2:30PM - #4 Syracuse vs. #5 St. John's
7:00PM - #2 Notre Dame vs. #7 Cincinnati
9:30PM - #3 Louisville vs. #11 Marquette


Big Ten Tournament
First Round (Indianapolis, IN)

2:30PM - #8 Northwestern vs. #9 Minnesota
5:00PM - #7 Michigan State vs. #10 Iowa
7:30PM - #6 Penn State vs. #11 Indiana


Big-12 Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Kansas City, MO)

12:00PM - #1 Kansas vs. #9 Oklahoma State
2:30PM - #4 Kansas State vs. #5 Colorado
6:30PM - #2 Texas vs. #10 Oklahoma
9:00PM - #3 Texas A&M vs. #6 Missouri


Big West
Quarterfinals (Anaheim, CA)

12:00PM - #1 Long Beach State vs. #8 UC Irvine
2:30PM - #4 Pacific vs. #5 UC Santa Barbara
6:30PM - #2 Cal Poly vs. #7 UC Riverside
9:30PM - #3 Cal St. Northridge vs. #6 Cal St. Fullerton


Conference-USA Tournament
Quarterfinals (El Paso, TX)

12:00PM - #1 UAB vs. #8 East Carolina
2:30PM - #4 Memphis vs. #5 Southern Mississippi
6:30PM - #3 UTEP vs. #6 Marshall
9:00PM - #2 Tulsa vs. #10 Rice



Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournnament
First Round (Winston-Salem, NC)

6:00PM - #3 Coppin State vs. #6 Norfolk State
8:30PM - #4 Morgan State vs. #5 North Carolina A&T



Mountain West Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Las Vegas, NV)

3:00 pm: #1 BYU vs. #9 TCU
5:30 pm: #4 Colorado vs. #5 New Mexico
9:00 pm: #2 San Diego State 70 vs. #7 Utah
11:30 pm: #3 UNLV vs. #6 Air Force



Pac-10 Conference Tournament
First Round (Los Angeles, CA)

3:10PM - #4 USC vs. #5 Cal
5:40Pm - #1 Arizona vs. #9 Oregon State
9:10PM - #2 UCLA vs. #7 Oregon
11:40PM - #3 Washington vs. #6 Washington State



SEC
First Round (Atlanta, GA)

1:00PM - #W5 Auburn vs. #E4 Georgia
3:30PM - #E6 South Carolina vs. #W3 Ole Miss
7:30PM - #E5 Tennessee vs. #W4 Arkansas
10:00PM - #W6 LSU vs. #E3 Vanderbilt


Southland Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Katy, TX)

6:00PM - #3 Sam Houston State vs. #7 Texas-San Antonio
8:30PM - #1 McNeese State vs. #4 Texas State


Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Garland, TX)

12:30PM - #4 Alabama State vs. #5 Alabama A&M
8:00PM - #3 Mississippi Valley State vs. #6 Grambling State


WAC Tournament
Quarterfinals (Las Vegas, NV)

6:00PM - #4 Idaho vs. #8 San Jose State
8:30PM - #3 New Mexico State vs. #6 Nevada


Continue reading...

The Real March Madness: Day 8

Everyone loves the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Four straight days jam-packed with 12 hours of do-or-die college hoops is more than most people can handle.

But for junkies like us, the next 13 days are just as good, for it is when the true Madness takes place. Over the course of these two weeks, we whittle some 347 teams down to 30 conference champions (the Ivy doesn't have a tournament). Auto-bids will be won. Bubbles will be burst. Buzzers will be beaten. And most importantly, a 68 team bracket will be made.

For a comprehensive listing off all the conference tournaments, follow this link or click the "Complete Conference Tournament Schedules" page at the top of the screen. To become more acquainted with the teams that have already sealed up autobids, follow this link.

Here is what happened on Tuesday:

Upsets, close-finishes, comebacks, and more upsets.


