NCAA Tournament – Page 6 – North Platte Post Archive

Nebraska Women 2 Wins from Going Home in NCAAs

Posted on March 21, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nebraska came all the way to Los Angeles, and what the Cornhuskers really want is to go home.

First, though, they’ll need to get two wins to return to their home arena in Lincoln, which will host an NCAA women’s regional next weekend.

Led by Big Ten player of the year Jordan Hooper, the fourth-seeded Cornhuskers (25-6) face No. 13 seed Fresno State (22-10) in the first round Saturday at Pauley Pavilion on the UCLA campus. In the other game, fifth-seeded North Carolina State (25-7) plays 12th-seeded BYU (26-6).

Nebraska (25-6) has won 12 of its last 13 games, including four victories over Top 25 opponents and its first Big Ten tournament title. The Huskers haven’t played in nearly two weeks.

McDermott Rolls on over Louisiana-Lafayette 76-66

Posted on March 21, 2014

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Doug McDermott scored 30 points and third-seeded Creighton got three huge 3-pointers in the second half from Ethan Wragge to beat No. 14 Louisiana-Lafayette 76-66 Friday in the West Regional.

McDermott had a double-double by halftime but went scoreless for nearly 14 minutes of the second half, leaving it to Wragge’s long shots to bail out the Bluejays from a potential upset by Ragin’ Cajuns, who attacked Creighton (27-7) with fearless defense and rebounding.

Sun Belt tournament champion Louisiana-Lafayette (23-12) led 50-48 before Wragge struck from long range to turn momentum.

The win means the Creighton family keeps marching on its final days together. McDermott, the nation’s leading scorer, opted against going to the NBA after last season to play one more year with his father, Creighton coach Greg McDermott.

4 Overtime Games Most in 1 Day at NCAA Tournament

Posted on March 21, 2014

Now this is madness.

Four games in the NCAA tournament went to overtime Thursday night, setting a record for one day, according to STATS.

The last of the 16 games on Thursday — New Mexico State against San Diego State — produced the fourth and final OT.

Before that, North Dakota State upset Oklahoma in overtime at Spokane, Wash. Saint Louis rallied late to force OT and beat North Carolina State in Orlando, Fla. The first overtime game came in Buffalo, N.Y., where Connecticut beat Saint Joseph’s.

The final game of the First Four also went to overtime Wednesday night, when Tennessee beat Iowa. That means five of the first 20 games in the tournament, a thrilling 25 percent, have extended into an extra 5-minute session.

Nebraska Women to Play Fresno St. in NCAA Opener

Posted on March 17, 2014

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska has earned a No. 4 seed for the NCAA women’s basketball tournament and will open against Fresno State on Saturday in Los Angeles.

About 500 fans gathered with players and coaches at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Monday night to find out their destination. The Cornhuskers must beat No. 13 Fresno State and then the winner between No. 5 North Carolina State and No. 12 BYU to make it back to their home arena for the Lincoln Regional.

The Big Ten tournament champion Huskers (25-6) are in the NCAAs for the third straight year and fifth time since 2007. They lost to Duke in last year’s Sweet 16.

Mountain West Conference tournament champion Fresno State (22-10) is in the NCAA tournament for the seventh straight year.

Bookies Like Some NCAA Seeds Better Than Others

Posted on March 17, 2014

LAS VEGAS (AP) — There will be 1,000 people lined up early Thursday morning to get a seat at the LVH sports book for the start of the NCAA tournament, and most of them don’t care that Michigan State was relegated to a No. 4 seed.

Oddsmakers in this gambling city are treating the Spartans like a No. 1 seed anyway. Their numbers show a team that will likely be favored against everyone except possibly Florida, despite what the NCAA selection committee says.

Michigan State got more respect at the LVH than it did in the NCAA selection room, with oddsmakers making the Spartans a 9-2 pick to win it all. That is second only to Florida at 4-1.

