Friday was a frantic first round at the 2021 NCAA Tournament, with six teams with the best seed falling, three games in overtime and a No. 15 seed on top of a No. 2 seed. But on Saturday, the madness machine which is March gave us a rather mealy afternoon.
Kansas No. 3 seed had a good scare in the first half with East Washington’s No. 14 seed, Florida State’s No. 4 seed had its back against the wall before dropping UNC Greensboro No. 14 seed and No. 5 Creighton needed a lucky break from the game to survive a frustrated bid from 12th position, UC Santa Bárbara. But the teams with the most seeds prevailed in the first eight games. Then, after Friday’s wild slate, your key thanks you for this brief and unexpected normality. Even if it is only temporary.
Speaking soon and unexpectedly, Rick Pitino’s stay at Big Dance was just that. Their 15th place winner, Iona Gaels, was successful in winning a place in the tournament after a season interrupted by COVID that saw them play just 13 games of the regular season, but the second place winner, Alabama, won by 68-55 to send him them home.
In addition, Pac-12 continues to thrive in the postseason, with USC and Colorado joining Oregon Sate to advance to the second round. The conference could move a fourth team forward if UCLA wins BYU at the end of Saturday.
Here is a summary of the winners and losers as we make a final bow to the action for the first round.
Winner: Colorado 3-point shot
Colorado almost drew the best of the season in 3 points against Georgetown … in the first half. The Buffaloes, who crushed Hoyas 96-73, were 11 of 17 from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes of action, the third most by a team in any semester during the tournament in the past decade. They are only behind Villanova in the Final Four of 2018 and Auburn in Sweet 16. The Buffaloes ended with a season record of 16 points out of 25 attempts, which is the second maximum they have made in a game in at least us. last 10 years, according to the University Basketball Reference.
Loser: Georgetown collapses
Georgetown won the Big East Tournament and invaded the NCAAs as a No. 12 seed of fashion, capable of causing a turnaround. But as soon as the Hoyas were taking their best step under coach Patrick Ewing, a team from Colorado that could not miss ended up defeating them. His 23-point defeat marks the biggest defeat in the NCAA tournament since the drop of 24 points to UMass in the 1996 Eastern Regional Final.
“We just didn’t do it both offensively and defensively,” said Ewing. “We struggled to score, we struggled to get stops when we needed to. We tried to set a trap to get the blood flowing a little bit, and it worked a little bit in the second half, but the advantage was so great that we couldn’t ‘overcome it.”
Winner: Leonard Hamilton, FSU’s toughness
Florida coach Leonard Hamilton fought an Achilles tendon tear on Saturday while leading the Seminoles with a hiking boot in the 64-54 victory in the first round over UNC Greensboro. For a septuagenarian, it is a total boss move. But it was also emblematic of FSU’s toughness, holding the Spartans to just one field goal in the last five minutes and moving forward, despite having scored 0 out of 9 with a 3-point streak in the game. They are the first team to win a tournament game without making a triple since Kentucky in 2018.
Winner: Number 1 on Michigan cruises for second round
There was – and still is – real concern about how high Michigan’s postseason ceiling is, while 3D expert Isaiah Livers comes out with a foot injury. But that was suppressed at least for now on Saturday, when the Wolverines blew up Texas Southern 16 by 82-66 at the opening of the tournament.
Michigan was expected to take a cruise, so we won’t be ordering the Final Four t-shirts yet. Still, it took a balanced effort from Mike Smith, Hunter Dickinson, Franz Wagner and Eli Brooks to build some confidence in the second round.
Winner: LSU looks strong at opening
Defense has been an issue for LSU this season, but No. 8 seed, Tigers, have clawed at São Bonaventure with a 76-61 victory. LSU kept the Bonnies with just 33.3% of pitches. Tigers take first place in Michigan on Monday in the second round. If this team is ready to start taking defense seriously, stay tuned, as attack is not a problem for LSU. Cam Thomas may be the most underrated freshman in the country, and he proved that his game translates to the big stage on Saturday by leading all the top scorers with 27 points. He accounted for 20 of LSU’s 45 in the second half. But it was the defense that set the tone for LSU, as São Boaventura scored just 22 points in the first half.
Loser: gauchos lose history
UC-Santa Bárbara came within a bypassed lay-up of potentially taking down the number 5 Creighton seed. The gauchos were looking for their first victory in the NCAA tournament since 1990 and will probably feel they should have won against the BlueJays. UCSB seemed to be the best team for much of the second half, before Creighton closed a few clutch buckets after falling back 58-52. Even so, Amadou Sow had the best appearance one could wish for with the game at stake, and when the ball rolled over the edge, the gauchos’ hopes of running a race vanished with it.
Winner: Groves brothers from Eastern Washington
Watch out, Klay and Steph, the college basketball homies are coming – and they are actually brothers.
The pair of Tanner Groves and Jacob Groves of Eastern Washington took third place in Kansas on Saturday, when Tanner scored 35 points and Jacob scored 23. While the Eagles fell 93-84, they startled the shorthanded Jayhawks by leading for more than 20 minutes. game action. East Washington achieved a double-digit lead in the second half, before Kansas mounted its comeback.
However, the performance of the full Groves tournament will not be forgotten anytime soon. Their combined 58 points are the second largest number of brothers in an NCAA Tournament game since 1953, when John and Ed O’Brien from Seattle teamed up to score 63 points.
Winner: Alabama proves once again that it can win ugly
The Crimson Tide coached by Nate Oats plays fast on the attack, launches 3s at incredible speed and enters his defense grid – the three-piece recipe for his regular-season and postseason SEC championships. But this Alabama team is uniquely equipped, as it can live for the 3, but not necessarily die for them. Tide had 5 of 16 over the arc against Iona in a 68-55 victory. But they overcame the relative lack of kick by holding the Gaels with 23 points in the second half and playing in the stifling defense to help mask some inefficiencies in the attack.
Alabama’s best days are as good as any team’s in college because of how well – and often – he scores 3. So getting a comfortable win while struggling to shoot from a distance is a positive sign for the prospects of tournament.
Loser: Drake’s dream season ends with defeat for the USC
Drake and his dream season came to an end on Saturday in the first round, when he dropped to sixth place in the USC ranking, 72-56. The Bulldogs finish the season 26 to 5 overall, drawing the second biggest win in the program’s history. After dealing with injuries in the last month, the hopes of the Four Finals seemed to be on thin ice, so there is no shame in falling for a top talent USC team. But it is a bummer that this midsize monster could not ride a second weekend race as he was able to. However, a tip of the cap for Darian DeVries and the Drake Bulldogs for a brilliant season that will be considered one of the best of the modern era.