Three Key Takeaways:

1. Georgetown is very solid defensively. Whether the Hoyas were playing zone or man, they stifled Belmont’s long-range shooting attack all night, as the Bruins were held to 37% from behind the arc. The success of Georgetown’s defense can definitely be linked to the length the Hoyas have on their roster. Starters Nate Lubick, Otto Porter, Henry Sims, and Hollis Thompson are all at least 6’8″ and each uses their length quite well.
2. Jason Clark can be a March star. The senior was outstanding, as he put up 21 points on 9-12 shooting. If Georgetown can get performances like this from Clark as the tournament progresses, there are not many teams that will be able to contain him. Clark also picked up four rebounds and two steals, while playing solid defense on Belmont’s Drew Hanlen.
3. Georgetown shook off its last two NCAA Tournament appearances. After consecutive opening game defeats to Ohio and Virginia Commonwealth, Georgetown was able to take advantage of its higher seed and top a team it was favored against. Georgetown will be favored again on Sunday when it plays NC State, so it will be interesting to see if the Hoyas can take care of business again.

Star of the Game. Jason Clark, Georgetown. The senior scored 10 of the team’s first 14 points and paced the team for the remainder of the game. As a senior, Clark had experienced opening game disappointment before, so one would have to credit him for putting past disappointment out of mind and leading his team to victory.

Sights and Sounds. Belmont definitely had the more raucous following. Clad in all red, the Bruins fans stayed into the game until the very end, even when it was known their team was finished. There were not as many Georgetown fans as I had expected, but the ones in attendance made their presence known, especially when the Hoyas began to pull away.

What’s Next? Georgetown will meet North Carolina State on Sunday. The Wolfpack were upset winners (by seeding at least) over San Diego State earlier this afternoon. The Wolfpack were able to top the Aztecs with solid defense and outstanding shooting. With the way Georgetown defended today, it will be interesting to see if NC State can maintain its strong offensive performances.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. Survive and Advance.  Florida State did not want to become the 15th team  – and only the fourth since 2000 – to lose as a #3 seed in the round of 64.  The Seminoles used an impressive second-half defensive effort – holding St. Bonaventure to 11-31 from the floor – and were able to hold off the upset-minded Bonnies.  FSU allowed St. Bonaventure to shoot 46% in the first half, which led to a six-point deficit at the break.  Florida State is known for its ferocious halfcourt defense, and that is what carried it through to the third round.  The Seminoles were also able to neutralize St. Bonaventure star Andrew Nicholson, who got off to a hot start with 10 points in the first eight minutes of the game, but finished with only 20.
2. Seminoles Win without Much from Snaer.   The Seminoles’ leading scorer, Michael Snaer was held scoreless on the day for the first time in his career. Snaer, a second-team All-ACC performer, got into early foul trouble and played only five minutes in the first half.  He was a non-factor in the second and took only seven shots, going 0-5 from three. Florida State Coach Leonard Hamilton has to be pleased that his team was able to overcome the odds considering such a poor performance from its best player to move on.
3. A Perplexing Finish.  After Florida State missed two of three free throws late, St. Bonaventure had a chance to tie with a late three.  The Bonnies had the ball in the frontcourt with 20 seconds remaining but had no timeouts left.  Florida State guarded the perimeter ferociously, leaving Da’Quan Cook with a two-point attempt with nine seconds left.  After Cook rebounded his miss, rather than pass to a teammate for a three, he went back up with it and time expired.  It was an inexplicable ending to a hard-fought game.

Star of the Game. Bernard James, Florida State. On this day, Florida State does not advance without the play of Bernard James.  Given the off afternoons that the team’s two leading scorers, Ian Miller and Snaer had (eight combined points), James’ performance was a necessity.  He ended up with 18 points and nine rebounds.

Quotable.   “Give Florida State credit. They defended very well in the second half.  But we did what we needed to do; we just came up short.  It was a terrific college basketball game.” – St. Bonaventure head coach Mark Schmidt

Sights and Sounds.  St. Bonaventure, which appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2000, had a raucous and creative group of fans on hand in Nashville.  Florida State’s smaller contingent got very loud themselves after the Seminoles clawed back and took the lead. The Tomahawk Chop was out in full force on Friday.