Game of the Day: Arkansas-Little Rock 64, North Texas 63
The No. 5 Trojans of Arkansas-Little Rock rallied back from down six with under 90 seconds to go, and Solomon Bozeman hit a deep 3-pointer with 1.5 seconds left to win the Sun Belt Conference Tournament for the first time in school history. The game was back-and-forth for the first 37 minutes, but North Texas looked like they would pull away late. But Matt Mouzy hit a 3-pointer with 17.6 seconds left to make it 62-61. Mouzy then stole the in-bounds pass but missed the 3-point attempt, and the rebound was grabbed by North Texas' Tristan Thompson, who was immediately fouled. On Sunday, in the semifinals, Thompson hit a perfect 20-20 from the charity stripe, but with just nine seconds left in the conference title game, he missed the first of two shots. After making the second, North Texas led 63-61. Bozeman collected the in-bounds pass and well, I'll let the video explain the rest:



North Texas called a timeout and set-up for a final shot, but were unable to get a clean look. When the clock hit zeros, Arkansas-Little Rock had punched it's first ticket to the dance in 21 years. The Trojans went 7-9 in the Sun Belt regular season and lost to North Texas both times they met. Bozeman was named tournament MVP and averaged 22ppg during the four-game streak.

They were good too:

- Rutgers 76, Seton Hall 70 OT

This one of the more-entertaining games of the day. The two teams traded leads for much of the game, and neither team led by more than nine. As the game-clock wound down, you knew that the game was going to end in exciting fashion, and it did. For the last four minutes, neither team led by more than two points. After Mike Coburn sank two free throws to put the Scarlet Knights up three, Jordan Theodore took the in-bounds pass with nine seconds left and set up a crazy finish to end regulation:



In overtime, Rutgers made nine of their final twelve foul shots and earned their first Big East tournament win since 2005.

- La Salle 75, St. Bonaventure's 73 2OT

Steve Weingarten hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 3o seconds left in the second overtime to seal victory over St. Bonaventure's in the first round of the Atlantic-10 tournament. The No. 10 Explorers, who will face the No. 2 Temple Owls in the quarterfinals, erased a 14-point deficit in regulation then overcame a seven-point deficit in the first overtime. The Explorers had three players score in double-figures, led by Jerrell Williams who had 19 points. Ruben Guillandeaux had 18 points including the tying shot at the end of regulation.


Team of the Day: South Florida Bulls

The Bulls were playing in only their fourth ever Big East tournament game, and erased a 15-point halftime deficit to beat the No. 10 Villanova Wildcats in the first round of the Big East tournament.This was the first time in conference history that a No. 15-seed won a tournament game. South Florida played shut-down defense in the second half, limiting the Wildcats to just four field goals. The Bulls were led by Shaun Noriega, who had 22 points, including 18 points from behind the arc. Anthony Crater only had six points, but he scored the four most important points of the game.


.

They were good too:

- Butler Bulldogs

The bulldogs had been written off by most of the country after a mediocre non-conference record and a uncharacteristic three game conference losing streak. But like they have done in season past, the Bulldogs plowed the the Horizon League tournament and are once again back in the NCAA tournament. Butler lost both their regular season games against UW-Milwaukee, but were able to beat the Panthers when it truly mattered. The Bulldogs only trailed once, and except for a five minute scoring drought in the second half, were in complete control of the game. Matt Howard led the way with 18 points and Shelvin Mack chipped in with 14 points.



Player of the Day: Keith Benson, Oakland

The Summit League Player of the Year had a monster night as he led the No. 1 Golden Grizzles to their second straight Summit League championship. Benson scored 28 points on 10-17 shooting. Benson also pulled in 14 rebounds, dropped four dimes and turned back three shots. This was Benson's 19th double-double of the season.

They were good too:

- Jonathan Mitchell, Rutgers

The senior had 25 points and made 11 of 14 free throws in the Scarlet Knights first Big East tournament win since 2005. Mitchell sparked Rutgers late-game comeback with a clutch three-pointer, and made eight free throws in overtime to seal the victory. He also had three rebounds, three assists and one steal.



