By Mark Halpern
Well, round one is in the books, and we had it all in the first round. We had an upset, we had unbelievable close games, we had wins, and we had blowouts. Overall, I went .500 on my picks. Let’s look at the winners and who they will be playing in round 2.
#9 Memphis. The Tigers came out fighting and never lost control of this game. Memphis is a team that likes to move the ball fast, and Boise was known to control the pace. Memphis starter Deandre Williams led the team with 14pts, and Star Jalen Duran had a double-double with 10pts and 11reb. Memphis proved they could move the ball and score fast. They will have to be accurate in their shooting and play pressure defense as they move on to play #1 Gonzaga to try and move on. Memphis has a very tough task in facing off against #1 Gonzaga
#12 New Mexico State. Talk about upsetting a tourney favorite in the Huskies. The Aggies of New Mexico didn’t look nervous by playing the #5 Huskies. Teddy Allen of the Aggies had a monstrous game with 37pts, 6reb, 3ast, and 2stl. This is an NBA stat line if I have ever seen one. Fouls contributed to many problems for UCONN as Allen went 13-13 from there alone. New Mexico is moving on and will face #4 Arkansas.
#1 Gonzaga. My Pick of the tournament didn’t look like themselves in the first half. They just seemed completely out of sorts. Once the second half came, it was all ZAGS. Drew Timme scored the first basket and led the team in points with 32 while contributing 13reb. Chet Holmgren is going to the NBA, and this kid can play. He had 19pts and 17reb, 5ast, and 7blk. He is your #1 overall pick in this year’s draft. The Zags take on #9 Memphis
#4 Arkansas. Before congratulating Arkansas, let us hear it for the Catamounts. They played a great game. Arkansas kept pace and ended up pulling out a 4pt win against Arkansas. Stanley Umude led the Razorbacks with 21pts, 9reb, and J.D. Notae chipped 17pts and 7reb. Arkansas looked off. Now that is not a dis against VT. Just I have seen more life out of the Razorbacks this season. Arkansas will next take on Texas Tech
#3 Texas Tech. In a blowout win, the Red Raiders demolished the Montana Bobcats. This was not a surprise as the Red Raiders rolled to a 35 point win. Bryson Williams and Terrence Shannon Jr both had 20 points. Actually, all starters for the Red Raiders had double-digit points in this one. Texas Tech Moves on to face #11, Notre Dame
#11 Notre Dame. I can hear the words from Bill Murray’s mouth “A Cinderella Story” is what the Fighting Irish are right now after a double OT win to make it to the dance. What a game for Cormac Ryan, who had 29pts and 6reb and Blake Wesley 18pts and with significant help from Paul Atkinson on the boards with 8reb and 13pts. This Notre Dame team is very determined, but they have a decisive match-up with the Razorbacks.
#2 Duke. The story continues for the great coach K as the Blue Devils take down the Titans by 17 points. This is the last dance for the great coach, and it would be fitting if he gets to cut that net down. First-round draft pick Paolo Banchero had a double-double with 17pts, and 10reb and everyone on the starting lineup had double digits as well. The big key here was that duke outrebounded CSU 38-18; that’s a problem. Duke moves on to face #7 Michigan State
#7 Michigan State. What a thrilling ball game that came down to the wire. The Spartans took on the Wildcats and just edged them out 74-73. One-point games are so much fun to watch. Joey Houser led the Spartans with 27pts and 8reb and A.J. Hoggard had 14pts and 3reb. Now have to mention Luke Brajkovich led the Wildcats with 18pts and 3reb, and Sam Mennenga had 15pts and 5reb. This game was one of the best games from this region in round one. The Spartans move on barely to face the #2 Duke Blue Devils.
With round one in the books, we move on to round two. Please look later as my preview for tonight’s games will be up later. Go ZAGS.
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