March Insanity: Three stars who will impress at event

USA TODAY Sports activities’ Paul Myerberg tells us which names we have to know because the motion will get underway within the NCAA Males’s basketball event.

SportsPulse, USA TODAY

The insanity is absolutely underway.

The primary full day of the boys’s NCAA Match started Thursday with some dramatic upsets, with No. 13 seed Furman scoring the day’s first upset when the Paladins shocked No. 4 Virginia. Then, No. 15 Princeton busted brackets in every single place by upending No. 2 Arizona after trailing a lot of the recreation – and marking the third straight yr a No. 15 seed superior to the second spherical. 

We’re midway by the primary day of the primary spherical, with video games like No. 1 Houston vs. No. 16 Northern Kentucky and No. 2 UCLA towards No. 15 North Carolina-Asheville highlighting an evening slate that will not cease till round midnight Japanese. 

Suppose you will have what it takes to beat your pals? Take a look at your school basketball expertise (or luck) right here with USA TODAY’s Survivor Pool. Sustain with all of the scores and schedules, and bookmark our brackets web page, too! 

A No. 15 seed took out a No. 2 seed early Thursday with Princeton’s win over Arizona, however that wasn’t the case for Texas. The Longhorns superior with a decisive, 20-point win over the Colgate Raiders. 

Texas shot 53.4% from the sphere and went 13-for-23 from three. Sir’Jabari Rice completed with 23 factors off the bench, adopted by Dylan Disu’s and Marcus Carr’s 17 factors every.

Keegan Information and Ryan Moffatt had a group excessive 13 factors for the Raiders, who weren’t capable of get it performed on the defensive finish, both. Colgate was outrebounded by Texas 34-24.

Boise State was capable of shut the Wildcats’ result in 4 earlier than Northwestern pulled away for a 75-67 win. 

Boo Buie scored a game-high 22 factors, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Chase Audige additionally exploded for the Wildcats, scoring 13 of his 20 factors within the second half to complete the Broncos off. 

Boise State’s Marcus Shaver Jr. returned within the second half with a taped ankle and a noticeable limp after leaving the primary half early with a twisted proper ankle. Max Rice led the Broncos with 17 factors, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, with Chibuzo Agbo including 12 factors and Shaver recording 10. However the Broncos weren’t capable of generate sufficient offense to get previous Northwestern, who led the whole thing of the sport.   

Houston acquired a win earlier than the Cougars even tipped off within the 2023 NCAA Match: Marcus Sasser is again.

Sasser is the Cougars’ main scorer at 17.1 factors, and in addition chips in 3.2 assists and a pair of.8 rebounds per recreation. The AAC participant of the yr, he acquired damage late within the first half of Houston’s convention event semifinal, slipping on the ground and hurting his groin. He didn’t play within the AAC event championship, which Houston misplaced 75-65 to Memphis. Houston coach Kelvin Sampson mentioned earlier this week that Sasser can be a game-time choice Thursday. 

In a potent offense — all 5 Cougar starters common 9 factors or extra — Sasser is the important thing. A 6-foot-2, 195-pound combo guard, he’s UH’s first first-team All-American since Hakeem Olajuwon and a probable second spherical choose within the 2023 NBA draft. 

– Lindsay Schnell

Jon Scheyer’s first NCAA Match win as head coach at Duke was a breeze.  

The No. 5 Blue Devils jumped out to a 15-0 lead and by no means regarded again as they cruised previous Oral Roberts and into the second spherical. Jeremy Roach led the way in which with a game-high 23 factors.

Duke dominated the boards, ending with a 47-32 benefit. Extremely-touted freshman Dereck Vigorous II paced the sphere with 12 rebounds. Oral Roberts shot poorly, simply 30.2% from the ground and an even-poorer 25% from 3. 

It feels odd to contemplate Duke a darkish horse, however with a No. 5 seed and with out Mike Krzyzewski on the sideline the Blue Devils definitely weren’t the favorites to win this event. However they are taking part in nearly in addition to any group within the nation, now winners of 10 straight video games, together with a run to the ACC event title.

