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Associated Press
30-03-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Sears, Alabama can't duplicate record 3-point night, fall to Duke with Final Four at stake
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Mark Sears shot a free throw late in the second half that could have cut Alabama's deficit to 10 — a last-gasp effort at a comeback still within reach — and watched the ball clang off the back rim. Even the supposed gimmes weren't automatic for Sears. The star guard equated the hoop to the size of an ocean in his mind after sinking 10 3-pointers in the Sweet 16. But against Duke, with a Final Four berth at stake, that rim for Sears shrunk to the size of a teardrop. Duke handcuffed Alabama's All-American and did a pretty good job stifling the rest of the Crimson Tide, too. Sears was held to six points and Alabama followed an NCAA Tournament-record 25 3-pointers with only eight, dooming its shot at a second straight Final Four with an 85-65 loss in the East Region final Saturday night. Sears — who finished 2 of 12 from the field and 1 for 5 on 3s — shot a clunker on Alabama's first attempt of the game and never got untracked. He hit 10 3s and scored 34 points on the same Prudential Center court only two nights earlier against BYU. This time, Sears made his only basket of the first half with 2:17 to go, pulling Alabama within eight. Cooper Flagg and Duke looked largely unflappable — and unstoppable — en route to an 18th Final Four. The Blue Devils gave Sears nowhere to go and left him scrambling for open looks. Labaron Philon hit a trio of 3s and scored 16 points for Alabama (28-9), but the highest-scoring team in the nation was nearly held to a season low for points. Sears, a first-team All-America guard, was in a long-range slump before his BYU breakout. He went just 1 of 9 over the first weekend of the tournament and was only 3 for 25 over his previous five games before he made 10 of 16 from deep. That spectacular night seemed more an aberration than a sign of success to come. Under coach Nate Oats, the former math teacher who turned a humdrum program into one of the nation's elite, Alabama reached its first Final Four last season before losing to eventual national champion UConn. Elimination came a round earlier this year — and denied the dominant SEC a shot at placing four teams in the Final Four. Alabama failed to crack 70 points for only the second time all season. The Crimson Tide set March Madness records by making 25 3-pointers against BYU, attempting 51 and knocking one of college basketball's most memorable teams, Loyola Marymount, off a perch it had held for 35 years. They made only five in the first half against Duke and the long ball never fell their way. Alabama shot 8 for 32 from behind the arc and 35.4% overall from the floor.
New York Times
28-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Men's NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 roundup: Alabama sets 3-point record, Cooper Flagg carries Duke
The first night of Sweet 16 action in the men's NCAA Tournament left the nets scorched at the Prudential Center and the Chase Center. Some of college basketball's veterans and biggest stars shined. Duke's Cooper Flagg, Alabama's Mark Sears, Arizona's Caleb Love and Arkansas' Johnell Davis all scored 30-plus points. The tournament's chalk-heavy theme continued with wins by all four higher-seeded teams — No. 1 Florida, No. 1 Duke, No. 2 Alabama and No. 3 Texas Tech — but the Red Raiders needed a herculean comeback effort in Thursday's final game to deny Arkansas a trip to the Elite Eight. Advertisement Here's how it all went down. NEWARK, N.J. — With an NCAA Tournament-record 25 3-pointers, Alabama earned a trip to the Elite Eight for the second consecutive season as Sears scored 34 points in a 113-88 victory over sixth-seeded BYU in the East Region on Thursday night. Sears missed his first 3 of the game, then made his next three and was on his way to a career-high 10, one short of the NCAA Tournament record. 'I was just in a zone,' Sears said. 