What’s Next?  Third-seeded Florida State now looks to its matchup with sixth-seeded Cincinnati in what promises to be a defensive war.  Don’t expect a lot of offense in Sunday’s game.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. The lane is open. To open the game, Florida relied too heavily on the three-point shot.  After getting down early 10-2, the Gators rallied back to make a 28-10 run into halftime and an eight-point lead of their own thanks to driving the ball into the lane and Florida’s Erving Walker slicing between the Cavalier defense.
2. Three point shooting woes. Both teams struggled from the three-point line in the first half, going a combined 1-of-22 from behind the arc.  The second half was a little better as Florida went 3-of-7, but Virginia struggled only going 3-of-10 in the second half.  Florida needs the three pointer to be on for them to get through their next opponent. 
   
3. Second Chances. The Gators had several second chance opportunities in this game outscoring the Cavaliers 12-0 in that category.  Virginia didn’t protect the lane at the right times and the lack of defense allowed Florida to shoot almost 70% in the second half.

Star of the Game–Bradley Beal, Florida.  Beal came up big in the second half scoring 10 of his game high 14 points and then grabbed 11 rebounds.  The freshman guard from St. Louis didn’t play like a guard, with that rebounding ability.   Patric Young and Casey Prather also came up big going a combined 12-of-13 from the field.

Sights & Sounds–There were concerns from Omaha officials about the attendance for this game due to the local school Creighton taking on Alabama at the same time as this game.  But by the middle of the second half the arena mostly filled in but you could hear periodic cheers out of nowhere due to fans in the arena seeing the Creighton game on the concourse TVs.

Quotable–“You saw a team that really took it to us and we didn’t have an answer,” Tony Bennett, Virginia Head Coach.

What’s Next?–The Gators now wait to see if they will face Missouri or Norfolk State in the round of 32 on Sunday.  The likely pick here will be Missouri as they have the fan support at the CenturyLink Center and have been pretty dominant this season.   The key for Florida will be to hit more three pointers than they did in this one.  If they go cold again, it will be tough for them to advance to the Sweet Sixteen.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. As McDermott goes, so does Creighton. Creighton star Doug McDermott hit a three-pointer with eight minutes to go in the first half, putting the Jays up by four. Then McDermott went scoreless for the next twelve, and Alabama built a 10-point lead. The Jays only got back into the game in the second half when McDermott started finding the basket again.
2. Bama Shot the Lights Out. Alabama is usually one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the nation, but they found a way to hit more than 40% of their deep shots against Creighton. Without this unusual output, the Crimson Tide wouldn’t have been able to stay in the game.
3. Late Game Management is Crucial. Creighton smartly used their foul to give with 4.7 seconds left. But Alabama waited until after they inbounded the ball and ran 2.3 seconds off the clock before calling a timeout. When play resumed, Alabama didn’t have time to get a clean shot off, and the Jays advanced.

Star of the Game. Doug McDermott, Creighton. Though he led all scorers with 16 points, McDermott’s best play may have been grabbing an offensive rebound when Greg Echenique  missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 33 seconds left, up by two points. McDermott didn’t let his mid-game scoring drought affect his later play, and he came up big at the end.

Sights and Sounds. Attendance was sparse for the 1:40 pm tipoff, especially among Alabama fans. However, that made it easier to enjoy the Creighton and Alabama bands trading renditions of pop-punk classics. Alabama’s version of Blink-182’s “All the Small Things” was fun, but it couldn’t beat the breakneck pace of Creighton’s “Blitzkrieg Bop.”

What’s Next? Creighton will likely meet North Carolina playing what amounts to a home game for the Tar Heels, barring something historically unseen. If the Jays can keep hitting from outside, they’ll have a chance.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. NC State simply shot the ball better. The Wolfpack shot a sizzling 58.5% from the field for the game, which included a scorching 65.4% in the second half. On the other hand, San Diego State shot just 37.7% from the field for the game. When you see that big of a discrepancy in field goal percentage, it is easy to see why one team won and the other lost.
2. Chase Tapley did not play a complete game. While the junior guard scored 19 points and shot 7-13 from the field in the second half, Tapley was held scoreless in the first half and only attempted five shots. If Tapley had been able to give the Aztecs a strong effort in the first half, they might be the team moving on to the round of 32.
3. NC State has balance. Four players scored in double-figures – Richard Howell with 22, Lorenzo Brown with 17, CJ Leslie with 15, and Scott Wood with 10. It is tough to beat a team that gets such strong contributions from its starters and that was something the Wolfpack did receive.

