NCAA Tournament – North Platte Post Archive

NCAA Tourney Head Says Refs Should Have Been More Patient

Posted on April 8, 2015

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — NCAA vice president of men’s basketball Dan Gavitt says the referees Monday night in the national championship game had access to television replays on a crucial play in the last 2 minutes but had already decided to give the ball to Duke when CBS showed a magnified view of the play.

The NCAA Tournament head says the referees should have been a little more “patient” before making the ruling after Wisconsin’s Bronson Koenig missed a layup with 1:54 left and the Badgers trailing 63-58.

In a scramble for the rebound, the referees initially ruled it went off a Wisconsin player even though replays appeared to show the ball was clearly touched by a Duke play. But the call was not reversed, and the Blue Devils went on to win 68-63.

Comeback! Duke tops Wisconsin 68-63 for National Title

Posted on April 6, 2015

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Jahlil Okafor scored two big buckets late and his freshman buddy Tyus Jones hit a key 3-pointer to lift Duke to its fifth national title Monday night in a 68-63 comeback win over Wisconsin.

Okafor spent big chunks of the second half on the bench after drawing his third, then his fourth foul.

When he returned, he beat Wisconsin’s big man, senior Frank Kaminksy, for a pair of buckets, then Jones hit a 3-pointer to complete a run from nine down to eight up with 1:22 left.

Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski captured his fifth title, putting him in second place alone behind John Wooden.

Kaminsky outscored Okafor 21-10 but came up short in his last game, as the Badgers (36-4) couldn’t duplicate their thrilling win over Kentucky two nights earlier.

Jones led the Blue Devils (35-4) with 23 points.

Duke, Wisconsin Step into Spotlight in National Title Game

Posted on April 5, 2015

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Duke and Wisconsin are finally getting their turn in the spotlight.

After a season that was dominated by discussions of discussions about Kentucky’s pursuit of perfection, it will be the Blue Devils and Badgers meeting for the title on Monday night.

Duke ran roughshod through Michigan State in its semifinal, moving within one win of coach Mike Krzyzewski’s fifth championship. Wisconsin spoiled the Wildcats’ historic run in its semifinal, and will be trying to win the school’s first title since 1941.

The game should be full of intriguing matchups, from Krzyzewski matching wits with Wisconsin counterpart Bo Ryan, to two of the game’s brightest stars going at it in the paint in Duke’s Jahlil Okafor and the Badgers’ Frank Kaminsky.

Tipoff is scheduled for 9:18 p.m. EDT.

Kentucky’s 1st Loss Draws Best TV Rating for Semi Since ’93

Posted on April 5, 2015

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Wisconsin’s win over previously undefeated Kentucky has drawn the highest preliminary television rating for an NCAA semifinal in 22 years.

The Badgers’ 71-64 victory Saturday night averaged a 13.3 overnight rating and 24 share across TBS, TNT and truTV. That’s up 48 percent from last year’s matchup of the same teams.

Turner Sports and CBS said Sunday that was the best rating for a semi since a 13.8/24 in 1993 when Michigan’s Fab Five sophomores edged the Wildcats in overtime.

The main broadcasts Saturday aired on TBS, with “homer” coverage for the teams on TNT and truTV.

Ratings represent the percentage of U.S. homes with televisions tuned to a program, while shares represent the percentage of TVs in use at the time. Overnights measure the country’s largest markets.

Top-Ranked Kentucky Falls Short of Title with 71-64 Loss

Posted on April 4, 2015

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — For 38 games top-ranked Kentucky mastered the art of the tune-out, brushing aside the hype, noise and distractions created by its pursuit of an unbeaten championship season.

The Wildcats just couldn’t succeed at blocking out Wisconsin and big man Frank Kaminsky, who won 71-64 Saturday night to turn their dream season into a devastatingly sour footnote.

Hoping to become the first team since Indiana in 1976 to finish as unbeaten champions, Kentucky (38-1) instead lost the rematch of last year’s semifinal against the Badgers and joined Indiana State (1979), UNLV (1991) and Wichita State (2014) — unbeaten teams that lost in the NCAA Tournament.

The fortitude and good fortune that helped Kentucky overcome several stiff challenges this season were absent against the determined Badgers (36-3), who made shots and grabbed the rebounds that the Wildcats couldn’t.

Final Four Teams Have 4 Different Sets of Drug-Testing Rules

Posted on April 2, 2015

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Four teams, four drug-testing policies.

Players at Kentucky, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Duke operated under the same rules on their road to the Final Four this season — except when it came to the frequency of their doping tests and the penalties they faced for failing.

All players fall under the umbrella of the NCAA drug-testing program, which tests urine for performance-enhancing and recreational drugs at its championship events and for PEDs during infrequent visits to campus the rest of the year. The main source of deterrence? The programs in place at individual schools.