Tuesday Results


Horizon League Tournament Finals

#2 Butler 59, #1UW-Milwaukee 44


Summit League Tournament Finals

#1 Oakland 90, #2 Oral Roberts 76


Sun Belt Tournament Finals

#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 64, #4W North Texas 63


Atlantic-10 Conference Tournament First Round

#9 Dayton 78, #8 UMass 50
#12 St. Joseph's 71, #5 George Washington 59 OT
#10 La Salle 75, #7 St. Bonaventure 73 2OT
#6 Rhode Island 70, #11 St. Louis 61


Big East Conference Tournament First Round
#9 UConn 97, #16 DePaul 71
#13 Rutgers 76, #12 Seton Hall 70 OT
#15 South Florida 70, #10 Villanova 69
#11 Marquette 87, #14 Providence 66


Big Sky Conference Tournament Semifinals

#2 Montana 57, #3 Weber State 40
#1 Northern Colorado 73, #4 Northern Arizona 70


Mid-American Conference First Round

#5 Ohio 74, #12 Toledo 57
#6 Akron 67, #11 Eastern Michigan 53
#7 Bowling Green 74, #10 Northern Illinois 54
#8 Buffalo 64, #9 Central Michigan 50


Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament First Round

#10 Maryland-Eastern Shore 87, #7 Florida A&M 85 2OT
#9 South Carolina State 64, #8 Delaware State 59



Wednesday Slate of Games

Northeast Conference Tournament
Finals (at higher seed)

7:00PM - ESPN2 - #3 Robert Morris at #1 Long Island


Big Sky Conference Tournament
Finals (Greeley, CO)

11:00PM - ESPN2 - #1 Northern Colorado vs. #2 Montana


Big East Conference Tournament
Second Round (New York City, NY)

12:00PM - #8 Georgetown vs. #9 UConn
2:30PM - #5 St. John's vs. #13 Rutgers
7:00PM - #7 Cincinnati vs. #15 South Florida
9:30pm - #6 West Virginia vs. #11 Marquette


Big-12 Conference Tournament
First Round (Kansas City, MO)

12:30PM - #9 Oklahoma State vs. #8 Nebraska
3:00PM - #12 Iowa State vs. #5 Colorado
7:00PM - #10 Oklahoma vs. #7 Baylor
9:00PM - #11 Texas Tech vs. #6 Missouri


Conference-USA Tournament
First Round (El Paso, TX)

12:00PM - #8 East Carolina vs. #9 UCF
3:30PM - #5 Southern Miss vs. #12 Tulane
7:30PM - #6 Marshall vs. #11 Houston
10:00PM - #7 SMU vs. #10 Rice


Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournnament
First Round (Winston-Salem, NC)

3:00PM - #6 Norfolk State vs. #11 Howard
8:00PM - #4 Morgan State vs. #5 North Carolina A&T


Mountain West Conference Tournament
First Round (Las Vegas, NV)

7:30PM - #8 Wyoming vs. #9 TCU


Pac-10 Conference Tournament
First Round (Los Angeles, CA)

9:00PM - #8 Stanford vs. #9 Oregon State
11:30PM - #7 Oregon vs. #10 Arizona State


Southland Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Katy, TX)

1:00PM - #2 Northwestern State vs. #7 Texas-San Antonio
3:30PM - #3 Sam Houston State vs. #6 Stephen F. Austin
7:00PM - #1 McNeese State vs. #8 Nicholls State
9:30PM - #4 Texas State vs. #5 Southeastern Louisiana


Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Garland, TX)

1:30PM - #7 Prairie View A&M vs. #2 Jackson State
9:00PM - #8 Arkansas-Pine Bluff vs. #1 Texas Southern


WAC Tournament
First Round (Las Vegas, NV)

6:00PM - #5 Hawaii vs. #8 San Jose State
8:30PM - #6 Nevada vs. #7 Fresno State

Continue reading...

The Real March Madness: Day 7

Everyone loves the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Four straight days jam-packed with 12 hours of do-or-die college hoops is more than most people can handle.