Star of the Game. Lorenzo Brown, NC State. The sophomore guard was a jack-of-all trades for the Wolfpack, as he scored 17 points, grabbed nine rebounds, and handed out eight assists. He also did a fine job of maintaining his composure when San Diego State threatened to come back multiple times during the second half.

Quotable. Steve Fisher. In his opening statement, Fisher said that his squad was “beat by a very good team who played very well.” That is a credit to how good of a job Mark Gottfried has done in his first season in Raleigh. When Gottfried took over for Sidney Lowe, the Wolfpack could hardly be considered even an average team.

Sights & Sounds. NC State had a strong contingent of fans make the trip to Columbus. Clad in mostly red, the Wolfpack fans were in the game from the beginning and were rewarded handsomely in the end.

What’s Next. NC State will move on to face the winner of Georgetown and Belmont. If it faces Georgetown, NC State will need to have an answer for the Hoyas’ length and quickness on the defensive end. If it faces Belmont, NC State will need to contend with the Cinderella factor as the Bruins will be the crowd favorite.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. Stifling First Half Bearcat Defense.  Cincinnati gained control of this game in the first half by pressuring Texas on the perimeter and not giving the Longhorns good looks.  Texas went 4-25 in the first half and trailed by 14 at the break. Certainly, they missed some easy looks, but the Bearcats’ intensity should be credited for the atrocious shooting.  The Longhorns battled all the way back to tie the game, but Cincinnati’s lead was too much for Texas to overcome.
2. Dominating the Glass. Cincinnati is not known as a great rebounding team, as its size limits its ability in that area, but the Bearcats dominated the boards in the first half (26-18), and limited the Longhorns’ second-chance points. Considering the number of opportunities Texas had for offensive boards, this was a key to Cincinnati’s success.  The eventual rebounding advantage for the Bearcats was +6, and given that the Longhorns outrebounded their opponents on the season, this stat had to please Cincinnati Coach Mick Cronin.
3. What can (J’Covan) Brown do for you?  On this day, if you’re Texas, simply not enough.  While the Big 12’s leading scorer ended up close to his 20-point per game average, he was largely ineffective in the first half, when the Longhorns dug themselves too deep a hole from which to recover.

Star of the Game.  Yancy Gates.  The senior from Cincinnati scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.  More importantly, after Texas tied the game at 52, Gates made a nice post move to give the Bearcats the lead, and a 17-foot fadeaway to help seal it.

Quotable.  “I’m not gonna answer that question.  I’ll talk to coach and we’ll figure that out later.” – Brown, on whether he would return for his senior season.

Sights and Sounds.  A dull environment in the first half because of Texas’s awful play, the Bridgestone Arena came alive in the second half as the Longhorns improbably erased what had become a 19-point deficit early.  After a day of forgettable games Thursday, it was good to see a more electric environment for a first-round game.

What’s Next?  Cincinnati awaits the winner of Florida State-St. Bonaventure.  If the third-seeded Seminoles can handle their business against the Bonnies, it appears that we’ll see a tough defensive battle on Sunday.

There were 16 games today with too many heroes and twists to note in one place. After each game, our on-site correspondents wrote up a Rushed Reaction to each game. In case you missed any of those, or just simply want to remind yourself what happened, here’s an entire Thursday’s worth of work. Check back on Friday throughout the day for more RRs, usually published within 30 minutes of a game’s end.

