2010 NCAA Tournament: Day 3 recap

Let me get this out off the bat.

In today's recap, Northern Iowa, and anyone that plays for Northern Iowa, is going to be ruled ineligible.

Why?

Because the UNI-Kansas game was the game of the day. Ali Farokhmanesh was the player of the day. And, if you couldn't already guess, the Panthers were the team of the day.

And I've already devoted quite a few words to them.

So with that in mind, lets take a quick look at today's games:


GAME OF THE DAY: Butler 54, Murray State 52

The Bulldogs looked like they were going to run away with this one early. Butler jumped out to a quick 12-3 lead, and made the story of the first 18 minutes of this game their defense. But Murray State used a 9-0 in the final two minutes of the half -- also scoring the first bucket of the second half -- and proved that while they may be the Ohio Valley champ, they weren't going down easy. The Racers came to this tournament to make a statement.

Butler would used a 20-5 second half run to turn a 33-26 deficit into a 46-38 lead, but the Racers had some fight left in them. Murray State scored 12 of the next 13 points, taking a 50-47 lead on Ivan Aska's jumper with 2:47 left. Butler would tie the game at 50 on a Shelvin Mack jumper with 1:24 left, and a minute later an and-one drive by Ronald Nored game Butler a three point lead. After Isaac Miles hit two free throws and Matt Howard went 1-2, the Racers had the ball, down 54-52 with just 18 seconds left on the clock. But Gordon Hayward would jump to double team Isaiah Cannon, deflecting a pass attempt into the back court to send Butler into the Sweet 16.

They were good too

• St. Mary's 75, Villanova 68: The Gaels dominated Villanova for much of the first half as the Wildcats simply had no answer for Omar Samhan inside. But Jay Wright's club would fight back, using an aggressive defense to force some turnovers and quick shots from SMC, eventually tying up the game. But a ridiculous, banked-in three from Mickey McConnell gave the Gaels a 68-65 lead they would never relinquish.

PLAYER OF THE DAY: Omar Samhan, St. Mary's

Simply put, Samhan was unstoppable for the second straight NCAA Tournament game. An undersized Villanova team decided not to double Samhan in the post, and he absolutely torched them, going for 32 points and 7 boards on 13-16 shooting. Samhan had every move you could ask for from a collegiate big man, hitting jump hooks, turnarounds, and any variety of drop step he could muster.

The question will eventually become what kind of pro career is Samhan looking at? Well, in a word, European. Samhan has the size to be an NBA center, has a great repertiore of back-to-the-basket moves, and plays the game with a passion that few do at the next level. But as hard as he plays, Samhan is still just about as unathletic as pro prospects come. There's no doubt that he can score at this level, but can he defend at the next level?

They were good too

• Jacob Pullen, Kansas State: BYU jumped out to a quick 10-0 lead against Kansas State in the same building that just saw Northern Iowa knock off Kansas. But with Pullen at the helm, K-State wasn't going anywhere. He scored 20 of his 34 points in the first half as the Wildcats went on a 41-21 surge to take control of the game.
  

TEAM OF THE DAY: Washington Huskies

Apparently, Washington heard all the talk about the Pac-10 being down; about how they didn't deserve an at-large bid if they didn't win the Pac-10 tourney. Because the Huskies are now headed to the Sweet 16, and in surprising fashion. No one is arguing that this team doesn't have talent. They do, and it is why most pundits had the Huskies somewhere in the top 25 in the preseason.

But I don't think anyone had Washington making a run to the Sweet 16 as an 11 seed, knocking off Marquette -- a team from the Big East, what was supposed to be the best conference in the country -- and New Mexico by 20 -- a team that won the "best conference in the West." U-Dub and Cal are the only two Pac-10 teams in the tournament, but just three days in, they have combined for three wins. That's the same number of wins that the Big East teams combined for, all eight of them.