Charles Barkley is definitely completely happy. His alma mater, Auburn, is transferring on to the second spherical of the NCAA Match following an 83-75 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Johni Broome (19 factors, 12 rebounds, 5 blocks) and Allen Flanigan (10 factors, 10 rebounds, 4 assists) completed with double-doubles, whereas 4 different Tigers reached double-digit factors. 

Payton Sandfort led the Hawkeyes with 21 factors off the bench, however it wasn’t sufficient to mount a comeback.

The Longhorns led by as many as 17 factors within the first half, however the Raiders minimize it to a single-digit lead going into halftime. Texas jumped to an early lead by means of the 3-point line, taking pictures 53.3% from past the arc. Sir’Jabari Rice has 15 factors, two assists and 4 rebounds off the bench for Texas. 

However the Raiders closed the half on a 14-6 run to remain inside hanging distance. Ryan Moffatt leads Colgate with six factors, one steal and one help. 

The Wildcats entered halftime with a six-point lead over the Broncos, having led all the recreation and by as many as 10 factors. Guard Boo Buie is the one Wildcat in double figures with 11 factors, three assists and three rebounds. Chase Audige added seven factors and Ty Berry recorded six. Northwestern solely dedicated 4 turnovers and fouls within the half. 

Broncos guard Marcus Shaver Jr. went down after twisting his proper ankle with 2:33 left within the first half. He was helped again to the locker room and couldn’t apply strain to his ankle. It isn’t clear if he’ll return. Chibuzo Agbo leads the Broncos with 10 factors, one help and three rebounds.

The Blue Devils acquired out to a dominant begin of their first-round matchup, leaping out to a commanding early lead.

Duke had two gamers end the half with double-digit factors. Jeremy Roach posted 13 and Dariq Whitehead added 10 off the bench. Dereck Vigorous II was a power on the glass, knocking down 9 rebounds.

Oral Roberts, in the meantime, struggled to seek out momentum. Max Abmas led the group with eight factors within the first 20 minutes.

General, the Blue Devils shot a formidable 50% from the sphere and 40% from 3-point vary. The Golden Eagles shot simply 26.5% from the sphere and shot 20% from past the arc. Duke received the rebound battle 25-15.

The ninth-seeded Tigers unfold the scoring round, ending the primary half with 4 gamers tallying at the least 5 factors. 9 gamers scored for Auburn general.

Each Johni Broome (eight factors, six rebounds) and Allen Flanigan (six factors, seven rebounds) are on double-double look ahead to the Tigers. Iowa’s Filip Rebraca led all scorers with 10 factors on the break.

Each groups struggled from 3-point vary. Auburn related on simply 1 of 9 pictures from past the arc whereas Iowa missed all 9 of its makes an attempt.

President Joe Biden shared his brackets for the boys’s and girls’s NCAA Tournaments on Twitter forward of Thursday’s tip-off of the boys’s motion and, effectively … his bracket is simply as busted as the remainder of us. 

The commander in chief picked Arizona to win the entire thing. Midway by the day’s motion, the No. 2 seed Wildcats had been eradicated, shocked by No. 15 Princeton within the first spherical. 

Good luck to each group on this yr’s NCAA event.

I’ve acquired Arizona within the males’s event and Villanova within the ladies’s – and as you understand, on this family, Villanova all the time wins. pic.twitter.com/iILzABTCuo

— President Biden (@POTUS) March 16, 2023

To make issues worse, the president had Arizona squaring off with No. 4 Virginia within the Elite Eight. The Cavaliers had been additionally upset Thursday, falling to No. 13 Furman in jaw-dropping vogue. Not nice to have already got a complete area basically eradicated on Day 1, however we think about Biden has larger issues to fret about. 

Regardless of Illinois’ torrid comeback try, No. 8 Arkansas held on for a first-round victory over the ninth-seeded Combating Illini. 

Ricky Council IV was a power for the Razorbacks, tallying 18 factors and 10 rebounds. Teammate Davonte Davis added 16 factors.

In the meantime, Illinois’ Terrence Shannon Jr. led all scorers with 20 whereas teammates Coleman Hawkins and RJ Melendez added 10 factors apiece.

