[jbergey22]

Thursday, March 19, 2020

First Round

(8)Saint Mary's 87 vs (9)Oklahoma 80(-2)

A fantastic offensive game by the Gaels led them to a victory over Oklahoma to start the tournament. They shot 59 percent from the field and 61 percent from 3 point range. St Mary's was paced by Malik Fitts and his 31 points while Jordan Ford chipped in 21. A solid game for Brady Manek for Oklahoma putting up 20 points.

(2)Florida St 64 (-14.5) vs (15)Northern Kentucky 52

Florida State was able to hold off Northern Kentucky with some great defense because the offense today was just not clicking. Florida State won despite shooting 38 percent from the field and 28 percent from 3-point range. Devin Vassell spearheaded the offense with 14 points along with 5 steals on defense. Dantez Walton topped Northern Kentucky with 13 points.

(7)USC 56 vs (10)Indiana 75 (-3)

An impressive performance for a Big 10, as Indiana throttled USC 75-56 with 41 points coming from the bench. Deveonte Green led the Hoosiers with 17 points. For USC, they were led in scoring by Onyeka Okongwu.

(7)Michigan 57 (-4.5) vs (10)Utah St 52

In a tightly contested defensive battle Michigan was able to pull it out with a big 3-pointer with under a minute left by David Dejukius. They were able to hold down All-American candidate Sam Merrill to 7 points. Eli Brooks had 14 points for Michigan while Utah State was led by Justin Bean and his 15 point 12 rebound performance.

(1)Dayton 77 (-19) vs (16)Winthrop 73

Dayton was never really in danger of being upset, however Winthrop refused to quit and made them work until the very end. Winthrop surprisingly outrebounded the #1 seed 45-32. Dayton was led in scoring by Ryan Mikesell and Obi Toopin with 22 and 19 respectively. Winthrop was topped by Josh Ferguson with his 17 points and 10 rebounds.

(7)Providence 56 vs (10)LSU 59 (-1)

Providence made a late charged ending the game on a 15-5 run to almost walk away with a dramatic victory. However, LSU was able to hold on and defeat Providence by 3. LSU was led by Emmitt Williams and his 13 points. Alpha Diallo had 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists for Providence.

(2)Villanova 72 (-11.5) vs (15)North Dakota St 65

South Dakota St offered a scare to #2 seeded Villanova and if it wasnt for some sloppy play late in the 2nd half, North Dakota St may have worn the glass slipper. The Bison shot very well but ultimately were done in for by the 18 turnovers and a costly technical foul when the score was 50-49. Villanova got tremendous performances from Collin Gillespie with 27 points and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Tyson Ward topped North Dakota St with 17 points.

(2)Creighton 85 (-12.5) vs (15)Belmont 72

Creighton took care of business in their first round matchup against Belmont cruising to a 13 point victory. They only turned the ball over 4 times and shot 52 percent from the field. Marcus Zagarowski led them in scoring with 18 points. As for Belmont, Tyler Scanlon was able to put up 15 points while Grayson Murphy has 10 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists.

(4)Louisville 63(-9.5) vs (13)Liberty 59

Louisville was able to survive a scare against a feisty Liberty squard. Louisville was able to dominate on the glass by 14 in which Dwayne Sutton had 21 rebounds. All-American Jordan Nwora led the Cardinals in scoring with 21. Scottie James led the Flames with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

(3)Seton Hall 66(-10.5) vs (14)Hofstra 65

Jalen Ray had a wonderful game for Hofstra with 21 points on 5 3 pointers but he will always remember what might have been as his game winning shot rattled out as time expired. Seton Hall will consider themselves lucky as they barely escaped despite holding a 10 point lead in the 2nd half. Myles Powell paced Seton Hall with 27 points.

(7)Iowa 62 (-3.5) vs (10)Xavier 70

Xavier was able to come back from 15 points down to shock Iowa 70-62. Star forward Luke Garza was in foul trouble most of the game and ended his brilliant career with 13 points and 7 rebounds. Joe Wieskamp had 16 points for the Hawkeyes. Xavier was led by Jason Carter and his 16 points.

(3)Duke 74 (-18) vs (14)Little Rock 66

In a very well played team by both teams, Duke was able to overcome a 3 point halftime deficit to knock off Little Rock. Tre Jones played all 40 minutes for Duke and led them with 18 points, 10 assists, and 8 rebounds. Ben Coupet had 16 points for Little Rock.

(5)Auburn 76 (-5.5) vs (12)Akron 79

Auburn was 20 down at one time and was able to get back within 3 towards the end but came up just a bit short. Akron was able to knock down 11 3 pointers. The Zips were led in scoring by Loren Cristian Jackson with 24. Austin Wiley was a force in the post for Auburn with 21 points and 14 rebounds.

(6)BYU 68 (-6.5) vs (11)UCLA 66

BYU was able to hold off a surging UCLA team with a 2 point victory. The Bruins held a 33 to 4 free throw edge, however BYU was able to outshoot them inside the paint and from 3 point range to hold on. Yoeli Childs and Jake Toolson had 17 points for BYU, while Chris Smith put in 21 points for UCLA.

(2)San Diego St 82 (-15.5) vs (15)Eastern Washington 72

A nice performance from San Diego St as they led from start to finish and shot 53 percent from the field. The Aztecs were led in scoring by Matt Mitchell, scoring 24 points with 8 rebounds. Jordan Schakel also chipped in 21 for San Diego St. Kim Aiken tried his best to lead Eastern Washington to victory with 21 points.

(6)Illinois 73 (-2.5) vs (11)Cincinnati 60

A strong start for Illinois led by Ayo Dosunmu and his 23 points. Kofi Cockburn dominated the glass for the Fighting Illini with 18 boards. Cincinnati was led by Keith Williams who tallied 14 before fouling out after just 16 minutes.