Today's games are incredibly important as Auburn and Michigan State are both picked by many to go to the Final Four, as are Houston and Tennessee. We should see lots of movement in the standings tomorrow.
The Houston - Tennessee game is incredibly important for the bottom part of the standings as well. If Houston wins, Barkley Sosa of Riviera Beach, Florida locks up last place; but if Tennessee wins, Justine Frank of Charlotte, North Carolina, secures last place.
With Alabama's loss, we lose another champion. Our champions are: Alabama, AUBURN, Arizona, Connecticut, DUKE, FLORIDA, HOUSTON, Kansas, Marquette, Maryland, MICHIGAN STATE, Mississippi State, TENNESSEE.
There was more basketball yesterday than just the Division I tournament, as the men's Division II tournament final took place in Evansville, Indiana, where the Nova Southeastern Sharks added to their 2023 championship with another by defeating Cal State Dominguez Hills. Nova was led by MJ Iraldi's 27 points (and 9 rebounds), but the game was controlled by point guard Dallas Graziani who - when he has the ball is attack, attack, attack. Attack his defender; attack the pick-and-roll; attack the rim. The defense cannot let up when Graziani has the ball, and when, like CSDH you only go about 6 deep, that is a problem. Between Nova's two championship they sandwiched a finals loss on a buzzer beater last year, so they are clearly building a program.
So yesterday I mentioned that the Duke-Alabama game would be a big difference maker in our pool - and it was - but I didn't realize that as many people had Texas Tech in the Final Four as actually did. So, even though the Red Raiders fell to the Gators, I will award that gutsiness with the Pick of the Day (but no extra points, though!). So, Congratulations to Ty Hedgpeth of Wilmington, North Carolina, Marcus Jackson or Reston, Virginia, Alyssa Hopps of Quincy Massachusetts, Richa Samuels 2 of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, Measha Michaelangelo Williams of Houston, Texas, Jane Reynolds of West Palm Beach, Florida, Ashley Poer 1 of Lake Worth Beach, Florida and Stephanie Henderson of Ft. Worth, Texas.
Stats of the Day
3. Florida won its 29th consecutive game when leading at halftime - the longest active streak in the country.
2. Duke's Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel are the first pair of freshmen to have 20-5-5 games in the same tournament.
1. Mark Sears of Alabama, one game after hitting 10 three-pointers, shot 2-12 from the field (1-5 from three) for 6 points against Duke.
Trivia Question: I mentioned above that Florida's 29 consecutive winning streak when leading at halftime is the longest active streak. Before yesterday, they were tied with which program?
Players of the Day
15. Labaron Philon, Alabama - 16 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals
14. Sarah Strong, Connecticut - 11 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
13. Madison Booker, Texas - 17 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
12. Liatu King, Notre Dame - 17 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists
11. Kennedy Smith, USC - 19 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals
10. Sedona Prince, TCU - 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists
9. JT Toppin, Texas Tech - 20 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block
8. Kon Knueppel, Duke - 21 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals
7. Serena Sandell, Kansas State - 22 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
6. Walter Clayton, Jr., Florida - 30 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks
5. Derrion Williams, Texas Tech - 23 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assists, 3 steals
4. Cooper Flagg, Duke - 16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block
3. Hailey van Lith, TCU - 26 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
2. Thomas Haugh, Florida - 20 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
1. Paige Bueckers, Connecticut - 40 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 2 blocks
And now for today's walk down (NCAA Tournament) history lane. Before I begin, I must admit that I have avoided writing about Duke in the past - unless it was to bring out their foibles - primarily because I absolutely loathe their basketball team. AND I STILL HATE CHRISTIAN LAETTNER. But even I have to admit it is one of the more storied programs in NCAA basketball history. Last night they earned their 18th Final Four trip, tied for second most with UCLA (foreshadowing). So, it is time that I gave the program their due, before I get back to cracking jokes about Christian Laettner and his Stomp Heard Round the World, or Grayson Allen's love of the Dave Mathews Band (he is always "Tripping Billies," and Johns, and Andres, and anyone else). Sorry, I digress. Duke's first title came in 1991, but that was a memorable run, so I don't really want to write about that, (UNLV blowout in 1990, beat UNLV in semis in 1991). And, completely on purpose, I swear, Duke's first Final Four appearance occurred in 1963, but I already wrote about that Final Four from Loyola's perspective all the way back in ... yesterday!!! So let's examine Duke's second Final Four Appearance, and first final appearance ... 1964.
