Photo Credit: USATSI
After five Top Ten teams in the NCAA all lose to division rivals, and only Wichita State remains undefeated, it is safe to say March Madness has begun! Louisville, Kansas, Syracuse, Saint Louis University, and Creighton all went down in interesting formats; with their own back lines that further the March drama.
Louisville lost a poorly managed game; one in which they did not have a lead until the second half. Russ Smith’s 19 point contribution to the offense was stagnated by foul trouble and eventually fouling out in a loss to Memphis. It was a tough game for Memphis’ Shaq Goowin who did not score a point in the first half. He may have only contributed five points, but his ten rebounds and three blocks helped his team to a 72-66 win.
Syracuse was beat by Virginia in a definitive fashion. For the beginning of the season, Syracuse had looked like the team to beat. Now, they are a team who cannot figure out how to win. Since having lost to Boston College and Duke, Syracuse sought to bounce back right in time for the tournament, against a new division rival. However, three straight losses within the ACC, Syracuse has become ICE cold.
Saint Louis also lost to a division rival, VCU who is known to make a little noise around this time of year. This could be the win that helps solidify VCU’s spot in the tournament. St. Louis had been perfect at home this season up until this game. VCU’s Treveon Graham had 17 points and 8 rebounds, while Briante Webber contributed 13 points and four steals.
Creighton has been an underrated team this season, despite having one of the best scorers on the team in Doug McDermott. However, getting 27 points from McDermott was not enough to lift the Bluejays over Xavier. It was Xavier’s Justin Martin who carried his team to a victory with 19 points and a career best 16 rebounds. Creighton’s defense allowed Xavier’s to shoot 50 percent from the field. Something they will have to fix quickly as they look forward to the tournament. Many thought Creighton would receive a number two seed, but this loss could lower that.
Kansas looks like the team to beat with Andrew Wiggins proving to be the stud everyone thought he would be and with Joel Embiid drawing comparisons to Hakeem Olajuwon. It looked like Kansas would get the win over Oklahoma State with Marcus Smart struggling early, but OK state rallied in the second half. Down by ten, Oklahoma State scored 47 in the second half with Smart scoring 20 of his 21 points in that half. It is unclear if the Cowboys will make the tournament, but their win over the fifth-ranked Jayhawks will certainly help their chances.