The Combating Illini had been hampered by turnovers, giving freely 17 possessions in comparison with Arkansas’ 11 turnovers within the recreation. Each groups shot lower than 40% from the sphere, however the Razorbacks received the rebound battle 42-34 and superior to the spherical of 32.

Largest upset of the event? The No. 15-seeded Tigers erased a double-digit deficit within the second half to knock off the second-seeded Wildcats. 

Arizona was out-rebounded 39-37 and fell sufferer to 6 blocked pictures within the loss. Princeton’s Tosan Evbuomwan paced the group with 15 factors, seven rebounds and 4 assists.

The Wildcats acquired a 22-point effort from Azuolas Tubelis and acquired a double-double from Oumar Ballo (13 factors, 12 rebounds) however couldn’t shut out the first-round matchup.

Princeton, which shot simply 16% from 3-point vary (4-for-25), did simply sufficient to tug off an unforgettable upset. The Tigers completed the sport on a 9-0 run.

Furman kicked off the insanity by knocking off No. 4 Virginia because of a clutch 3-point shot from JP Pegues within the remaining seconds.

It marked the primary event win since 1974 for the personal faculty with an enrollment of 2,500.

Be taught in regards to the faculty that was thrust into the NCAA Match highlight, like, what’s a Paladin? 

— Jordan Mendoza

The Aztecs survived in one of many closest video games of the day. Matt Bradley led all scorers with 17 factors and in addition added seven rebounds and 4 assists. Jaedon LeDee pulled down 10 rebounds and contributed eight factors.

Charleston acquired up a formidable efficiency by Ante Brzovic, who posted 12 factors and eight rebounds. Jaylon Scott chipped in with 9 factors and 7 rebounds.

Charleston took a whopping 24 makes an attempt from past the arc however made simply 5 of them (20.8%). The Cougars had been a disappointing 31.5% general from the sphere. San Diego State, in the meantime, shot 42.9% from the sphere and out-rebounded Charleston 44-34 to advance to the spherical of 32.

The Azetcs, who will play No. 13 seed Furman within the second spherical on Saturday, final received an NCAA event recreation in 2015 over St. John’s.

Gifted freshman Brandon Miller was held scoreless, however the top-seeded Crimson Tide acquired loads of scoring in a blowout victory over the No. 16 seed.

Nick Pringle led all scorers and posted a double-double with 22 factors and 14 rebounds, whereas Mark Sears added 15 factors and Jahvon Quinerly chipped in with 13.

The Islanders had been led by Isaac Mushila, who went for a double-double with 15 factors and 15 rebounds. Trey Tennyson had a team-high 20 factors.

Alabama was lethal from 3-point vary, connecting on 15 of 33 makes an attempt (45.5%). The Crimson Tide additionally shot 47.8% from the sphere.

Miller, who contributed 5 rebounds and three assists, had not been held to fewer than eight factors all season.

The Razorbacks had been dominant within the first half. Ricky Council IV led all scorers with 10 factors and added six rebounds. Anthony Black chipped in with seven factors and 4 rebounds.

In the meantime, the Combating Illini had been paced by Terrence Shannon Jr. (eight factors) and Luke Goode (six factors).

Illinois shot simply 27.6% from the sphere and went simply 3 of 11 from 3-point vary. They had been out-rebounded 27-19.

Arizona got here alive within the remaining minutes of the half to take a one-pointn lead over Princeton. The Wildcats had been paced by Azuolas Tubelis, who scored 14 factors and added three rebounds and an help within the first 20 minutes.

Tosan Evbuomwan led the Tigers with eight factors and 4 assists. Zach Martini positioned himself on double-double watch with seven factors and 5 rebounds.

Princeton made simply two 3-pointers out of 12 makes an attempt. It additionally didn’t try a first-half free throw. The Tigers, nonetheless, out-rebounded the Wildcats 22-17 to maintain the sport shut.

The Aztecs rode a 15-5 run to finish the half. San Diego State guard Matt Bradley paced all scorers with 9 factors to go together with 4 rebounds and two assists.