But for junkies like us, the next 13 days are just as good, for it is when the true Madness takes place. Over the course of these two weeks, we whittle some 347 teams down to 30 conference champions (the Ivy doesn't have a tournament). Auto-bids will be won. Bubbles will be burst. Buzzers will be beaten. And most importantly, a 68 team bracket will be made.

For a comprehensive listing off all the conference tournaments, follow this link or click the "Complete Conference Tournament Schedules" page at the top of the screen.

Here is what happened on Monday:

Monday was a rather light day, but four more dance tickets were punched, including two for March Madness mainstays.


Game of the Day: Old Dominion 70, VCU 65

Old Dominion blew an 18-point lead and nearly handed VCU the CAA auto-bid. But the Monarchs showed moxy and grit by hanging tough thru the furious comeback, to hold off the pesky Rams en route to a CAA Tournament Championship. The Rams got to with-in one point, but it seemed like everytime they needed a big bucket, they couldn't hit it. VCU shot 23-58 (40%) and 10-27 (37%) from behind the arc. Every time the Rams missed one of those big shots, the Monarchs were there to grab the rebound. ODU out-rebounded VCU 34-21, including one in the first half that dropped VCU's Ed Nixon and forced him to get stitches on the inside of his mouth.



(H/T to The Mock Session as usual)


Team of the Day: St. Peter's Peacocks

The Peacocks locked up their first trip to the NCAA tournament in 16 years by beating a red-hot Iona Gaels team in the finals of the MAAC tournament. Iona had won nine straight games and had been averaging 89.5 ppg during the conference tournament, but the Peacocks held them to just 57 points and put an end to the Gaels streak, season and tournament hopes.



(H/T to CBS's Matt Norlander)
The peacocks celebrated as hard as they had played.


Player of the Day: Drew Valentine, Oakland

Keith Benson is usually the star-player for Oakland. But the guy who got it done for the Golden Grizzlies last night was Drew Valentine. The sophomore forward scored a career-high 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as No. 1 Oakland beat No. 5 South Dakota State to advanced to the Summit League championship game. Valentine was 1-13 from the field and 3-5 from behind the arch, he also chipped in with two steals and one assist.



Monday Results

Colonial Athletic Association Tournament Finals

#2 Old Dominion 70, #4 VCU 65


Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament Finals

#4 St. Peter's 62, #2 Iona 57


Southern Conference Tournament Finals

#2S Wofford 77 #1S Charleston 67


West Coast Conference Tournament Finals

#2 Gonzaga 75, #1 St. Mary's 63


Summit League Tournament Semifinals

#1 Oakland 110, #5 South Dakota State 90
#2 Oral Roberts 83, #3 IUPUI 77


Sun Belt Conference Tournament Semifinals

#4W North Texas 81, #3E Western Kentucky 62
#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 65, #2E Middle Tennessee 56



Tuesday Slate of Games


Horizon League Tournament
Finals (Milwaukee, WI)

10:00PM - ESPNU #1UW-Milwaukee vs. #2 Butler


Summit League Tournament
Finals (Sioux Falls, SD)

9:00PM - ESPN2 - #1 Oakland vs. #2 Oral Roberts


Sun Belt Conference Tournament
Finals (Hot Springs, AR)

7:00PM - ESPN2 - #4W North Texas vs. #5W Arkansas-Little Rock


Atlantic 10
First Round (at higher seed)

7:00PM - #9 Dayton at #8 UMass
9:00PM - #12 St. Joseph's at #5 George Washington
7:00PM - #10 La Salle at #7 St. Bonaventure
5:00PM - #11 St. Louis at #6 Rhode Island


Big East
First Round (New York City, NY)

12:00PM - #9 UConn vs. #16 DePaul
2:30PM - #12 Seton Hall vs. #13 Rutgers
7:00PM - #10 Villanova vs. #15 USF
9:30PM - #11 Marquette vs. #14 Providence


Big Sky Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Greeley, CO)

7:30 pm: #2 Montana vs. #3 Weber State
10:00 pm: #1 Northern Colorado vs. #4 Northern Arizona


Mid-American Conference Tournament
First Round (at higher seed)

7:00PM - #12 Toledo at #5 Ohio
7:00PM - #11 Eastern Michigan at #6 Akron
7:00PM - #10 Northern Illinois at #7 Bowling Green
7:00PM - #9 Central Michigan at #8 Buffalo


Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament
First Round (Winston-Salem, NC)

6:30PM - #7 Florida A&M vs. #10 Maryland-Eastern Shore
9:00PM - #8 Delaware State vs. #9 South Carolina State

Continue reading...

