Busting Brackets
Fansided

NCAA Tournament Quick Hits: Round of 64 (Thursday)

By Chris Godfrey

facebooktwitterreddit

The first day of the NCAA Tournament left us all feeling a little bit like Georgia State head coach Ron Hunter — falling out of our chair, beating on the ground, and elating copious amounts of unbridled emotion. Nothing makes a sports fan feel more alive than the first Thursday and Friday of the Big Dance. With 16 games happening over the course of 12 hours, it’s not possible to give 500 words to every story of the day. That’s why we’re coming off a flare screen for some quick hits to summarize one of the maddest days in the history of the madness. 

  • Notre Dame may have survived Northeastern, but the Irish only substantiated thoughts that they would be ripe for an upset during the first weekend. Both Jerian Grant and Pat Connaughton were forced to log a full 40 minutes in order to put away the pesky Huskies. Having two key players go the distance, and depending on a 25-point performance from the likes of Zach Auguste is not a sustainable tournament game plan. Of today’s 16 winners, nobody left a more sour taste than the Irish.

More from March Madness

  • No disrespect to the inspirational effort put forth by UAB, but the true story of their upset victory over Iowa State centers on the Cyclones’ inability to rise to the occasion on a big stage. Coming back to beat Kansas in the Big 12 Tournament Championship looked to be a prelude to an eventual ridding of the enormous pink elephant in Hilton Coliseum. Our dreams of a Gonzaga/Iowa State Pink Elephant Bowl in the Sweet 16 were dashed earlier than anyone expected. Now we must spend another year questioning if Iowa State’s unique brand of basketball has championship quality.
  • On the most recent edition of the Busting Brackets Podcast, I campaigned hard to advance the Georgia State Panthers into the Sweet Sixteen. Having lived in Georgia for the last two years before recently returning to New York, I’ve been able to see the development of Ron Hunter’s team down in the Sun Belt. The influx of talent is largely fortuitous (Kentucky transfer Ryan Harrow, Louisville transfer Kevin Ware, and coach’s son RJ Hunter are the team’s top three players), but the coaching job of Hunter has exemplified nothing but dedication and skill. Though Ron Jr. is making the shots, the true star at GSU is his dad. I’ve thought Hunter was worthy of a power conference gig since his days at IUPUI, but he left Indianapolis for Atlanta instead, and now he’s finally finding his due amount of fame and recognition. Hunter has long been respected as a man. He has received deserved notoriety for his work with the Samaritan’s Feet organization. However, his coaching record has gone widely unrecognized until now. The stories emanating from Hunter’s program are practically writing themselves. Harrow is now finally fulfilling his potential as a top point guard while wearing his third college uniform. Ware is returning to college basketball relevance after a disheartening ending to his tenure at Louisville. Yet, nothing tops the sight of seeing Hunter’s own son and namesake elevate his program to heights previously unseen. I’m not surprised that the Panthers beat Baylor. I’m almost surprised that this moment hasn’t come sooner.
  • Arizona won…good job, fellas.
  • How does Butler beat teams with superior talent on such a consistent basis? Also, how does one program continue to find no-name coaches who possess the unique traits required to maintain the culture that is known as “The Butler Way?” The success of Butler, and its rapid evolution from Horizon League banner carrier to Big East contender continues to confound me.
  • The “letter of the law” is a phrase that I have typed and uttered way too often since the beginning of this tournament. By the letter of the law, SMU justifiably lost in the aftermath of Yanick Moreira goaltending an errant Bryce Alford three-point attempt. In the future, I would like to see referees go to the monitor in that situation and rule whether or not the ball had a chance to enter the cylinder. In this case, Alford (upon further review) clearly shot an air ball with the game on the line, and it seems rather unfair that he was credited for a game-winning field goal instead. The Bruins shouldn’t have been in the tournament, and they shouldn’t have won this game. I did call this upset in my bracket though. So, all is not lost.
  • In two NCAA Tournament games, Mississippi managed to play one good half of basketball. Players from both Temple and Colorado State must have been livid as they watched Ole Miss look lost against Xavier. I’m not letting this go any time soon. Ole Miss and UCLA should have been 2-seeds in the NIT. Colorado State and Temple deserved to be in the tournament. By the way, I still don’t believe in Xavier. I like Georgia State to advance past them and move on to the Sweet Sixteen. I put that in my bracket as well.
  •  Before the tournament began, I hailed D’Angelo Russell as one of the rare players that was capable of pulling a hitched wagon deep into the tournament. In his NCAA Tournament debut, he did nothing but perpetuate my feelings. Arizona should feel very uneasy about Russell’s 28-point performance against one of the nation’s most fierce and chaotic defenses. If Russell can torch Arizona’s Rondae Hollis-Jefferson in a similar fashion, the Buckeyes suddenly find themselves with limitless potential.
  • Villanova is not going to impress me by disemboweling a 16-seed. They can start proving themselves by beating NC State. Until then, I will continue to shout from the rooftops that these particular Wildcats are overrated. I have them losing to the Wolfpack in my bracket.
  • Cincinnati and Purdue is one of those games that barely resembles basketball. Flashier skills such as shooting and ball-handling take a back seat to size, strength, and a host of blue collar intangibles (grit, toughness, will, heart, hustle, etc.). It’s entertaining to watch in its own way, and a true testament to the beauty of the college game in comparison to the professional product. In their losing effort, Purdue stuck to their strategic guns, electing not to play their two talented big men at the same time during the tournament. A double-barrel of talented seven-footers is a luxury that few teams in college basketball have. The list essentially reads Purdue and Kentucky. Thus it was surprising to see that Isaac Haas and A.J. Hammons did not log time together against Cincy. Frontcourt depth is an issue for the Boilermakers, but in the NCAA Tournament, there are situations that should require having your best five players on the floor. For the Bearcats’ troubles, they will have the opportunity to be bludgeoned with the blunt force object that is the Kentucky Wildcats.
  • The Harvard Crimson are consistently a tough out in the Big Dance, but North Carolina’s performance has to have them ranked just behind Notre Dame in the Power Rankings for disappointing winners. With Arkansas waiting in the next round, Roy Williams has only one day of preparation to avoid being run out of the gym by the Hogs on Saturday. “It’s the luckiest I’ve ever felt after a basketball game in my entire life.” Roy dropped that gem in the post game presser, so it’s evident that he was also less than impressed.
  • It’s hard to be disappointed in the performance of a 12-seed that loses by single-digits, but I must say that I expected more from Stephen F. Austin. Utah gave the Lumberjacks ample opportunity to win their second straight 12/5 matchup, but SFA didn’t take advantage of the opportunities afforded to them. Jacob Parker, the Southland Player of the Year, shot 3-14 (0-8 3PT) and finished with 6 points. This is the same guy who started the season by looking just as much like an All-American has Seth Tuttle whem the Jacks met Northern Iowa in the Tip-Off Marathon earlier this season.