Charleston tried 11 three-pointers and made simply three of them. San Diego State shot 49% from the sphere. The Aztecs dedicated 11 turnovers to seek out themselves in an early gap however responded within the remaining 10 minutes of the half.

The Crimson Tide rolled to a giant halftime lead over the Bison. Mark Sears led all scorers with 13 factors to tempo Alabama. Teammate Noah Clowney added 10 factors and 4 rebounds.

Alabama star freshman Brandon Miller was held scoreless within the first half. Miller performed 13 minutes within the half, going 0 of three from the sphere and 0 of two from 3-point vary. He added 5 rebounds and an help. Miller’s regular-season low was eight factors towards Houston. 

Isaac Mushila led Texas A&M-Corpus Christi with 9 factors and 5 rebounds. The Islanders try to develop into simply the second No. 16 seed to upset a high seed in event historical past. College of Maryland Baltimore County posted a 74-54 win over No. 1 Virginia within the first spherical of the 2018 event.

Jalen Wilson, a first-team All-America choice, scored 20 factors and added seven rebounds because the Jayhawks began their nationwide title protection. Kansas had little bother dispatching Howard, which was making simply their third NCAA event look. 

Gradey Dick added 19 factors, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, and three steals for the Jayhawks, who hit 52 p.c of their pictures and led by as many as 24. 

The Jayhawks performed the sport with out head coach Invoice Self, who remains to be recovering from a well being situation that prompted him to overlook the Massive 12 Convention event. The Jayhawks, who had all 5 starters rating in double figures, will play the winner of Illinois and Arkansas on Saturday.

Howard freshman ahead Shy Odom had 15 factors and eight rebounds within the recreation, which was attended by Vice President Kamala Harris, a Howard College alum. 

Kobe Brown hit three three-pointers within the second half, on the way in which to a private 12-0 scoring spurt, to interrupt open an in depth recreation and lead the Tigers to a 76-65 victory over Utah State within the first spherical of the South Area. 

Brown completed with 19 factors for Missouri, who which is able to tackle the winner of Arizona and Princeton on Saturday. D’Moi Hodge led the way in which with 22 factors, hitting 5 three-pointers of his personal.

Utah State had a 49-47 lead within the second half however couldn’t maintain it as a result of poor taking pictures and turnovers. The Aggies had been led by Taylor Funk’s 16 factors and 7 rebounds. 

The South’s No. 8 seed Maryland used a late spurt to tug away with a 67-65 victory over No. 9 West Virginia, in a recreation that featured 9 ties and 11 lead adjustments. The Terrapins now transfer on to play the winner of Alabama and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Saturday. Maryland misplaced to Alabama within the second spherical of their final NCAA event look in 2021.

The Mountaineers had an opportunity to win the sport however Kedrian Johnson’s final-second 3-point try was quick.

Julian Reese led 4 Terrapins, who had been down by 13 factors within the first half in double figures with 17 factors, 9 rebounds, three assists, and three blocks. Hakim Hart added 15 and Donta Scott had 11 factors and eight rebounds. 

West Virginia was led by Johnson, who scored 27 factors.

Virginia guard Kihei Clark threw away a move that was intercepted by Furman’s Garrett Hien, resulting in JP Pegues drilling a 3-pointer with 2.4 seconds left to present No. 13 seed Furman the primary upset of the event over the fourth-seeded Cavaliers. 

The Paladins, who rallied from a 12-point second-half deficit, will play the winner of Charleston and San Diego State on Saturday.

After Hien made two free throws with 12 seconds left to chop the Virginia result in two, Furman trapped Clark, who tried to throw it to a teammate the place it was picked off by Hien close to midcourt. Reece Beekman’s three-point try on the buzzer missed, setting off a wild celebration by Furman. 

Jalen Slawson led the Paladins, who made their first journey to the NCAA Match in 43 years, with 19 factors, 10 rebounds and 4 assists and was considered one of 4 Furman gamers in double figures.