'Once I saw the first 3 go in, I felt like the basket was as big as an ocean.' Sears brought his teammates into the zone with him, with eight of Alabama's 27 assists. And then the shooting became contagious. Second-seeded Alabama finished with 51 attempts from 3, which also set a tournament record. For the game, 77 percent of the Tide's shots were from 3-point range. In its first two tournament victories, Alabama took 33 percent of its 114 shots (34) from 3-point range. The Tide (28-8) will try to reach the Final Four for the second straight season against top-seeded Duke on Saturday night. — Ralph Russo To read more on Alabama's historic night, click here. SAN FRANCISCO — A dominant performance on the boards (plus-22) and a balanced scoring attack (six players in double figures) helped No. 1 seed Florida top Maryland 87-71 in the Chase Center, sending the Gators to the Elite Eight. Florida had just a two-point lead at halftime, mostly the result of self-inflicted wounds (13 turnovers). But the Gators looked much more like the hottest team in basketball — they've won nine straight, including three in the SEC tournament — after the break, outscoring Maryland 47-33 in the second half. Florida turned it over only four times after the break. In other lopsided stats, its bench outscored Maryland's reserves 29-3. Advertisement The Gators are arguably the most loaded team in the field, but their depth took a hit — at least momentarily — when starting center Alex Condon badly twisted his right ankle and hobbled to the bench. He went back to the locker room immediately and got precautionary X-rays to rule out anything season-ending. Condon sprained the same ankle earlier this season. Will Richard led the Gators with 15 points, while Alijah Martin (14 points, seven rebounds), Thomas Haugh (13 points, nine rebounds) and Rueben Chinyelu (10 points, eight rebounds) all had productive nights as well. The Terps were led again by sensational freshman Derik Queen (27 points, five rebounds, two steals) in what is all but certainly his last college game. Queen, a Baltimore native whose commitment to the state school was a coup of sorts for Maryland basketball, is projected as a lottery pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. The bigger question for Maryland: Did Kevin Willard coach his last game for the Terps? — Lindsay Schnell For more on Florida's momentum-building performance, click here. NEWARK, N.J. — By the time the scoop pass hit Flagg's hands, Duke's freshman superstar only had time to steal a quick glance up at the rapidly expiring clock. Four seconds, three … Just enough time. With his left heel still touching the logo, Flagg let a shot fly, leaned his head a little to track the trajectory of his would-be buzzer-beater — and then turned in jubilation as the ball dropped through the net, giving Duke a much-needed six-point halftime cushion. For all his spectacular moments on Thursday night, no sequence better captures how Flagg willed Duke past Arizona, 100-93, and into the Elite Eight for the second consecutive season. And for as dominant as Flagg has been all season, this was his true breakout performance of the postseason: 30 points on nine-of-19 shooting, seven assists, six rebounds, three blocks and one steal. Advertisement 'One of the best tournament performances I've ever coached or been a part of,' Duke coach Jon Scheyer said postgame. 'He just did what he was supposed to do.' Without every last one of those points, there's no telling whether No. 1 Duke would've survived No. 4 Arizona's valiant comeback attempt. Love saved his best for last in his tenth career meeting against the Blue Devils. His 3 to beat Duke in the 2022 Final Four remains one of the greatest shots in college basketball history. On Thursday, after Duke led by as many as 19 points midway through the second half, the former North Carolina star turned into a shooting supernova, scoring a season-high 35 points and draining five triples to get things as close as five points in the final minutes. — Brendan Marks Read more on Flagg and Love's memorable duel here. Texas Tech forward Darrion Williams hit a 3-pointer to cap a massive comeback in regulation and then backed his way into a game winner at the rim with seven seconds left in overtime, sending the Red Raiders to an 85-83 win over the Razorbacks and into an Elite Eight matchup with No. 1 seed Florida. D5. CLUTCH. AGAIN! THE SECOND LARGEST COMEBACK EVER IN THE SWEET 16!#TTW | 📺 TBS — Texas Tech Basketball (@TexasTechMBB) March 28, 2025 Texas Tech trailed by as many as 16 points and was down 13 with four and a half minutes to play. It appeared as though John Calipari would storm back into an Elite Eight for the first time in six years, after an ugly divorce with Kentucky and a move 700 miles west to Fayetteville. It appeared the SEC would guarantee itself a Final Four participant with a matchup of two of its record 14 NCAA Tournament entrants at the Chase Center on Saturday. Instead, Arkansas put the ball in the hands of sophomore D.J. Wagner for three of the biggest shots of the game, despite getting 30 points from Davis and 20 from Karter Knox on the night. Wagner missed a potential game-winner at the end of regulation, tied it before Williams' heroics in overtime and then came up short on a jumper as time expired. Advertisement