• RR: #6 Murray State 58, #11 Colorado State 41
• RR: #8 Kansas State 70, #9 Southern Mississippi 64
• RR: #4 Louisville 69, #13 Davidson 62
• RR: #4 Wisconsin 73, #13 Montana 49
• RR: #1 Syracuse 72, UNC Asheville 65
• RR: #3 Marquette 88, #14 BYU 68
• RR: #5 New Mexico 75, Long Beach State 68
• RR: #5 Vanderbilt 79, #12 Harvard 70
• RR: #1 Kentucky 81, #16 Western Kentucky 66
• RR: #7 Gonzaga 77, #10 West Virginia 54
• RR: #12 VCU 62, #5 Wichita State 59
• RR: #3 Baylor 68, #14 South Dakota State 60
• RR: #8 Iowa State 77, #9 Connecticut 64
• RR: #4 Indiana 79, #13 New Mexico State 66
• RR: #1 Ohio State 78, #16 Loyola (MD) 59
• RR: #11 Colorado 68, #6 UNLV 64

Three Key Takeaways.

1. OSU has many weapons, not all of which are loaded. OSU has as many weapons as anyone in the tourney. They have Jared Sullinger, William Buford, Deshaun Thomas, Aaron Craft, and Lenzelle Smith, Jr. They can afford in the early going to not have each of their weapons loaded, but that’s not going to cut it when they get deeper. Buford wasn’t firing on all cylinders today. The box score might suggest otherwise, but half of his points were in garbage time at the end. The same goes with Craft. He wasn’t his usual intense and defense-oriented self tonight. OSU needs that version of Craft throughout the tourney. The bottom line is for this team to win a championship, they need all of their weapons to be loaded and firing at the same time.
2. Energy will only take you so far. Loyola came out firing, and actually surprised me for a bit. They led 5-1 right away, and didn’t look like they were going away. Then reality caught up to them. They are a little shorter, a little less athletic, a lot less tested, and nowhere near as deep as Ohio State. I have to tip my hat to Dylon Cormier and Erik Etherly, who gave everything they had versus OSU. Cormier finished the game with 14 points on 5-12 shooting, and a perfect 2-2 from the line. Etherly finished with 19 points on an even more efficient 6-12 from the field and a near perfect 7-8 from the field along with 7 boards and 4 blocks.
3. Who is OSU’s leader? I have heard that Aaron Kraft is OSU’s leader, or maybe it’s Jared Sullinger, or, well, I am not exactly sure. I am not sure if OSU knows either. Usually you can tell by who is bringing everyone together in the huddle, or who is getting in other guys’ faces, but I didn’t see that today at all. I saw a collection of very good players that played very well together at times, and then played well individually at times. I didn’t see a complete team effort, and I didn’t see one person step up and take control as a leader. I think OSU is going to need that as they get deeper, or they won’t be the team standing with the trophy at the end of this. I think that’s what hurt them last year too.

Star of the game. Deshaun Thomas, Ohio State. Thomas literally had a career day today, with 31 points setting a new career high. He did it in a fairly efficient manner on 13-22 from the field for 59%. In addition, he had 12 boards, seven on which were offensive, for a pretty phenomenal double double to start out the tourney.

Sights and Sounds. Unlike many of the earlier games, this game was lacking in sights and sounds outside of the cheerleaders and mascots for each team. During halftime I actually saw the Greyhound from Loyola jumping to give high fives to fans sitting above the hallway to the court entrance. Now that’s dedication and school spirit wrapped in one right there.

What’s Next? #2 Ohio State will advance to take on #7 Gonzaga on Saturday. Both teams essentially had blowouts today, and were never seriously challenged. Ohio State will need a couple more of their weapons to come with their guns loaded, in particular William Buford and Aaron Craft. Sullinger will need to be much more efficient, especially when operating in the post. Deshaun Thomas had a solid effort, so if he continues his scoring spree they should be in a good position to advance.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. Outworked. For roughly the first 30 minutes of this game, Colorado was the significantly better team. They were killing UNLV on the glass (and wound up recording a 75.5 OR% and a 30 DR%) and blistering them from the field in building the lead as high as 20. Colorado was beating the Rebels to every loose ball, running crisp offense and defending like crazy, rapidly turning a highly anticipated game into a blowout.
2. Bounceback. But, the Rebels didn’t give up and mounted a furious comeback, getting within two after a 26-8 run. They turned on a full-court press which gave CU all sorts of trouble (the Buffs turned it over 14 times in the second half on the way to 23 for the game), did a better job of attacking the hoop and even saw some three-pointers fall. Part of the reason for the turnaround seemed to be that the Buffaloes felt they had the game in the bag and let off the gas a little bit and it took them a while to right the ship. But when Andre Roberson blocked an Anthony Marshall shot, collected the loose ball and fired a Kevin Love-esque full-court pass to Carlon Brown for a dunk, the Buffs had their mojo going again and finished off the game from there.
3. Main Matchup. Roberson and Mike Moser are similar players and coming into the game, their matchup was the primary individual matchup to keep an eye on. While Moser may be the name more known nationally, Roberson’s team not only won the war, but he won the battle. While Moser’s ten points and nine rebounds look okay, they came along with inefficient offense and despite the fact that Roberson, who wound up with 12 points and 16 rebounds, beat Moser to loose balls time and time again