Virginia exits the event early as soon as once more, paying homage to their 2018 upset by the hands of UMBC. The Cavaliers had been paced by Kadin Shedrick who had 15 factors and 13 rebounds.

The Cavaliers have led by as a lot as 10 over Furman, however the Paladins are conserving it shut and path 32-27 at halftime, regardless of taking pictures solely 34 p.c, together with 4-14 from 3-point vary. They’re additionally being outrebounded by eight.

Reece Beekman is pacing the Cavaliers with 10 factors and 4 rebounds and Jalen Swanson leads Furman with eight. Main scorer Mike Bothwell, who averages 18 factors a recreation, has 5 factors, but additionally has three private fouls. 

The Terrapins discovered themselves down 13 factors early towards the Mountaineers however closed sturdy to take a 32-30 halftime lead. Jahmir Younger and Hakim Hart led a balanced Maryland assault with seven factors every, whereas Kedrian Johnson of West Virginia leads all scorers with 10. Maryland is taking pictures 58 p.c from the sphere.

The primary video games of March Insanity are underway as a pair of South Area video games kick off the motion.

West Virginia and Maryland are going again in forth of their 8-9 matchup in Birmingham, Alabama as the primary half winds down, whereas the primary recreation in Orlando pits No. 4 seed Virginia and No. 13 seed Furman.

Kansas coach Invoice Self is not going to be on the sideline when the top-ranked Jayhawks tackle No. 16 seed Howard on Thursday.

Norm Roberts will proceed to function appearing head coach instead of Self, who is taken into account each day.

Self returned to follow this week after being discharged from the College of Kansas Well being System, the place he had two stents inserted to deal with blocked arteries in his coronary heart.

Kansas takes on Howard at 2 p.m. ET.

It’s onerous to concentrate to each group in school basketball all through the lengthy season that began method again in November, when all people was nonetheless centered on soccer. And, even when the gridiron motion is finished, the hardwood groups from big-name conferences snag a lot of the marquee TV slots. So a number of you may not find out about these so-called mid majors which might be about to swoop in and seize their share of the highlight, if just for a number of days, and even the occasional energy convention group that limps in as a double-digit seed however hits its stride on the proper time. We’re right here to assist. Listed here are 5 candidates to contemplate strongly to tug off a first-round upset.

— Eddie Timanus

Whether or not it is at house, at a bar or at work, tens of millions of People can be tuning in to look at groups make or break their bracket. 

CBS and Turner Sports activities have the broadcasting rights to the males’s NCAA Match and broadcast video games on 4 channels. Three of them – CBS, TNT and TBS – you might know from broadcasting dozens of different sporting occasions annually, however the remaining channel, truTV, is one which all the time eludes basketball followers annually. 

Here is the place to seek out TruTV, relying in your cable supplier or streaming service, and what video games can be on the community:

TruTV may be discovered on a number of cable suppliers, and has the identical channel quantity nationwide on a number of the suppliers. Listed here are the channels:

AT&T U-Verse: 164/1164

FIOS: 183/683

Cox: Varies by location 

DISH: 242

DirecTV: 246

Spectrum: Varies by location

Xfinity: Varies by location

For streaming, truTV can also be obtainable on: YouTube TV, iOS App Retailer, Google Play, Amazon App Retailer, Chromecast, Apple TV, Amazon Hearth TV, Roku and Android TV.

Which March Insanity video games can be on truTV?

Eight video games can be broadcast on truTV within the first rounds of March Insanity. Listed here are the video games that can be on truTV, in addition to tip-off occasions (in ET):

• No. 4 Virginia vs. No. 13 Furman (Thursday, 12:40 p.m.)
• No. 5 San Diego State vs. No. 12 Faculty of Charleston (Thursday, 3:10 p.m.)
• No. 7 Northwestern vs. No. 10 Boise State (Thursday, 7:35 p.m.)
• No. 2 UCLA vs. No. 15 UNC Asheville (Thursday, 10:05 p.m.)
• No. 3 Xavier vs. No. 14 Kennesaw State (Friday, 12:40 p.m.)
• No. 6 Iowa State vs. No. 11 Pittsburgh (Friday, 3:10 p.m.)
• No. 3 Gonzaga vs. No. 14 Grand Canyon (Friday, 7:35 p.m.)
• No. 6 TCU vs. No. 11 Nevada/No. 11 Arizona State (Friday, 10:05 p.m.)