Can Classes Yield a Billion-Dollar Bracket?

Posted on March 17, 2014

So, about that billion dollars.

Warren Buffett looks at the offer of $1 billion to anyone who fills out a perfect NCAA tournament bracket as nothing more than a matter of having the numbers in his favor.

Mathematicians say he’s right, though that’s not stopping them from building a cottage industry by teaching bracket-fillers how to make the impossible seem possible.

About a half-dozen colleges are offering special seminars and classes to teach people the ins and outs of the numbers that will, inevitably, work against them.

And there’s one website — takebuffettsbillion.com — that sends a statistician-crunched bracket to anyone who signs up, with the promise that all those in on the gig will split the money if one of those brackets is the winner.

Study: 8 NCAA Teams Fall Below Graduation Standard

Posted on March 17, 2014

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — An annual study of the schools in the men’s NCAA tournament shows a slight increase in teams that fall below graduation rate standards.

The University of Central Florida’s Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport said Monday in its report that eight teams that made the 2014 men’s bracket fall below the NCAA-mandated Academic Progress Rate score of 930, equivalent to a 50 percent graduation rate.

Last year six teams didn’t reach that benchmark.

Beginning with 2012-13 championships, teams must earn a minimum 900 four-year APR or a 930 average over the most recent two years to be eligible to participate in NCAA championships.

In 2014, seven teams fell below 925, compared with three teams in 2013.

McDermott, Bluejays Earn No. 3 West Seed

Posted on March 16, 2014

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Doug McDermott and the Creighton Bluejays have earned the No. 3 seed in the West region and will face 14th-seeded Louisiana-Lafayette on Friday in San Antonio.

McDermott leads the nation in scoring at 26.9 points and was the unanimous Big East Conference Player of the Year. However, the Bluejays (26-7) were upset by Providence in the conference tournament final.

McDermott has 3,105 points, fifth on the all-time scoring list. He is trying to become the 11th player to be a three-time All-America and the first since Patrick Ewing of Georgetown and Wayman Tisdale of Oklahoma in 1985.

The Ragin’ Cajuns (23-11) earned an automatic bid as Sun Belt champions and are making their first NCAA appearance since 2005. They’re led by Elfrid Payton (19.1 points) and Shawn Long (18.7 points, 10.5 rebounds).

Baylor Opens with Nebraska in NCAA Tournament

Posted on March 16, 2014

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Baylor may have gotten off to a slow start in conference play, but victories in 10 of the last 12 games have propelled the Bears into the NCAA tournament as a No. 6 seed in the West.

Baylor (24-11) will face No. 11 Nebraska in San Antonio on Friday. The Bears return to the tournament after winning the NIT last season.

Baylor is coming off a loss to Iowa State in the Big 12 tournament final. Baylor finished tied for sixth in the regular-season conference standings, after going 2-8 to start league play.

The Huskers (19-2) are making their first tournament appearance since 1998, and seventh overall. They’ve never won in the tournament.

Nebraska, picked to finish last in the Big 10, surpassed expectations overall this season but fell 71-67 to No. 24 Ohio State in the quarterfinals of the Big 10 tournament.

NCAA Bid Worth Extra $150,000 for Huskers’ Miles

Posted on March 16, 2014

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s selection to the NCAA men’s basketball tournament is worth an extra $150,000 for coach Tim Miles.

The bonus is one of several that are spelled out in Miles’ contract based on his team’s performance.

Miles already had secured a $50,000 bonus for finishing fourth in the Big Ten regular season. If the 19-12 Huskers beat Baylor on Friday, Miles’ contract calls for him to receive an extra $75,000 for having a 20-win season.

Miles was named Big Ten coach of the year in a vote of the coaches, but Michigan’s John Beilein was tabbed by the media. Miles is supposed to receive a $50,000 bonus if he is the consensus coach of the year. Executive associate athletic director Marc Boehm said he would consider giving Miles that bonus anyway.