March Madness

Whether those games (and more) can live up to the opening day of the 2022 NCAA Tournament remains to be seen. That said, there's a reason it's called March ...

Whether those games (and more) can live up to the opening day of the 2022 NCAA Tournament remains to be seen. No. 9 TCU, which tips off at 9:57 p.m. No. 10 Loyola-Chicago) and ends with No. 8 Seton Hall vs.

Here are the winners and losers from another day of action in the NCAA Tournament.

But the Wildcats closed the half on a 13-2 run and never looked back on the way to an 80-60 victory. Houston jumped out to an early 18-point lead and held Walker to 1-of-10 shooting from 3-point range in an 82-68 thrashing of the Blazers. Up next is a date with No. 4 seed Illinois, an opponent that looked vulnerable on Friday. While a number of highly seeded teams struggled in Round 1 to even advance, No. 3 seed Purdue sent a statement on the national scene, blasting No. 14 seed Yale 78-56 to advance to Round 2. A first-round NCAA Tournament loss against No. 15 seed Oral Roberts in 2021 cast a pall over Ohio State's basketball program, but the Buckeyes emerged from the cloud with a 54-41 win over Loyola-Chicago. The nature of the win was nice for Ohio State as well. Chattanooga experienced the best March has to offer on March 7 when it beat Furman in the SoCon Tournament title game on David Jean-Baptiste's deep 3-pointer at the buzzer. The Trojans nearly delivered a dagger at the horn with a 3 that banked in and out, but Miami's much-deserved positive regression in close games finally hit at a perfect time. Duke entered its first-round game against Cal State Fullerton as an 18.5 point favorite against the No. 15 seed Titans. The Blue Devils led comfortably throughout the second half and advanced on to the second round with relative ease after winning 78-61. Oh, and this dunk from Smith has to to be a lock to appear in "One Shining Moment." TCU picked up its first NCAA Tournament victory since 1987 by pummeling Seton Hall 69-42 to reach the second round, where it will take on No. 1 seed Arizona. The last time the program won a game in the Big Dance, its 56-year-old head coach Jamie Dixon was the team's second-leading scorer. Colgate was also competitive as a No. 16 seed in losses against Kansas and UConn in 1995 and 1996. But now the Tigers enter an uncertain night with athletic director Scott Woodward's excellent track record of hiring coaches shining as the only light in what may wind up as a bleak tunnel for the LSU program. As the sun rose on a new day following Kentucky's historic loss, some of the tournament's top seeds seemed particularly invigorated to avoid similar fates as the Wildcats.

The talk after Selection Sunday centered on the selection committee favoring the Big Ten Conference, particularly near the bubble line, sending nine teams ...

The Ramblers (25-8) were absolutely dreadful offensively in a 54-41 loss to an Ohio State team that finally got healthy. The No. 2-seeded Tigers (28-5) watched their SEC counterpart Kentucky lose to a No. 15 seed Thursday, but made sure to pull away from Jacksonville State late in the first half. Instead the Hens managed 3-for-20 from 3-point range (15%). Defensively, coach Martin Ingelsby's group couldn't stay in front of 'Nova's guards, especially Collin Gillespie and Justin Moore, in the 80-60 loss. The No. 14-seeded Raiders (23-12) came close to staging an upset but it wasn't enough as Wisconsin pulled away late for a 67-60 win behind All-American Johnny Davis' 25 points. The No. 7-seeded Spartans (23-12) pulled out what felt like an upset in a 74-73 win, edging out No. 10 Davidson. Veteran big man Joey Hauser propelled Michigan State offensively with 27 points and eight rebounds, while this Tom Izzo-coached defense was smothering in the final minutes of the game to help MSU seal the victory. The No. 13-seeded Mocs (27-8) were ready to become the first Cinderella of Friday's action but crumbled down the stretch and couldn't pull out an upset over Illinois in a 54-53 loss. Chattanooga did a decent job at limiting All-American big man Kofi Cockburn, but the big man's basket with 47 seconds left gave the Illini their first lead of the game before pulling it out in the game's final minute. The No. 3-seeded Boilermakers (28-7) put Yale away early and didn't look back for a 78-56 win in which All-American Jaden Ivey scored 22 points. The No. 11-seeded Fighting Irish (24-10) looked like the favorite in their first-round clash with Alabama. Guard Cormac Ryan went off from beyond the arc, drilling seven 3-pointers on the way to a 29-point performance. It's been a decent NCAA Tournament for the ACC's five teams, with Duke ( hammered Cal State Fullerton) and Miami (clipped USC) both advancing Friday while Virginia Tech bowed out in a loss to Texas. Duke seemed to rekindle its identity, which seemed to have disappeared in the ACC tournament and Coach K's final home game vs. So far, the Big Ten has delivered and put forth a strong showing in March Madness, with all five teams pulling out wins in Friday's first-round action.

For what it's worth, their bracket had Gonzaga, UCLA, Houston and Providence in the Final Four, with Houston beating Gonzaga for the national championship. The March Madness bracket busting started early this year. After the first game of the first round, ...

March Madness, the NCAA's men's and women's basketball tournaments, returns to normal as fans are back at full capacity. But the celebration may be tempered ...

GOLDMAN: Janie Payne (ph), another Montanan, admitted her celebration of hoops in Portland was tempered by what's happening outside America's basketball arenas. It's hard enough to - just to get to the NCAA tournament. Playing against the 16th-seeded Georgia State Panthers, the Zags actually trailed with 13 minutes left in the game. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) His team ultimately lost in the championship game to Baylor. The atmosphere, Timme said, didn't work. You watch this growing up - watch March Madness - and then you just want to be in this position. JALEN DUREN: Just the bright lights and just the packed house is just amazing atmosphere. Payne was thrilled to be part of this return to almost normal. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) In arenas from Buffalo to here in Portland, there was this... NPR's Tom Goldman took in the scene yesterday in Portland, Oregon, where first-round games were a cause for celebration, albeit tempered for some.

Dive Deeper Into the N.C.A.A. Tournaments · A Catalyst for Change: A viral video by Oregon's Sedona Prince led to a gender equity review in college basketball. · ​​Throwback Big Men: In an era that prioritizes 3-pointers, Kentucky's Oscar Tshiebwe and ...

Senior Diamond Battles and fifth year senior Masseny Kaba rounded out Central Florida’s experienced offense, scoring easily around the basket and from midrange (the Knights made just two 3-point shots). Central Florida has lost just three games this season, and this win extends their current streak to 14. Washington State was up seven points at halftime, a lead that seemed substantial given that the score was just 24-17. Though Clark prevailed, Hillmon has had a commanding senior season, scoring quickly and gracefully from the midrange and below the basket while playing with impressive urgency on the defensive end of the court. Hillmon put on a show for the home crowd in Ann Arbor, scoring 24 points in 25 minutes on the floor while gathering 11 rebounds. But North Carolina State kicked into high gear in the second quarter and took off, extending its lead to 42-21. She managed to make eight assists, but was still relatively quiet in what looked at the outset like a matchup between two stars. Meyers and her fellow guard Kaitlyn Chen set the pace, executing graceful fakes and muscling past a Kentucky team that seemed to be perennially looking for foul calls that never came. The team competed against Baylor, then coached by Kim Mulkey as well, in last year’s tournament — a possible explanation for how effective their game plan was. Alas, in L.S.U.’s first tournament game under coach Kim Mulkey, the higher seed found a way to pull ahead at the last possible moment on its home floor. But it was Belmont’s 3s — 12 in all — that kept the Bruins in the game. But the ball bounced off the rim, giving the Bruins their second tournament upset in two years.