The 1964 Blue Devils were led by legendary coach Vic Bubas, and the team, fresh off the school's first Final Four appearance the previous year, and with losing 1963 Final Four Most Outstanding Player Art Heyman, had a tremendous regular season. The team was led by leading scorer Jeff Mullins and his 24.2 points per game and 8.9 rebounds, with significant contributions from Jay Buckley and his 13. 8 points per game and 9 rebounds, and Hack Tison with his 11.8 points per game and 8.6 rebounds per game. The team went 2-56, and 13-1 in the ACC, which was good enough for first place and to qualify for the NCAA tournament.
Duke, being in essence the #1 seed in the east, received a first-round bye, where they would play the winner of the Villanova-Providence game in the Sweet Sixteen, where Duke had to travel all the way to Raleigh, North Carolina to play. Duke was all over Villanova from the beginning, building a 49-33 halftime lead, and then they coasted to a 87-73 victory. Duke was led by Jeff Mullins and his 43 points. The only other Blue Devil in double figures was Hack Tison, who scored 13. This win propelled Duke into the Elite 8, where they would meet Connecticut.
Well, "meet" is a relative term as UConn didn't really show up. Duke led 62-27 at halftime. Yes, you read that right. 62-27. The Blue Devils coasted to a 101-54 win, behind 30 points and 8 rebounds from Jeff Mullins, 14 points and 8 rebounds from Hack Tison, and Steve Vacendek added 14 off the bench. Connecticut's Tony Kimball was valiant in defeat, with his 18 points and 14 rebounds, but he received absolutely no help. Duke had made its second consecutive Final Four, which was hosted by Kansas City.
In Kansas City, Duke would face Michigan, which had defeated defending champion Loyola and Ohio in the Sweet Sixteen and Elite 8, respectively. In the Final Four, Michigan was led by star Cazzie Russell, who scored 31 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. Bill Buntin added 19 and 9 for the Wolverines. It was not enough, as Jay Buckley scored 25 points with 14 rebounds, and Jeff Mullins chipped-in 21 points and 8 rebounds as the Blue Devils defeated the Wolverines 91-80 to reach the school's first championship game.
For those of you that remember I used the word "foreshadowing" earlier, will know that waiting for Duke in the finals was the UCLA Bruins. UCLA was 30-0 and coached by soon-to-be legend John Wooden. On the court, future NBA stars Gail Goodrich (21.5/5.2) and Walt Hazzard (18.6/4.7) led the team with their play on the court. UCLA, despite their undefeated dominance, had a tougher road in the NCAA tournament than Duke did. They beat Seattle 95-90, and then squeaked by San Francisco 76-72 to make it to the Final four. In Kansas City UCLA defeated Kansas State 90-84, with Keith Erickson leading the way with 28 points and 10 rebounds. Hazzard and Goodrich added 19 and 14 for the Bruins, propelling them into the finals.
With having played much closer games in the tournament that Duke, UCLA was tested, and they passed jumping out to a 50-38 halftime lead, and extending that to a 98-83 final score for its first championship. Gail Goodrich scored 27 for the Bruins, and Kenny Washington contributed 26 off the bench for the champions. Jeff Mullins led Duke, as he had all year, with 22, and Jay Buckley added 18. Hazzard was named the Most Outstanding Player, and Jeff Mullins ended up the tournament as the leading scorer.
With its first championship in 1964, UCLA burst onto the national scene, and would ultimately win 10 of 12 championships, falling only in 1966 (Texas Western) and 1974 (North Carolina State) in one of the most dominant sporting runs we have ever seen.
Trivia Answer: University of California - San Diego, which disappointed a lot of people who had them as their guaranteed upset this year!