There are some small changes up for consideration. However, even if those changes occur, the standards could be as varied as the 351 Division I universities.

Big Ten Shines Bright with Final Four in Own Backyard

Posted on March 31, 2015

MILWAUKEE (AP) — It has been a very good year so far for the Big Ten.

First Ohio State won the first college football playoff in January.

Now the league has Wisconsin and Michigan State advancing to a Final Four, which is hosted in the middle of Big Ten country in Indianapolis.

The Big Ten’s showing had Wisconsin forward Sam Dekker noting that some observers thought the league wasn’t quite as strong this season.

Commissioner Jim Delany says the league overall wasn’t as successful as hoped for in nonconference play. There was a logjam in league play behind regular-season winner Wisconsin.

BTN to Provide Extensive Coverage Surrounding Final Four

Posted on March 31, 2015

CHICAGO – With both Wisconsin and Michigan State in the Final Four, BTN travels its studio team of Dave Revsine, Jim Jackson and Stephen Bardo to Indianapolis. The network’s coverage includes pre- and post-game press conferences, exclusive interviews with coaches and student-athletes, and analysis from a number of special guests.

BTN tips off its coverage at noon ET on Tuesday with the Michigan State press conference live from East Lansing. The Wisconsin press conference will air live at 4 PM ET.BTN Live will air at its normal time, 6 PM ET, on both Tuesday and Wednesday.

At noon ET on Thursday, both the Wisconsin vs. Kentucky and Michigan State vs. Duke press conferences will air live on BTN and BTN2Go. All four head coaches will take the podium, as well as select players from each team. BTN Live is scheduled for 6 PM ET with Rick Pizzo, Shon Morris and Taylor Rooks in studio.

On Friday, team press conferences will air live on BTN and BTN2Go beginning at 11 AM ET. Coach Tom Izzo and the Spartans will address the media first. At 6 PM ET, BTN Live will include reports from each team’s open practice and a number of interviews with coaches and student-athletes. Discussion and analysis continues later that evening on BTN Basketball & Beyond at 10 PM ET, which will include segments from the Omni Hotel in Indianapolis, the official Wisconsin hotel.

On Saturday, BTN takes its set down the road to Spartan territory, the Hilton Hotel and Suites. Following the Michigan spring football game, at approximately 2:30 PM ET, BTN Basketball & Beyond will provide all the latest news and updates. At 5 PM ET, Revsine, Jackson and Bardo get you ready for action as the with a 60-minute BTN Tip-Off Show: Final Four Pregame presented by Auto-Owners Insurance. Game one, Michigan State vs. Duke, is scheduled for 6:09 PM ET. Following the game, the Michigan State post-game press conference will air live on BTN and BTN2Go. Immediately following the Wisconsin vs. Duke game, which is scheduled to tip off at 8:49 PM ET, BTN Basketball & Beyond will have complete highlights and analysis of both Final Four games. Host Mike Hall will anchor the show from the Chicago studios, with Revsine, Jackson and Bardo reporting from Indianapolis.

If either or both Wisconsin and Michigan State win and advance to the National Championship game, additional coverage plans will be announced.

Three No. 1 Seeds in the Final Four

Posted on March 29, 2015

If you liked the look of last year’s Final Four, you will love the 2015 edition.

One game — Kentucky vs. Wisconsin — is not only a matchup of two No. 1 seeds, it’s a replay of last year’s semifinal won by Kentucky 74-73.

Seventh-seeded Michigan State will face Duke, a four-time national champion led by coach Mike Krzyzewski, who is in his 12th Final Four, tying the legendary John Wooden.

It is the fifth time at least three No. 1 seeds reached the Final Four.

This is the third straight year one conference has had two teams in the Final Four with Wisconsin and Michigan State coming from the Big Ten. The Southeastern Conference did last year with Kentucky and Florida and the Big East had Louisville and Syracuse in 2013.

Turner Says Saturday Regional Finals Highest-Rated in Decade

Posted on March 29, 2015

NEW YORK (AP) — Turner Sports says its NCAA basketball coverage received the highest rating for Saturday regional finals in 10 years.

Kentucky’s 68-66 victory over Notre Dame got an 8.4 fast national rating and 16 share from Nielsen Media Research, which the network said Sunday was the top overnight for a college basketball game on cable television. It drew 14.7 million viewers on TBS, the most for a program in the network’s history

Wisconsin’s 85-78 victory over Arizona received a 5.2/11 and 8.8 million viewers, and the combined average of 6.8/13 was the highest for Saturday regional finals since a 7.8/16 for two overtime games in 2005, Louisville vs. West Virginia and Illinois vs. Arizona.

Turner says the tournament is averaging a 6.3/14 on TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV, up 3 percent from last year and the highest since 1998.

The rating is the percentage of television households tuned to a program, and the share is the percentage watching a program among those homes with TVs on at the time.