The four best players who will definitely play in the Western Conference finals went to Washington State, Davidson, Weber State and Lehigh. All played college basketball for at least three years.
In the history of the tournament, there has never (I repeat NEVER) been a region that has featured none of the top 4 seeds in the Sweet 16. Until now. The South Region in Atlanta will feature (5) Kentucky, (11) Loyola Chicago, (7) Nevada and either (9) Kansas St. or (16) UMBC.
Purdue's Carsen Edwards has been named the Most Outstanding Player of the South Regional, becoming the first player to win MOP honors despite not being a member of the winning team since Steph Curry of Davidson in 2008.
We define an upset as a team seeded five spots or more lower than their opponent. We've already set the record with 11 such occurrences. We're midway through the second round.
It's official. The three-point line is being moved back in 2019-20 for Division I men's basketball. Other proposed rules changes also were approved by the Playing Rules Oversight Panel.
In the past 100 days, we've lost Eddie Sutton, Lou Henson, Lute Olson and John Thompson. Those great men and coaches combined for 2,962 wins and did so much for the great game of college basketball.
Been doing this since 2006. It's never been this hard for the committee, not only because of how close so many of these teams are, but because of the abundance of bid thieves which have knocked teams out. Going on midnight but the work continues. That's why they call it Madness.
We can't do this for everyone who deserves it but we're doing it this year for
@JordanSarnoff
. He will be joining us in Houston to assist with our media coordination efforts at the Men's Final Four. Appreciative of his work and the resulting attention of the SID profession.
The security guard who stopped Kevin Hart from climbing on to the podium can work every Final Four from now until eternity. I like Kevin Hart but you don't belong there.
Whether you are a college sports fan or member of the media, and whether you know it or not, you benefit greatly from the work a sports information director puts in day & night, including weekends & holidays. If you know him or her, be sure to
#ThankYourSID
for their dedication.
Saturday's Sweet 16 Schedule (all times Eastern):
2:40- Loyola Chicago vs. Oregon St. (CBS/Bankers Life Fieldhouse)
5:15- Baylor vs. Villanova (CBS/Hinkle Fieldhouse)
7:25- Arkansas vs. Oral Roberts (TBS/Bankers Life Fieldhouse)
9:55- Houston vs. Syracuse (TBS/Hinkle Fieldhouse)
I don't know Caitlin Clark but my guess is something like this means a heck of a lot more than NCAA records, AIAW records, Pete Maravich's records, NIL, the WNBA draft, etc.
Once down by 34 points (53-19), Drexel defeated Delaware tonight 85-83. It is the largest comeback in Division I MBB history, breaking a record that stood since 12-30-1950 (Duke beat Tulane after trailing by 32).
Florida State has now won THIRTEEN consecutive overtime games, an all-time record in Division I men's basketball. The streak started January 13, 2018. The Seminoles shared the record with five other schools coming into the year, but are 2-0 in OT games this year.
Field was selected (very) late last night. Spent this morning scrubbing the seed list, with contingencies on placement involving scenarios for today's five games. Momentarily, we will start bracketing. We'll have to do several of them, as usual.
It’s been a rough 28 days for the “college basketball is a one-month sport” community. We’ll welcome you with open arms in March but you’re missing out on the fun now.
According to our records, North Carolina's drop from 1 to 18 is the largest one-week fall from the top spot in the history of the AP poll. The previous biggest fall was from 1 to 15 (Florida, Dec. 9 to Dec. 15, 2003).
The seed total of the teams in the Elite 8 is 47 (1, 2, 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 15). That's the highest total is tournament history. The previous high was 40 in 1990 and in 2000. The lowest total is 13 in 2007 (1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3).
It's Final Four Friday and what I wouldn't give to have some basketball writer complaining about the wireless network being down or the buffet running low on spare ribs right now.
.
@BoilerBall
is the 9th team (but fastest ever) to go from preseason unranked to atop the
@AP_Sports
poll. The others are Virginia (2-12-18), Baylor (1-9-17), Syracuse (3-1-10), Kansas (1-9-90), Indiana St. (2-13-79), Kentucky (2-8-66), UCLA (1-7-64) and San Francisco (2-8-55).
What’s better than a Final Four? One that I get to share with my son, who’s a ball boy tonight.
To all the fans who have followed and engaged with me this year, thank you for your passion for the best sport in the world. Enjoy the national championship.
Saint Peter's becomes the 10th No. 15 seed to knock off a No. 2 seed. It's also the second year in a row, and the third time in the past six tournaments, that this has occurred.