Arkansas and Texas Tech effectively traded scores or stops for the first two and a half minutes of overtime. Davis was then swatted on a drive to the rim and JT Toppin followed with a score in the paint to nudge Texas Tech ahead 81-78 with 1:41 left. No one could catch their breath, still. Brazile stepped into a top-of-key 3-pointer out of a timeout to tie it at 81-81. Toppin answered with a hook in the lane. Wagner made an impossible shot in the lane. Williams then backed down toward the rim and effectively willed a shot to go down. When Wagner's jumper at the horn came up short, it was Texas Tech — not Arkansas — ending an Elite Eight absence a half a dozen years long and doing so with the second-biggest comeback ever in a Sweet 16 game. — Brian Hamilton Click here to read the full story of Texas Tech's comeback. Photo by)
USA Today
28-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Who's in Elite Eight? Updated men's March Madness bracket, schedule for NCAA Tournament
Who's in Elite Eight? Updated men's March Madness bracket, schedule for NCAA Tournament Show Caption Hide Caption Duke, Arkansas, and Houston headline Men's Sweet 16 With the Sweet 16 upon us, USA Today Sports' Mackenzie Salmon previews a few of the top matchups we're most looking forward to. Sports Seriously Sixteen teams have received a few days of rest, but now it's time for the second weekend of the men's NCAA Tournament. Four teams will advance to the Elite Eight after Thursday's March Madness games, which includes matchups between BYU and Alabama, Maryland and Florida, Arizona and Duke and Arkansas and Texas Tech. REQUIRED READING: March Madness games today: Analyzing Thursday's Sweet 16 men's NCAA Tournament matchups Alabama became the first team to advance to the Elite Eight on Thursday with an incredible 3-point performance from the Crimson Tide. Nate Oats' squad won 113-88 with a men's NCAA Tournament-record 25 made 3s on a record-51 attempts. Later, No. 1 seed Florida dispatched No. 4 seed Maryland 87-71 to send two SEC teams to the Elite Eight. Coach John Calipari and the Razorbacks are the lone double-digit seed in the Sweet 16, although they're not a typical Cinderella team, given their Hall of Fame coach plus a roster that features plenty of high-end talent. Follow along here to see Elite Eight teams and matchups and games conclude in the 2025 men's NCAA Tournament: Who's in men's Elite Eight? This section will be updated. No. 2 Alabama (East) No. 1 Florida (West) Elite Eight schedule, how to watch This section will be updated. Dates: Saturday, March 29 and Sunday, March 30 Saturday, March 29 and Sunday, March 30 TV: CBS | TBS/truTV CBS | TBS/truTV Streaming: March Madness Live | Sling TV | Fubo (free trial) When is men's Elite Eight? The men's Elite Eight will take place on Saturday, March 29 and Sunday, March 30. Each day will see two games apiece, setting the Final Four field. Men's March Madness bracket All times Eastern. East Region First round No. 1 Duke 93, No. 16 Mount St. Mary's 49 No. 16 Mount St. Mary's 49 No. 9 Baylor 75, No. 8 Mississippi State 72 No. 8 Mississippi State 72 No. 5 Oregon 81, No. 12 Liberty 52 No. 12 Liberty 52 No. 4 Arizona 93, No. 13 Akron 65 No. 13 Akron 65 No. 6 BYU 80, No. 11 Virginia Commonwealth 71 No. 11 Virginia Commonwealth 71 No. 3 Wisconsin 85, No. 14 Montana 66 No. 14 Montana 66 No. 7 Saint Mary's 59 , No. 10 Vanderbilt 56 , No. 10 Vanderbilt 56 No. 2 Alabama 90, No. 15 Robert Morris 81 Second round No. 1 Duke 89, No. 9 Baylor 66 No. 9 Baylor 66 No. 4 Arizona 87, No. 5 Oregon 83 No. 5 Oregon 83 No. 6 BYU 91, No. 3 Wisconsin 89 No. 3 Wisconsin 89 No. 2 Alabama 80, No. 7 Saint Mary's 66 Sweet 16 No. 2 Alabama 113, No. 6 BYU 88 No. 6 BYU 88 No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 1 Duke | 9:39 p.m. | CBS (Fubo) Elite Eight No. 2 Alabama vs. TBD Midwest Region First round No. 1 Houston 78, No. 16 SIU-Edwardsville 40 No. 16 SIU-Edwardsville 40 No. 8 Gonzaga 89, No. 9 Georgia 68 No. 9 Georgia 68 No. 12 McNeese State 69, No. 5 Clemson 67 No. 5 Clemson 67 No. 4 Purdue 75, No. 13 High Point 63 No. 13 High Point 63 No. 6 Illinois 86, No. 11 Xavier 73 No. 11 Xavier 73 No. 3 Kentucky 76, No. 14 Troy 57 No. 14 Troy 57 No. 7 UCLA 72, No. 10 Utah State 47 No. 10 Utah State 47 No. 2 Tennessee 77, No. 15 Wofford 62 Second round No. 1 Houston 81, No. 8 Gonzaga 76 No. 8 Gonzaga 76 No. 4 Purdue 76, No. 12 McNeese 62 No. 12 McNeese 62 No. 3 Kentucky 84, No. 6 Illinois 75 No. 6 Illinois 75 No. 2 Tennessee 67, No. 7 UCLA 58 Sweet 16 No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 2 Tennessee | TBS (Sling TV) No. 4 Purdue vs. No. 1 Houston | TBS (Sling TV) South Region First round No. 1 Auburn 83, No. 16 Alabama State 