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 65 team bracket will be made.

Here is what happened on Saturday:


Game of the Day: Northeastern 74, Hofstra 71 2OT

Down 52-48 with just 1:30 left in the game, Northeastern junior Matt Janning took over. He score on a driving layup to cut the lead to two, and after a stop on the other end, Janning found freshman Kauri Black for a layup with 4.4 seconds left to tie the game at 55 and force the first overtime. Northeastern got behind by three at the start of the first overtime period, but they would score six straight points to take a 58-55. After the two teams traded baskets, Cornelius Viney buried a three that tied the game and forced a second over time. In the second OT, Matt Janning hit a three with 46.4 seconds to give the Huskies a 70-67 lead. Chaisson Allen would hit three free throws to seat a thrilling victory.

They were good too

• South Alabama 52, Florida Atlantic 51: The Jaguars blew an 11 point halftime lead, but Bryan Sherrer came to the rescue, hitting a game winning jumper with 4 seconds left to give them the lead. Florida Atlantic had two chances at the end to win, but missed both.
• Louisiana-Monroe 76, Louisiana-Lafayette 75: ULL used a late 9-0 to take a 73-70 lead with about a minute left in the game. But ULM's Tony Hooper hit a three to tie the game with 44 seconds left. Lamar Roberson hit a jumper with 18 seconds left to give ULL a 75-73 lead, but Hooper buried another three with 1 second left for the win.
  

Player of the Day: Tony Hooper, Louisiana-Monroe

Hooper, a fifth year senior that averages under 11 ppg, hit seven threes and scored 30 points as the Warhawks upset Louisiana-Lafayette in the Sun Belt conference tournament. Two of Hooper's threes came in the last 44 seconds of the game -- one tied it at 73, the other gave ULM the win with just one second left on the clock.

They were good too

• Larry Sanders, VCU: Sanders had 17 points, 12 boards, and 4 blocks as the Rams knocked off George Mason to advance to the CAA semifinals.
• Jake O'Brien, BU: O'Brien scored 28 points and grabbed 7 boards as the BU knocked off Hartford in the America East tournament.
• Derek Needham, Fairfield: Needham scored 29 points and played all 40 minutes as Fairfield knocked off Canisius in the MAAC Quarters.
• Robert Glenn, IUPUI: Glenn scored 30 points as the Jaguars beat Western Illinois to advance in the Summit League tournament.
  

Team of the Day: Niagara Purple Eagles

In the preseason, Niagara was thought to be a team that could compete atop the MAAC standings with Siena. Injuries and inconsistent play ended that dream, but Niagara's tournament hopes are still alive as they knocked off third-seeded Iona in the first round of the MAAC Tournament on Saturday, advancing to face Fairfield in the semifinals. Tyrone Lewis led the way with 21 points for the Purple Eagles, while Bilal Benn had 16 points and 11 boards.


Welcome to the Tournament

Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament
Finals (Macon, GA)
#5 East Tennessee State 72, #6 Mercer 66

Big South Conference Tournament
Finals (Conway, SC)
#3 Winthrop 64, #1 Coastal Carolina 53

Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
Finals (Nashville, TN)
#1 Murray State 62, #2 Morehead State 51


America East Conference Tournament
First Round (West Hartford, CT)
#1 Stony Brook 68, #8 Albany 59
#4 Boston 87, #5 Hartford 46
#2 Vermont 76, #7 UMBC 59
#6 New Hampshire 70, #3 Maine 55

Big Sky Conference Tournament
First Round (at higher seed)
#6 Portland State 68, #3 Montana State 55
#4 Montana 81, #5 Northern Arizona 60

Colonial Athletic Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Richmond, VA)
#1 Old Dominion 86, #8 Towson 56
#5 VCU 75, #4 George Mason 60
#2 Northeastern 74, #7 Hofstra 71 2OT
#3 William & Mary 70, #11 James Madison 65