Live Feed

Cincinnati Basketball: Bearcats announce upcoming matchups against ACC foe Georgia Tech
Cincinnati Basketball: Bearcats announce upcoming matchups against ACC foe Georgia Tech /

Cincy on the Prowl

  • College Basketball: Ranking the Nine "Blue Blood" programsGo Joe Bruin
  • Miami basketball win rankings over the last 2 seasonsCanes Warning
  • UCLA Basketball: Best wins of the Mick Cronin EraGo Joe Bruin
  • Miami Basketball big opportunity at Kentucky in ACC/SEC ChallengeCanes Warning
  • South Carolina Baseball: Florida silences Gamecocks' bats to end USC's season in super regionalGarnet and Cocky
    • North Carolina State played an incredible second half to rally back and beat LSU. Two thoughts continued to permeate my mind during the contest. First, the significance difference in quality between the ACC and the SEC cost LSU that game. It was clear that the Wolfpack possessed another gear that they were able to shift to that LSU didn’t possess. Teams don’t cultivate that ability to “turn up” without facing a consistent level of competition that allows a proper attitude and approach to develop. Secondarily, LSU is going to be a Final Four contender next year. They are losing no one, and welcome a loaded recruiting class.
    • Wofford has now lost three close games in the NCAA Tournament since 2010. Eventually the Terriers will break through. The Razorbacks responded to Wofford’s test very well. Though I picked North Carolina over the Razorbacks in my bracket, I’d like to retract. Bobby Portis has started to show much more versatility to his game, and I expect him to be an unbearable matchup for UNC’s Brice Johnson in the next round.
    • Hampton should win some type of trophy for playing Kentucky and staying within 25. Kentucky has at least two managers that could start for Hampton. Therefore, the Pirates were more impressive on this day than a few teams that won (Notre Dame and North Carolina, this Bud’s for you).
    • Georgetown took care of business to bring the Big East to a perfect 4-0 in the tournament. Hey, St John’s and Providence, no pressure. However, if those two teams give the conference a 6-0 record through the first round, I’ll offer a full written mea culpa to the conference (Writer’s Note: I don’t care what nonsense CBS and Turner are spewing…it’s the first daggum round). Also, I know his team lost, but Tyler Harvey looks like a first round pick. He scores the ball too well to not play in the league. His performance was wildly entertaining.

    PLAY OF THE DAY

    NO DIGGITY…NO DOUBT.

    Next: VIDEO: Beejay Anya Hits Game Winner for NC State

    More from Busting Brackets

    Home/March Madness