63 No. 16 Alabama State 63 No. 9 Creighton 89, No. 8 Louisville 75 No. 8 Louisville 75 No. 5 Michigan 68, No. 12 UC San Diego 65 No. 12 UC San Diego 65 No. 4 Texas A&M 80, No. 13 Yale 71 No. 13 Yale 71 No. 6 Ole Miss 71, No. 11 North Carolina 64 No. 11 North Carolina 64 No. 3 Iowa State 82, No. 14 Lipscomb 55 No. 14 Lipscomb 55 No. 10 New Mexico 75, No. 7 Marquette 66 No. 7 Marquette 66 No. 2 Michigan State 87, No. 15 Bryant 62 Second round No. 1 Auburn 82, No. 9 Creighton 70 No. 9 Creighton 70 No. 5 Michigan 91, No. 4 Texas A&M 79 No. 4 Texas A&M 79 No. 6 Ole Miss 91, No. 3 Iowa State 78 No. 3 Iowa State 78 No. 2 Michigan State 71, No. 10 New Mexico 63 Sweet 16 No. 5 Michigan vs. No. 1 Auburn | CBS (Fubo) No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 2 Michigan State | CBS (Fubo) West Region First round No. 1 Florida 95, No. 16 Norfolk State 69 No. 16 Norfolk State 69 No. 8 UConn 67, No. 9 Oklahoma 59 No. 9 Oklahoma 59 N o. 12 Colorado State 78, No. 5 Memphis 70 No. 5 Memphis 70 No. 4 Maryland 81, No. 13 Grand Canyon 49 No. 13 Grand Canyon 49 No. 11 Drake 67, No. 6 Missouri 57 No. 6 Missouri 57 No. 3 Texas Tech 82 , No. 14 UNC-Wilmington 72 , No. 14 UNC-Wilmington 72 No. 10 Arkansas 79, No. 7 Kansas 72 No. 7 Kansas 72 No. 2 St. John's 83, No. 15 Omaha 53 Second round No. 1 Florida 77, No. 8 UConn 75 No. 8 UConn 75 No. 4 Maryland 72, No. 12 Colorado State 71 No. 12 Colorado State 71 No. 3 Texas Tech 77, No. 11 Drake 64 No. 11 Drake 64 No. 10 Arkansas 75, No. 2 St. John's 66 Sweet 16 No. 1 Florida 87, No. 4 Maryland 71 No. 4 Maryland 71 No. 10 Arkansas vs. No. 3 Texas Tech | TBS (Sling TV) Elite Eight
Fox Sports
23-03-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
After winning with a 3-point barrage in NCAA opener, Texas Tech goes inside to take apart Drake
Associated Press WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland knew that tossing up 46 shots from beyond the arc wasn't going to fly against Drake. Not like it did in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against UNC Wilmington. So, the Red Raiders turned to JT Toppin, their second-team All-American, and bruising forward Darrion Williams, and the two of them responded Saturday night by bludgeoning the Bulldogs in the post. Toppin had 25 points and 12 rebounds, Williams had a season-best 28 points, and together they sent Texas Tech into the Sweet 16 with a 77-64 victory. The third-seeded Red Raiders will play No. 10 seed Arkansas in the West Region semifinals Thursday night in San Francisco. 'I think the coaches put us in great spots,' said Williams, who left briefly in the second half when he appeared to aggravate his right leg injury. 'We watched a ton of film the last 48 hours, just putting us in the right spots to go.' It wasn't just the last 48 hours that Texas Tech could draw upon, though. It also played Drake in a scrimmage in Lubbock way back in November, long before McCasland and his close friend and Drake counterpart Ben McCollum knew they would be facing each other on the biggest stage in college basketball. And the Red Raiders picked up a thing or two from it. The biggest was this: Throw the ball to Williams and Toppin and let them go to work. 'We felt like you couldn't play off ball screens. You needed to give it to our guys in space, and let them play in space, and then just clear a side,' McCasland said. "These are two of the best ball-handlers — they're basically the best passers outside of Elijah Hawkins on our team. We just trusted them to handle the basketball. 'When we got the advantage and they saw it, we were able to take advantage of it, because of their footwork and spacing.' Toppin scored 19 of his points on 9-of-10 shooting in the first half. Williams had 14 by that point. And together, they outscored the Missouri Valley regular- and postseason champs by themselves; Texas Tech led 37-30 headed to the locker room. 'Those two," McCollum said simply, 'are a load down there.' Texas Tech took a decidedly different approach in its first-round win over UNC Wilmington, when it put up an NCAA Tournament-record 46 3-pointers. Williams had 13 points and Toppin had just 12 in that game. 'We felt like we needed to play inside-out (against Drake),' McCasland said. 'Everybody was talking about how many 3s we shot on Thursday, but I think we can win in a lot of different ways.' The teams that make deep runs in March usually can. 'We only turned the ball over five times, and man, we didn't make 3s,' said McCasland, whose team was in fact 2 of 13 from beyond the arc against Drake. 