The Real March Madness: Day 6

Everyone loves the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Four straight days jam-packed with 12 hours of do-or-die college hoops is more than most people can handle.

But for junkies like us, the next 13 days are just as good, for it is when the true Madness takes place. Over the course of these two weeks, we whittle some 347 teams down to 30 conference champions (the Ivy doesn't have a tournament). Auto-bids will be won. Bubbles will be burst. Buzzers will be beaten. And most importantly, a 68 team bracket will be made.

For a comprehensive listing off all the conference tournaments, follow this link or click the "Complete Conference Tournament Schedules" page at the top of the screen.

Here is what happened on Sunday: Another automatic bid was handed out, the longest winning streak in the country came to an end, and two overtimes were needed to settle the score in a Patriot League semifinal game.


Game of the Day: Lafayette 73, American 71 2OT

Jim Mower hit a 3-pointer with less than a second remaining to lead Lafayette over American 73-71 in double-OT in the Patriot League semifinals. Trailing by two with seven seconds remaining, Tony Johnson drove the length of the floor before kicking it to Mower for the game-winning basket. Ryan Willen hit a 3-pointer with ten seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game, and Mower hit 1 of 2 free throws under ten seconds left in the first OT to force a second over time. Vlad Moldoveanu led all scorers with 26 points, but it was not enough, as Lafayette upset the No. 2-seed Eagles on their home floor. The No. 6-seed Leopards will face top-seeded Bucknell in the Patriot League finals.



They were good too

- Robert Morris 64, Quinnipiac 62: Velton Jones did not score 29 points like he did in the NEC quarterfinals against Wagner, but he did hit a floater over two defenders with 6 seconds left to play, lifting No. 3 Robert Morris over No. 2 Quinnipiac 64-62 in the NEC tournament semifinals. The game was tightly contested throughout, with 22 lead changes and 12 ties. This was the third year in a row that Robert Morris has ended Quinnipiac's season, as Bobby Mo advances to face Long Island in NEC final.


Team of the Day: Stony Brook Seawolves

The No. 5 Seawolves didn't just beat No. 1 Vermont in the America East quarterfinals. They demolished them. Stony Brook led by ten for a good portion of the first half and most of the second. Vermont tried to make a late push, cutting a double digit lead down to 40-34 with less than nine minutes left. But Stony Brook held Vermont without a field goal for the final 5:26, going on a 29-13 run. They'll move on to play No. 2 Boston U. in the finals.


They were good too

- St. Peter's Peacocks: At the half of this MAAC semifinal game, the No. 4 Peacocks led the No. 1 Stags 40-15. In fact, in took St. Peter's 12 minutes in the second half to score two field goals, and they still led by six despite Fairfield's 21-2 run. Once they found their touch again, the ran away with it. Four Peacocks scored in double-figures, led by Jeron Belin, who scored 15 points and grabbed 7 rebounds.


- Virginia Commonwealth Rams: The No. 4 seed Rams put a halt to the longest active winning streak in the country, as they plastered No. 1 George Mason 79-63 in the semifinals of the CAA tournament.For the second day in-a-row, Jamie Skeen led the Rams in scoring, as he scored 21 points. Bradford Burgess added 16 points and Joey Rodriguez 13 for the Rams, who made 11 3-pointers, one shy of the tourney record. The Rams hit a three pointer with nine minutes left in the first half to make it 24-21, and they never looked back. They will face-off against No. 2 Old Dominion in the CAA tournament finals.