— Jordan Mendoza

The fact of the NCAA Match is that unpredictability and randomness normally trump an ideal script. And this yr specifically, we must always all spend the subsequent three weeks embracing the concept our picks are ineffective and our brackets will probably should be thrown within the trash.

On paper, this has the potential to be one of many craziest tournaments we’ve ever seen. 

Why? Perhaps as a result of this has not been a dominant yr for the massive, conventional manufacturers. As a substitute, we’ve seen Houston cruise by the American Athletic Convention whereas barely getting a worthy check from anybody moreover Memphis. We’ve seen soccer faculties Alabama and Texas A&M dominate the SEC whereas Kentucky comes into the event trying like an underachiever.

We’ve seen Miami, a group constructed on veterans and transfers, rise to the highest of the ACC whereas Duke went method underneath the radar a lot of the yr and North Carolina missed the event fully. And the Massive Ten nearly felt like a random outcomes generator at occasions with 9 groups ending inside two video games of one another within the standings behind Purdue, which ran off with the convention title.

— Dan Wolken

Houston enters the NCAA Match with the No. 1 rating within the USA TODAY Sports activities coaches ballot, regardless of its loss within the American Athletic Convention championship recreation simply previous to the revealing of the brackets on Sunday.

The Cougars, who had been taking part in with out main scorer Marcus Sasser within the loss to Memphis, retained 21 of 32 No. 1 votes to stave off second-ranked Alabama. The Crimson Tide acquired eight firsts after profitable the SEC title in spectacular vogue on Sunday.

— Eddie Timanus

The South Area is loaded. It begins on the high with the general highest seed, but when Alabama is to make its first Ultimate 4 in program historical past, it must navigate a bracket stuffed with a lot of achieved packages, together with 4 packages with nationwide championship banners hanging of their house arenas.

Two of the three most up-to-date NCAA champs are right here, Baylor and Virginia. Arizona, a powerhouse of the ‘90’s, is again within the title hunt. Then there’s Maryland, which minimize down the nets early this century and is hoping to make noise as one of many Massive Ten’s quite a few representatives within the subject.

— Eddie Timanus

Excellent news for the Jayhawks – they wouldn’t should play Texas once more till the Ultimate 4. Even higher information – Kansas head coach Invoice Self is anticipated to rejoin the group. He was discharged Sunday from the hospital, the place he checked in final week with chest tightness and steadiness issues. In response to docs, Self had two stents positioned with a purpose to deal with blocked arteries in his coronary heart.

The No. 2 seed, UCLA, enters the event with harm points. If UCLA hadn’t misplaced defensive whiz Jaylen Clark to harm within the regular-season finale, there’s a great probability the Bruins would have had a No. 1 seed and a path to the Ultimate 4. 

— Josh Peter

Purdue is trying to advance to the Ultimate 4 for the primary time underneath coach Matt Painter and the primary time as a program since 1980. The Boilermakers are constructed round 7-foot-4 junior middle Zach Edey, the favourite for nationwide participant of the yr.

The East Area would not lack for star energy: Purdue is joined by No. 2 Marquette, No. 3 Kansas State and No. 4 Tennessee, adopted by No. 5 Duke and No. 6 Kentucky.

— Paul Myerberg

How will you not like a regional bracket that – if the seedings maintain type – could have Texas assembly Texas A&M within the second spherical and wind its strategy to Houston, and Texas taking part in for a spot in a Ultimate 4 being held in Houston?

The most effective first-round matchup within the Midwest?

The Texas A&M-Penn State recreation pairs groups that had nice runs final weekend and have great guard play; however each performed Sunday and have to come back again and play Thursday. (It additionally matches the sartorial splendiferousness of Aggies coach Buzz Williams and his go well with vests towards the quarter-zip-casual Micah Shrewsberry.)

— Steve Berkowitz