The Pac-12 shocked the world when four of its teams made their way into the NCAA Tournament. After a rocky season for almost every team in the conference (other than Arizona) Oregon and Colorado both earned tickets to the Big Dance.
This is the last dance for the Pac-12 though as the conference will no longer exist after the 2023-24 season.
Arizona, Washington State, Oregon, and Colorado all saw their first action in the Round of 64 and all four teams continued to shock the world by moving on to the next round.
In the first Pac-12 game of March Madness, the No. 2 seed Arizona Wildcats took on the No. 15 seed Long Beach State Beach.
The game went just about how one would expect and the Wildcats walked away with a decisive 85-65 win over the Beach.
Kylan Boswell led Arizona in scoring with an impressive 20 points along with 8 assists. Arizona will face the Dayton Flyers in the Second Round.
Moving on #BearDown #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/wcpzrAhYFd
— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) March 21, 2024
Oregon’s game was next on the docket and the Ducks were underdogs to the South Carolina Gamecocks. Jermaine Cousinard put on a shooting clinic in the first-round matchup and scored 40 points for his team.
Couisnard and Oregon trounced the Gamecocks with an 87-73 victory. The Ducks will play the Creighton Bluejays in round two.
Keep staying together. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/BayCPIngZe
— GoDucks (@GoDucks) March 21, 2024
The third Pac-12 game on the first day of the NCAA Tournament featured the Washington State Cougars against the Drake Bulldogs.
While Wazzu’s win wasn’t quite the blowout that the previous two Pac-12 teams had accomplished, the Cougars earned the third March Madness win for the conference.
Behind Isaac Jones’ 20 points, Washington State defeated Drake 66-61. The Cougars are set to play against the Iowa State Cyclones in their next game.
Survive and advance #MarchMadness // #GoCougs #WheatfieldUnderdogs pic.twitter.com/d2P61o1wKD
— Washington State Men's Basketball (@WSUCougarsMBB) March 22, 2024
On the second day of tournament games, the Colorado Buffaloes played against the Florida Gators.
Despite trailing through most of the first half, K.J. Simpson and Eddie Lampkin Jr. (with 44 combined points) led the Buffaloes to an admirable 102-100 win over the Gators.
SURVIVE. AND. ADVANCE. ✅#GoBuffs | #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/qimDQW9EBb
— Colorado Men's Basketball (@CUBuffsMBB) March 22, 2024
Including Colorado’s win in the First Four round, the Pac-12 was an extraordinary 5-0 in March Madness.
After the First Round, the Pac-12 was undefeated in NCAA Tournament games. For a conference that won’t exist next season, that’s not too shabby of a postseason performance.