Player of the Day: Tristan Thompson, North Texas

The senior guard scored a career-high 36 points in No. 4 North Texas's quarterfinal upset of No. 1 Florida Atlantic, 78-64. But even more impressive than his 36 points is where they came from. Thompson, a Sun Belt Conference first-teamer, was a perfect 20-20 from the charity stripe and a perfect 2-2 from behind the arc.

They were good too

- Nate Wolters, South Dakota State: Wolters scored 30 points en route to the No. 5 Jack Rabbits 85-75 win over the No. 4 Mastadons of Indiana Forth Wayne in the Summit League quarterfinals. The guard was 7-18 from the field and 14-19 from the foul line. He also grabbed seven rebounds and provided five assists. South Dakota State now has the difficult task of taking on No. 1 Oakland in the semifinals.

- Leroy Nobles, IUPUI: Nobles scored more points yesterday than anybody in the country. He scored 37 points on 11-17 shooting including 6-9 from behind the arc. He was 9-10 from the charity stripe and also filled up the stat sheet with seven rebounds and two steals. The No. 3 Jaguars move on the the Summit League semifinals with the 79-55 win over the No. 6 Kangaroos of Missouri-Kansas City.



Sunday Results

Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Finals

#3 Indiana State 60, #1 Missouri State 56


America East Conference Tournament Semifinals

#5 Stony Brook 69, #1 Vermont 47
#2 Boston 55, #6 Hartford 49


Colonial Athletic Association Tournament Semifinals

#4 VCU 79, #1 George Mason 63
#2 Old Dominion 77, #3 Hofstra 69


Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament Semifinals

#4 St. Peter's 62, #1 Fairfield 48
#2 Iona 83, #3 Rider 59


Northeast Conference Tournament Semifinals

#1 Long Island 69, #4 Central Connecticut State 67
#3 Robert Morris 64, #2 Quinnipiac 62


Patriot League Tournament Semifinals

#6 Lafayette 73 #2 American 71 2OT
#1 Bucknell 66, #4 Lehigh 64


Southern Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#2S Wofford 86, #1N Western Carolina 72
#1S Charleston 63, #3S Furman 58


Summit League Tournament Quarterfinals

#5 South Dakota State 85, #4 IPFW 75
#3 IUPUI 71, #6 UMKC 55


Sun Belt Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#4W North Texas 78, #1E Florida Atlantic 64
#3E Western Kentucky 81, #2W Louisiana-Lafayette 76
#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 59, #1W Arkansas State 52
#2E Middle Tennessee 73, #6E Florida International 38


West Coast Conference Tournament Semifinals

#1 St. Mary's 73, #4 Santa Clara 64
#2 Gonzaga 71, #3 San Francisco 67


Monday Slate of Games


Colonial Athletic Association Tournament
Finals (Richmond, VA)

7:00PM - ESPN2 - #2 Old Dominion vs. #4 VCU


Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament
Finals (Bridgeport, CT)

7:00PM - ESPNU - #2 Iona vs. #4 St. Peter's


Southern Conference Tournament
Finals (Chattanooga, TN)

9:00PM - ESPN2 - #1S Charleston vs. #2S Wofford


West Coast Conference Tournament
Finals (Las Vegas, NV)

9:00PM - ESPN - #1 St. Mary's vs. #2 Gonzaga


Summit League Tournament
Semifinals (Sioux Falls, SD)

7:00PM - #1 Oakland vs. #5 South Dakota State
9:30PM - #2 Oral Roberts vs. #3 IUPUI


Sun Belt Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Hot Springs, AR)

7:00PM - #3E Western Kentucky vs. #4W North Texas
9:30PM - #2E Middle Tennessee vs. #5W Arkansas-Little Rock

Continue reading...

The Real March Madness: Day 5

Everyone loves the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Four straight days jam-packed with 12 hours of do-or-die college hoops is more than most people can handle.

