Mar 24, 2013
National Collegiate Athletic Association, has come again with its Basketball Tourney, March Madness!
The Round of 64, has come to an end and has seen many teams reach their demise for the season. With the start of The Round of 32, the tension has started building up and the pressure is immense.
In the first match of round of 32, it was Louisville vs. Colorado. Contrary to Rick Pitino’s halftime assertion that Colorado State is the best second round team he’s ever faced in the tourney, his Cardinals were just too much. The Cardinals were too fast, disciplined, tenacious, and experienced. Russ Smith led all scorers with 27 while Gorgei Dieng had 14. Louisville advanced, with 82-65, to the Sweet 16.
The red-hot Oregon Ducks, fresh off an upset victory, faced a disciplined Saint Louis Billikens squad in the round of 32. The start was extremely sloppy from both sides, with the ball flying everywhere, but slowly the tempo got built and it was visible that both teams were there to fight. Oregon was the better team and won, 74-57. A big blowout win for UO. By the end of it, Dotson had 23 points, Kazemi snagged 16 rebounds.
Arizona handcuffed the No. 14 Crimson, jumping to a big lead and running away with a 74-51 third-round win at EnergySolutions Arena. For the second time in three years, the Wildcats advance to the Sweet 16. Offensively, Mark Lyons was the star, matching a career high with 27 points. The senior guard had a hand in 32 of Arizona’s first 61 points. He did everything but get to the foul line, scoring off drives and perimeter jumpers.
It seems like it just wouldn’t be March without Michigan State making an NCAA Tournament run. Saturday, the No. 3 Spartans advanced to the 11th Sweet 16 in the Tom Izzo era with a 70-48 win over No. 6 Memphis in third-round action in Auburn Hills, Michigan.
Mitch McGary had 21 points and 14 rebounds, and fourth-seeded Michigan breezed through Virginia Commonwealth’s vaunted pressure with a clinical performance and advanced to the round of 16 for the first time since 1994. The 71-point swing by VCU — from a 46-point win to a 25-point loss — was the largest in NCAA tournament history, according to STATS. Michigan won 78-53.
Wichita State has shot itself to the Sweet 16 and toppled No. 1 seed Gonzaga. The No. 9-seeded Shockers didn’t miss a single shot for a stretch of nearly seven minutes late in the second half, a run that included five three-pointers. One by one, those shots turned a seven-point deficit into a 76-70 win in one of the tournament’s biggest stunners. Gonzaga, and its best season in school history, is finished — the first No. 1 seed to be eliminated in this NCAA tournament.
Back and forth went Marquette and Butler, trading makes and misses in a high intensity rematch that made a case for being the best game so far of this NCAA tournament. In the end, Vander Blue and the Golden Eagles advanced as the Bulldogs couldn’t muster any more of their March magic. Blue scored 19 second-half points to rally third-seeded Marquette out of another hole, and the Golden Eagles survived 74-72 on Saturday to reach the round of 16 in the NCAA tournament.
The No. 12 California Golden Bears weren’t given much of a shot to beat the fifth-seeded UNLV Runnin’ Rebels on Thursday night. Then again, that’s why they play the games. California was able to pull away early in the second half and then hang on for a 64-61 upset victory.
In the next round, Sweet 16, Louisville is all set to face UO and the other teams are just waiting for their opponents.
-Heisenberg