Horizon League Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Indianapolis, IN)
#2 Wright State 69, #7 Detroit 50
#1 Butler 68, #4 UW- Milwaukee 59

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Albany, NY)
#5 Rider 69, #4 St. Peters 57
#1 Siena 78, #9 Manhattan 61
#2 Fairfield 67, #7 Canasius 57
#6 Niagara 68, #3 Iona 64

Missouri Valley Conference Tournament
Semifinals (St. Louis, MO)
#1 Northern Iowa 57, #5 Bradley 40
#2 Wichita State 65, #3 Illinois State 61

Southern Conference Tournament
Quarterfinasl (Chattanooga, TN)
#2N Western Carolina 68, #6N Elon 57
#1S Wofford 59, #4N UNC-Greensboro 47
#1N Appalachian State 71, #4S The Citadel 61
#2S Charleston 96, #3N Chattanooga 69

Summit League Tournament
First Round (Sioux Falls, SD)
#1 Oakland 85, #8 UMKC 70
#2 IUPUI 77, #7 Western Illinois 68

Sun Belt Conference Tournament
First Round (Hot Springs, AR)
#9 South Alabama 52, #8 Florida Atlantic 51
#4 Western Kentucky 83, #13 New Orleans 58
#5 Arkansas State 89, #12 Alabama-Little Rock 82 OT
#6 Denver 71, #11 Florida International 64
#10 Louisiana-Monroe 76, #7 Louisiana-Lafayette 75

West Coast Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Las Vegas, NV)
#5 Loyola Marymount 84, #4 San Francisco 76
#3 Portland 72, #6 San Diego 57


Sunday's Slate of Tournament Games

America East Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Albany, NY)
5:00PM - #1 Stony Brook vs. #4 Boston
7:30PM - #2 Vermont vs. #6 New Hampshire

Colonial Athletic Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Richmond, VA)
3:00PM - #1 Old Dominion vs. #5 VCU
5:30PM - #2 Northeastern vs. #3 William & Mary

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Albany, NY)
4:00PM - #1 Siena vs. #5 Rider
6:30PM - #2 Fairfield vs. #6 Niagara

Middle Atlantic Conference Tournament
First Round (at higher seed)
2:00PM - #9 Ohio at #8 Ball State
2:00PM - #12 Toledo at #5 Buffalo
2:00PM - #10 Bowling Green at #7 Western Michigan
2:00PM - #11 Norhtern Illinois at #6 Eastern Michigan

Missouri Valley Conference Tournament
Finals (St. Louis, MO)
1:05PM - #1 Northern Iowa vs. #2 Wichita State

Northeast Conference Tournament
Semifinals (at higher seed)
2:00PM - #4 Long Island at #1 Quinnipiac
5:00PM - #3 Mt. St. Marys at #2 Robert Morris

Patriot League Tournament
Semifinals (at higher seed)
1:00PM - #7 Holy Cross at #3 Lafayette
8:00PM - #4 American at #1 Lehigh

Southern Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Chattanooga, TN)
6:00PM - #1S Wofford vs. #2N Western Carolina
8:30PM - #1N Appalachian State vs. #2S Charleston

Summit League Tournament
Quarterfinals (Sioux Falls, SD)
6:05PM - #4 South Dakota State vs. #5 IPFW
8:35PM - #3 Oral Roberts vs. #6 North Dakota State

Sun Belt Conference Tournament
Quarterfinals (Hot Springs, AR)
6:30PM - #4 Western Kentucky vs. #5 Arkansas State
6:45PM - #1 Troy vs. #9 South Alabama
8:45PM - #2 North Texas vs. #7 Louisiana-Monroe
9:00PM - #3 Middle Tennessee vs. #6 Denver

West Coast Conference Tournament
Semifinals (Las Vegas, NV)
5:30PM - ESPN2 - #2 St. Marys vs.
7:30PM - ESPN2 - #1 Gonzaga vs. #5 Loyola Marymount