Nevada trailed by 22 points and won. It marks the second-biggest comeback in NCAA tournament history, behind BYU's rally from 25 down to beat Iona in the 2012 First Four. (Duke also won when trailing by 22, beating Maryland in the 2001 Final Four.)
#MarchMadness
Since so many of you are impatient, yes...there have only been four other instances with only one No. 1 seed in the Elite 8: 2000, 2011, 2013 and 2022. There has NEVER been an Elite 8 without a 1 seed.
The season starts today. Think of it as taking a flight. There will be screenings, delays and cancellations. Sometimes it will feel like you’re in the middle seat between 2 large men and behind the person who fully reclines their seat. But eventually we’ll reach our destination.
Tonight's attendance is 72,062. To all my followers, thank you for your passion and love of college basketball all season long. Here's to an exciting final 20 minutes of the season.
In case no one picked up on it, UNCG was in the field until late last night. Oregon’s win knocked them out. In order, Alabama, TCU and Indiana were the next ones that missed the field.
Creighton went 22 of 22 from the foul line, tying the best free throw percentage (min. 15 attempts) in tournament history. It ties the record set by Fordham March 20, 1971 against South Carolina.
The DI MBB Committee has begun the selection process. Step 1: Casting their initial ballots. If a team receives all but 2 eligible votes, they have been selected to the field. If a team receives less than that, but gets at least 3 votes, they are on the under consideration list.
To help fill the void of not having
#MarchMadness
this year, CBS is airing these games (1/3):
Saturday, March 21:
12 p.m.: UNC vs. Georgetown (1982 title game)
2 p.m.: NC St. vs Houston (1983 title game)
4 p.m.: Duke vs. Kentucky (1992 regional final)
All times ET
The Final Four record for most three-pointers in a game is 13 (UNLV vs Indiana in 1987; the first year of three-point shot). Villanova has 10. There are nearly seven minutes left. In the first half.
Before we tip, a salute to the writers, broadcasters, fans, bracketologists, analytics gurus and everyone else who has taken the time to follow, like or retweet me, comment on a post....even you mean SOBs who I refuse to unfollow. Enjoy the game. 218 days til we start it up again
More importantly, we are 42 days from Selection Sunday, 44 days from the start of
@marchmadness
, 46 days from the start of the best four days of the year, 62 days to the Final Four and 64 days from crowning a national champion.
Sunday:
12:10-ILL vs. Loy Chi (CBS/BLF)
2:40-Bay vs. Wisc (CBS/Hinkle)
5:15-W. Virginia vs. Cuse (CBS/BLF)
6:10-Ark vs. TX Tech (TNT/Hinkle)
7:10-Houston vs. Rutgers (TBS/LOS)
7:45-Florida vs. ORU (truTV/IFC)
8:45-Nova vs. N. Texas (TNT/BLF)
9:40-OK St. vs. Ore. St. (TBS/Hinkle)
Oregon's win over Iowa marked the 12th upset of the tournament, with upset defined as a win by a team seeded five spots lower than their opponent. The most through the round of 32 was 10 (done 8 times) before 2021. The record for the entire tournament is 13 (1985, 2014).
For clarity, every DI school has been asked, IF you are the OVERALL No. 1 seed, which first/second-round site and which regional site is preferred. If you aren't the overall No. 1, your submission goes in the trash and bracketing principles are used.
Source confirms to
@TheAthleticCBB
what ESPN's Wright Thompson first reported: Duke has requested to be placed in Midwest Regional (Chicago) instead of East (Philly). Chicago is Coach K's hometown. Higher seed normally goes to closest region but school decides preference.
Kansas and Villanova will play in the national semifinals Saturday at 6:09 p.m. ET on TBS. Duke will play either North Carolina or Saint Peter's in the second game.
The Selection Meeting has begun. This is my 14th year with the best seat in the house to watch this process unfold. I can't overstate how fortunate I am. Thank you all for your passion about what I believe is the greatest event in sports. Enjoy
#MarchMadness
If you watch DI, II or III college sports on TV or digitally, follow your favorite coaches/players on social media, read game notes, check out stats, or learn information from journalists who cover the team, you should thank the school's Sports Information Director.
#ThankYourSID
In case you were wondering, yes...we had a sticker for UMBC so they can advance their name on the bracket. Otherwise, we would have borrowed a sharpie from
@SethDavisHoops
The 2019 tournament features all 1, 2 and 3 seeds in the Sweet 16 for just the second time ever since the bracket expanded in 1985; 2009 was the other year. Also tied with 2009 for the most top 4 seeds (14) in the Sweet 16.