Elite 8/Day 1 Standings
1. Max Macon 3 - 115 - HOUSTON/AUBURN
2. Bill Ganoe 1 - 114 - FLORIDA/DUKE
3. Preston Holbert - 110 - TENNESSEE/FLORIDA
4. Brigadier General Kareem Montague - 108 - AUBURN/TENNESSEE
Measha Leonardo Williams - 108 - FLORIDA/HOUSTON
6. Brent Bellinger - 106 - DUKE/FLORIDA
7. Guy Hughes - 105 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
8. Bill Ganoe 3 - 104 - DUKE/FLORIDA
9. Matt Hopps - 103 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Christina Zanzig - 103 - MICHIGAN STATE/DUKE
11. Paul Cummings - 102 - FLORIDA/HOUSTON
Mark Holbert - 102 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Dan Laishley - 102 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Measha Raphael Williams - 102 - DUKE/AUBURN
15. Dan Barsky 1 - 101 - HOUSTON/AUBURN
George Walks 3 - 101 - FLORIDA/DUKE
17. Jonathan Cox - 100 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Eric Inge - 100 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Mike Wolff 2 - 100 - FLORIDA/DUKE
20. Justine Frank - 99 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Christina Gomez - 99 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Ty Hedgpeth - 99 - DUKE/MICHIGAN STATE
Measha Donatello Williams - 99 - FLORIDA/DUKE
24. Max Macon 1 - 98 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Marcus Spruill- 98 - DUKE/St. John's
26. Rachel Bornn - 97 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Shane Jernigan - 97 - HOUSTON/AUBURN
Katie Kollmeyer - 97 - FLORIDA/Kentucky
Javier Rodriguez 2 - 97 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Rich Samuels 1 - 97 - DUKE/FLORIDA
31. Xavier Conway - 96 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Marcus Jackson - 96 - HOUSTON/MICHIGAN STATE
33. Alyssa Hopps - 95 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Silas Nichols - 95 - FLORIDA/DUKE
35. Dustin Lansing - 94 - Alabama/MICHIGAN STATE
Kingfish Parham - 94 - AUBURN/HOUSTON
Jonathan Wasserman - 94 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
38. Shane Dogmillionaire - 93 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Natalie Moon - 93 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Jeff Plamondon - 93 - DUKE/MICHIGAN STATE
Rich Samuels 2 - 93 - DUKE/MICHIGAN STATE
42. Dan Barsky 2 - 92 - HOUSTON/MICHIGAN STATE
Theo Frank - 92 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Sasha Moon - 92 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Jazz Piasecki - 92 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
46. Brent Bellinger 2 - 91 - FLORIDA/HOUSTON
Kyle Henderson 1 - 91 - FLORIDA/Clemson
Adam Jorgensen - 91 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Jane Reynolds & Carolyn Fowler - 91 - FLORIDA/HOUSTON
Dave Wilson - 91 - FLORIDA/DUKE
51. Salvatore Plamondon - 90 - Alabama/AUBURN
Vincent Plamondon - 90 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Chris Simmons - 90 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Jason Spuhler - 90 - FLORIDA/DUKE
55. Joel Chernoff - 89 - AUBURN/DUKE
Dave Piasecki - 89 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Steven Usma 2 - 89 - FLORIDA/HOUSTON
Mike Wolff 1 - 89 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Day Yi 2 - 89 - AUBURN/HOUSTON
60. Alvaro Gonzalez - 88 - AUBURN/HOUSTON