'That just shows the resilience of Darrion and JT, just being persistent, the way we put it on the block.' Every time Bulldogs tried to make a charge, Williams or Toppin provided the answer. When they drew within 43-38 on a basket by Bennett Stirtz with 16:15 to go, it was Toppin's turn to score. When the Bulldogs closed within 49-45 a few minutes later, it was Williams who stepped up. In fact, at one point in the second half, the two powerful forwards alternated scoring on four consecutive possessions to help Texas Tech take control. Ultimately, they helped the Red Raiders score more points than Drake had allowed in regulation all season. 'They played a fantastic game,' McCollum said. 'You kind of have to pick your poison with them just because of the way we're built. We executed our game plan. Unfortunately, their two bigs dribbled down the whole game and made it very difficult on us.' ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. recommended
Yahoo
23-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
After winning with a 3-point barrage in NCAA opener, Texas Tech goes inside to take apart Drake
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Texas Tech coach Grant McCasland knew that tossing up 46 shots from beyond the arc wasn't going to fly against Drake. Not like it did in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against UNC Wilmington. So, the Red Raiders turned to JT Toppin, their second-team All-American, and bruising forward Darrion Williams, and the two of them responded Saturday night by bludgeoning the Bulldogs in the post. Toppin had 25 points and 12 rebounds, Williams had a season-best 28 points, and together they sent Texas Tech into the Sweet 16 with a 77-64 victory. The third-seeded Red Raiders will play No. 10 seed Arkansas in the West Region semifinals Thursday night in San Francisco. 'I think the coaches put us in great spots,' said Williams, who left briefly in the second half when he appeared to aggravate his right leg injury. 'We watched a ton of film the last 48 hours, just putting us in the right spots to go.' It wasn't just the last 48 hours that Texas Tech could draw upon, though. It also played Drake in a scrimmage in Lubbock way back in November, long before McCasland and his close friend and Drake counterpart Ben McCollum knew they would be facing each other on the biggest stage in college basketball. And the Red Raiders picked up a thing or two from it. The biggest was this: Throw the ball to Williams and Toppin and let them go to work. 'We felt like you couldn't play off ball screens. You needed to give it to our guys in space, and let them play in space, and then just clear a side,' McCasland said. "These are two of the best ball-handlers — they're basically the best passers outside of Elijah Hawkins on our team. We just trusted them to handle the basketball. 'When we got the advantage and they saw it, we were able to take advantage of it, because of their footwork and spacing.' Toppin scored 19 of his points on 9-of-10 shooting in the first half. Williams had 14 by that point. And together, they outscored the Missouri Valley regular- and postseason champs by themselves; Texas Tech led 37-30 headed to the locker room. 'Those two," McCollum said simply, 'are a load down there.' Texas Tech took a decidedly different approach in its first-round win over UNC Wilmington, when it put up an NCAA Tournament-record 46 3-pointers. Williams had 13 points and Toppin had just 12 in that game. 'We felt like we needed to play inside-out (against Drake),' McCasland said. 'Everybody was talking about how many 3s we shot on Thursday, but I think we can win in a lot of different ways.' The teams that make deep runs in March usually can. 'We only turned the ball over five times, and man, we didn't make 3s,' said McCasland, whose team was in fact 2 of 13 from beyond the arc against Drake. 'That just shows the resilience of Darrion and JT, just being persistent, the way we put it on the block.' Every time Bulldogs tried to make a charge, Williams or Toppin provided the answer. When they drew within 43-38 on a basket by Bennett Stirtz with 16:15 to go, it was Toppin's turn to score. When the Bulldogs closed within 49-45 a few minutes later, it was Williams who stepped up. In fact, at one point in the second half, the two powerful forwards alternated scoring on four consecutive possessions to help Texas Tech take control. Ultimately, they helped the Red Raiders score more points than Drake had allowed in regulation all season. 'They played a fantastic game,' McCollum said. 'You kind of have to pick your poison with them just because of the way we're built. We executed our game plan. Unfortunately, their two bigs dribbled down the whole game and made it very difficult on us.' ___ AP March Madness bracket: and coverage: Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here.