We are a week from Selection Sunday. A thread:
For all of you bracketologists out there, here are some principles and procedures, and other little nuggets, to remember as you try and predict what the committee will do (or display what you would do if you were in charge).
We already have one Final Four first-timer and the winner of this Creighton-SDSU game will give us a second. If Miami wins later today, that will be a third first-timer. The last time we had 3 teams make their debut at the same Final Four was 1970 (Bonnies, NMSU, Jacksonville).
Excluding several third-place games, the list of Final Four games that featured both teams hitting the 90-point mark now looks like this:
1987: Indiana 97, UNLV 93
2021: Gonzaga 93, UCLA 90
I'll watch any college basketball game regardless of the teams or venue, and these multi-team events produce several compelling non-conference matchups. But the on-campus games have SO much more energy and are so much better for the game.
This is the 14th time a school has sent men's/women's teams to the Final 4 in same year. NC St is the 11th school to do it. UConn has done it 4x and is only school to do it more than 1x. If UConn women win tomorrow, it will mark 1st time 2 schools made both Final 4s in same year.
If Gonzaga wins, it will mark the largest deficit overcome in championship game history. The record is 15 by Loyola Chicago, which trailed Cincinnati 45-30 with 14 minutes left but won in overtime in the 1963 title game.
Gut-wrenching to watch, yet worth two minutes of your time. This is the real story of college sports and what it means to the coaches, players and other members of the support staff who make up a team.
After cutting the nets and handling all of his media obligations, Tony Bennett hopped on a golf cart with me and
@gseitz
and suggested we take a selfie. Friends ask if he is as nice as he seems. Yes. Yes he is.
Now that football season is behind us, college basketball can dominate the sports landscape for the next two months. On Saturday (12:30 p.m. ET on CBS), the men's basketball committee will release its top 16 teams (through Friday's games) on the 3rd annual Bracket Preview Show.
For those who may not have caught it, Grand Canyon’s Oscar Frayer, who tragically passed away in an accident just days after playing in the tournament, is featured at the 1:37 mark. Nice of CBS to pay tribute to a life lost much too soon.
A couple of months ago, Twitter was littered with "I'm sick of Alabama" tweets. Weeks later, it was "I'm sick of the Patriots." Now
#MarchMadness2018
is giving you a diverse, at least in part, championship field. Sports fans should embrace this. It's why this event is so magical.
Saturday's semifinals are on TBS. The first game tips at 6:09 p.m. ET and will feature Houston vs. Villanova. Following that game, at approximately 8:49 p.m. ET, it will be Duke vs. Arkansas.
The Sweet 16 continues tomorrow night on CBS and TBS.
Every college sports fan should thank the thousands of men and women who work in athletics communications. Whether you know it or not, their tireless efforts help their colleagues, the fans and the media.
@CollSportsComm
#CelebrateCSC
Got a note from my 12-year old's school saying he has been marked as unexcused absence today. Afraid you got it all wrong. This is totally an excused absence.
#MarchMadness
Haven’t even made it home yet and already seeing complaints about the cold weather in Minneapolis for the 2019 Final Four. Breaking: we’re playing indoors. Oh, and the city, the stadium, the University of Minnesota and the people in the community are going to do a great job.
Lowest seed total of Sweet 16 teams:
2009: 49
2019: 49
1989: 50
1982: 51
1995: 51
2007: 51
2024: 53
Three years ago in the bubble tournament, we had the highest number (94).
The last three-point field goal, made by Texas Tech's Matt Mooney, was the 975th made three-pointer of the tournament, setting an all-time record for most 3s in a tournament.
Iowa (down 11 with 55 seconds left today vs. Mich St.) is 4th team EVER to win when down 11+ w/ less than 1:00 left in reg. TX A&M (down 12 w/33 seconds left vs. UNI in 2016), UNLV (down 11 w/59 seconds left vs. SDSU in 2005), Nevada (down 11 w/55 seconds left vs. N Mex in 2017).
(1)CBS Sports Network will re-air 26 memorable NCAA Tournament games – highlighting the early rounds through the Elite Eight – and more than 100 hours of past Tournament coverage this week from March 22-29.
I hope the powers that be in the TV industry watched the end of the Western Kentucky-Alabama game and come to the conclusion that, while necessary in the current environment, having people broadcast the game from anywhere else other than inside the venue is not a good idea.