But for junkies like us, the next 13 days are just as good, for it is when the true Madness takes place. Over the course of these two weeks, we whittle some 347 teams down to 30 conference champions (the Ivy doesn't have a tournament). Auto-bids will be won. Bubbles will be burst. Buzzers will be beaten. And most importantly, a 68 team bracket will be made.

For a comprehensive listing off all the conference tournaments, follow this link or click the "Complete Conference Tournament Schedules" page at the top of the screen.

Here is what happened on Saturday:

Three tickets to the Big Dance were punched last night, as the Atlantic Sun, Big South and Ohio Valley conferences crowned tournament champions.


Game of the Day: VCU 62, Drexel 60

This CAA quarterfinal featured more than ten lead-changes and neither team led by more than seven. Down the stretch you could just tell that this game would end in dramatic fashion, and it did. Drexel's Chris Fouch, who finished with 20 points and 7 boards, hit a contested three-pointer with ten seconds left to tie the game at 60. But at the other end, Jamie Skeen, who finished with 24 points and 8 rebounds, drove to the bucket and hit a contested lay-up at the buzzer to win the game for the Rams. The two teams traded victories during the regular season, and both contests were decided by four point. With the victory, the No. 4 Rams will face top-seeded George Mason in the CAA semifinals on Sunday.

They were good too

- Northern Arizona 65, Montana State 62

Northern Arizona erased a 16-point second half deficit and beat Montana State in the quarterfinals of the Big Sky Conference tournament. Eric Platt hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 55 seconds left, the first time NAU had led since early in the first half. Platt hit three straight 3-pointers in the Final four minutes of the game to carry his team to victory. The senior guard shot 7-11 from the field including 5-9 from behind the arch. He also grabbed a career-high seven rebounds.


Team of the Day: Iona Gaels

The No. 2-seed plastered the back-to-back reigning conference champions by 30 points in the quarterfinals of the MAAC tournament. The Gaels shot a cool 35-60 (58%) from the field and 9-17 (53%) from behind the arc. Iona was led by Mike "Optimus Prime" Glover, who scored 31 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. The Gaels did not trail once and were only tied twice, 2-2 and 15-15.

They were good too

- Hartford Hawks

The No. 6-seed Hawks upset the Black bears of Maine in the quarterfinals of the America East Conference tournament. This win gave the Hawks back-to-back wins for just the second time this season. This win also gives Hartford the season sweep over Maine, having upset them twice during the regular season. The Hawks were lead by Genesis Maciel's 19 points as they advanced to face No. 2 seed Boston U.


Player of the Day: Demonte Harper, Morehead State

When you think of Morehead State, the first player that is going to come to mind is Kenneth Faried, the 6'8", dreadlocked rebounding machine. But last night it was Harper, not Faried, that shined as the Eagles knocked off Tennessee Tech and earned themselves the OVC's autobid with 27 points, 11 boards, and eight assists.

They were good too

- Michael Glover, Iona

The man they call "Optimus Prime" dropped 31 points in the Gael's 30 point route of Siena. The Junior forward was 12-18 from the field and also provided 11 rebounds. This was his largest scoring output of the season since he dropped 39 points against Canisius back in early December.

- Solomon Bozeman, Arkansas-Little Rock

Bozeman showed why he was just recently named Sun Belt Player of the Year by scoring a career-high 28-points against South Alabama on Saturday night. Bozeman made 8 of 15 shots and was 10 of 11 from the free-throw line in his team's 82-68 win in the first round of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament.


- Derek Needham, Fairfield
Needham was the only Fairfield player to score double-digits, and led all players with 22 points in his team's 55-31 victory over the Red Foxes of Marist in the quarterfinals of the MAAC tournament .Marist's score was the lowest ever in a MAAC tournament game, dating to 1982. Much of that can be attributed to Needham who had 6 steals.