Allison Parker - 88 - AUBURN/Alabama
George Walks 2 - 88 - Alabama/FLORIDA
Steven Usma 1 - 88 - DUKE/FLORIDA
64. Sean McInerney III - 87 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Sean McInerney IIII - 87 - FLORIDA/DUKE
66. Kevin Dick - 86 - FLORIDA/Alabama
James Garvin - 86 - FLORIDA/DUKE
John Hedgpeth - 86 - DUKE/AUBURN
Martha Kroesen - 86 - FLORIDA/Alabama
Pepe Sosa - 86 - FLORIDA/HOUSTON
Lily Spuhler - 78 - FLORIDA/Purdue
72. Jenna Finkelstein - 85 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
Colleen Giamberini - 85 - DUKE/FLORIDA
74. Max Macon 2 - 84 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Kisha Marzouca - 84 - DUKE/FLORIDA
Sean & Barbie McInerney - 84 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
Jeremy Spuhler - 84 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Justin Yung - 84 - DUKE/FLORIDA
79. Karen Katz 1 - 83 - DUKE/Maryland
Kisha Marzouca 2 - 83 - DUKE/AUBURN
Chuck Whitcomb - 83 - TENNESSEE/FLORIDA
Measha Michaelangelo Williams - 83 - HOUSTON/AUBURN
83. Barbie McInerney - 82 - FLORIDA/Arizona
Ashley Poer 2 - 82 - FLORIDA/Arizona
Javier Rodriguez 1 - 82 - DUKE/AUBURN
Brittany Sosa - 82 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
Steven Usma 3 - 82 - AUBURN/HOUSTON
Stacia Wilkaitis - 82 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Day Yi - 82 - DUKE/St. John's
Joshua Zdrowak - 82 - DUKE/FLORIDA
91. Jim Coleman - 81 - DUKE/AUBURN
Jacey Fowler I - 81 - MICHIGAN STATE/TENNESSEE
Karen Katz 2 - 81 - HOUSTON/MICHIGAN STATE
Kline Kroesen - 81 - HOUSTON/AUBURN
Max Macon 4 - 81 - FLORIDA/DUKE
96. Si Nichols - 78 - HOUSTON/MICHIGAN STATE
William Pujals - 78 - FLORIDA/DUKE
Cheryl Spuhler - 78 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
99. Ashley Poer 1 - 77 - DUKE/AUBURN
100. Caroline Spuhler - 75 - FLORIDA/DUKE
101. Paul Cummings 2 - 74 - HOUSTON/AUBURN
Carolyn Fowler - 74 - AUBURN/DUKE
Braeden Helland - 74 - FLORIDA/Alabama
Jane Reynolds - 74 - Alabama/AUBURN
Jessica Samuels - 74 - DUKE/Texas A&M
106. Arlene Amo Hopps - 73 - DUKE/Connecticut
Brandon Satterwhite - 73 - FLORIDA/Alabama
Bubba Zdrowak - 73 - FLORIDA/Alabama
Katie Zdrowak - 73- DUKE/St. John's
110. Benny Frank Finkelstein - 72 - FLORIDA/Alabama
Jacey Fowler II - 72 - Alabama/FLORIDA
Hannah Sosa - 72 - FLORIDA/Alabama
George Walks 4 - 72 - TENNESSEE/FLORIDA
114. Chris LaForte - 71 - MICHIGAN STATE/Alabama
Sean McInerney 1 - 71 - TENNESSEE/FLORIDA
116. Kyle Henderson 2 - 70 - HOUSTON/FLORIDA
117. Ferris Spuhler - 69 - Kansas/DUKE
Logan Spuhler - 69 - FLORIDA/TENNESSEE
George Walks 1 - 69 - AUBURN/TENNESSEE
Keith Zdrowak - 69 - DUKE/FLORIDA
121. Quinn Jackson - 68 - Alabama/MICHIGAN STATE
Steven Usma 4 - 68 - FLORIDA/Kentucky
123. Tyler Giamberini - 67 - Maryland/Alabama
Sean McInerney II - 67 - FLORIDA/St. Mary's
Amanda Staudt - 66 - MICHIGAN STATE/Purdue
Amy Zdrowak - 66 - AUBURN/Alabama
127. Biscuit Zdrowak - 63 - HOUSTON/Iowa State
128. Bill Ganoe 2 - 59 - HOUSTON/St. John's
129. Dave Marzouca 2 - 58 - Connecticut/Alabama
130. Dave Marzouca - 57 - AUBURN/Arizona
131. Stephanie Henderson - 55 - AUBURN/Clemson
132. Wes Wiggins - 51 - Arizona/Louisville
133. Barkley Sosa - 41 - Mississippi State/Connecticut
134. Luna Frank - 36 - Marquette/HOUSTON
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