Saturday Results


Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament Finals

#1 Belmont 87, #6 North Florida 46


Big South Conference Tournament Finals

#3 UNC-Asheville 60, #1 Coastal Carolina 47


Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Finals

#2 Morehead State 80, #4 Tennessee Tech 73


America East Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#5 Stony Brook 67, #4 Albany 61
#1 Vermont 57, #9 Binghamton 46
#2 Boston 69, #7 New Hampshire 60
#6 Hartford 66, #3 Maine 63


Big Sky Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#3 Weber State 79, #6 Eastern Washington 70
#4 Northern Arizona 65, #5 Montana State 62


Colonial Atheltic Association Tournament Quarterfinals

#1 George Mason 68, #9 Georgia State 45
#4 VCU 62, #5 Drexel 60
#2 Old Dominion 59, #7 Delaware 50
#3 Hofstra 72, #11 William & Mary 56


Horizon League Tournament Semifinals

#2 Butler 76, #3 Cleveland State 68
#1 UW-Milwaukee 70, #4 Valparaiso 63


Metro Atlatic Athletic Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#4 St. Peter's 70, #5 Loyola 60
#1 Fairfield 55, #9 Marist 31
#2 Iona 94, #7 Siena 64
#3 Rider 79, #6 Canisius 64


Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Semifinals

#1 Missouri State 60, #5 Creighton 50
#3 Indiana State 61 #2 Wichita State 54


Southern Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#1N Western Carolina 77, #5N UNC-Greensboro 66
#2S Wofford 69, #3N Appalachian State 59
#3S Furman 61, #2N Chattanooga 52
#1S Charleston 78, #4N Elon 60


Summit League Tournament Quarterfinals

#1 Oakland 82, #8 Southern Utah 66
#2 Oral Roberts 72, #7 North Dakota State 65


Sun Belt Conference Tournament First Round

#3E Western Kentucky 66, #6W Louisiana-Monroe 50
#4W North Texas 83, #5E Troy 69
#6E Florida International 53, #3W Denver 49
#5W Arkansas-Little Rock 82, #4E South Alabama 68


West Coast Conference Tournament Quarterfinals

#4 Santa Clara 76, #8 Loyola Marymount 68
#3 San Francisco 76, #6 Pepperdine 59



Sunday Slate of Games


Missouri Valley Conference Tournament
Finals (St. Louis, MO)

1:00PM - CBS - #1 Missouri State vs. #3 Indiana State


America East Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Hartford, CT)

5:04PM - #1 Vermont vs. #5 Stony Brook
7:34PM - #2 Boston vs. #6 Hartford


Colonial Atheltic Association Tournament
Semifinals (Richmond, VA)

12:00PM - #1 George Mason vs. #4 VCU
2:30PM - #2 Old Dominion vs. #3 Hofstra


Metro Atlatic Athletic Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Bridgeport, CT)

2:00PM - #1 Fairfield vs. #4 St. Peter's
4:00PM - #2 Iona vs. #3 Rider


Northeast Conference Tournament
Semifinals (At higher seed)

12:00PM - #4 Central Connecticut State at #1 Long Island
2:00PM - #3 Robert Morris at #2 Quinnipiac


Patriot League Tournament
Semifinals (At higher seeds)

5:00PM - CBS CS - #6 Lafayette at #2 American
7:30PM - CBS CS - #4 Lehigh at #1 Bucknell


Southern Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Chattanooga, TN)

6:00PM - #1N Western Carolina vs. #2S Wofford
8:30PM - #1S Charleston vs. #3S Furman


Summit League Tournament
Quarterfinals (Sioux Falls, SD)

7:00PM - #4 IPFW vs. #5 South Dakota State
9:30PM - #3 IUPUI vs. #6 UMKC


Sun Belt Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Hot Springs, AR)

7:30PM - #1E Florida Atlantic vs. #4W North Texas
7:45PM - #2W Louisiana-Lafayette vs. #3E Western Kentucky
9:45PM - #1W Arkansas State vs. #5W Arkansas-Little Rock
10:00PM - #2E Middle Tennessee vs. #6E Florida International


West Coast Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Las Vegas, NV)

8:00PM - ESPN2 - #1 St. Mary's vs. #4 Santa Clara
10:00PM - ESPN2 - #2 Gonzaga vs. #3 San Francisco

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