Star of the Game. Andre Roberson. He was spectacular at the start, a major cog in the Buffs building up their early lead and he was instrumental in getting the Buffs back rolling again after they stalled out. While plenty of players made major contributions for CU, they’re heading back to Boulder if not for Roberson.

Sights & Sounds. After a stellar showing at the Pac-12 Tournament last weekend, the Colorado student section did it again tonight, turning out a big crowd and making The Pit a home floor for their Buffaloes. Apparently the CU athletic department put together an offer too good to be refused, offering students transportation to the game, a ticket and lodging all for $50 a person. If it helped earn the Buffs an extra game in the NCAA Tournament, it was a great deal for CU.

Wildcard. Askia Booker was a sparkplug for the Buffaloes off the bench in the first half, scoring 12 spectacular points in 11 minutes (on his way to 16 points on the game) and providing several plays that helped staunch a building sense of Rebel momentum.

Quotable. Brown on Booker’s statement that he is surprised at his success in his freshman year: “Can I say something to that?  He’s not surprised.  He just told you a nice lie because earlier when we were in the room he said, “Man, as long as Colorado got me, we’re going to win.”  So he’s very confident in himself.  We’re glad he’s confident.  He played a great game today, and glad to have him.”

What’s Next? Colorado faces Baylor Saturday evening, hoping to extend their season-high winning streak to six games and advance to the Sweet Sixteen. Roberson will get another chance to add to his credentials when he matches up with the talented Baylor frontline.

Three Key Takeaways.

1. Indiana Shredded the NMSU Defense. It was obvious from the opening tip that Indiana was going to get the shots it wanted against the porous New Mexico State defense. What was less clear was whether they’d hit most of them. That question was answered with a blistering 59.3% performance that only got better as the game went on, and was equally effective from both outside (7-13 3FGs) and within the arc (25-41 2FGs). Christian Watford, Cody Zeller, and Will Sheehey each contributed 14 points as the Hoosiers consistently worked the ball to open shooters in the right spots.
2. On the Other Hand… Indiana isn’t known as a very good defensive team, and it showed in this game. NMSU hit for a healthy 55.1% against the Hoosier defense, but they were really hurt by their 17 turnovers and the lack of a team leader on the perimeter. We said during the game at one point in the second half that it felt like Indiana had been ahead by a nine-point margin all game long, and it was because IU was able to itself score almost every time down the court, but NMSU was able to hold its own excepting the miscues. This isn’t something that they Hoosiers are going to want to allow VCU to do on Saturday. If they give up easy and open looks to the Rams, they’re be down 20 points before they know what hit them.
3. Indiana is On Its Way Back. This is no one-hit wonder. The introduction of Cody Zeller to the lineup this season has converted Indiana from a middling Big Ten program to a pretty good one. The Hoosiers are still not a major player on the national level yet, but they’ve taken the first step by getting to the Dance and winning a game. You can tell that their fans, their players, their coaches and everyone associated with the program believes in it. It’s not Hoosier Hysteria, but it’s not hard to envision that it’s coming.

Star of the Game. Jordan Hulls, Indiana. We gave him a hard time at one point in the first half after he dogged it on a loose ball and let a guy 11 inches taller and 50 pounds heavier out-hustle him for a loose ball, but he had a spectacular night otherwise. It only seemed like he hit everything he threw up at the rim, but he actually missed four shots out of the 12 he attempted as he put together a 22-point, three-assist night.

Quotable. “We’re better for it, and we’re just getting started.” – Tom Crean, answering a question about all the rebuilding that he and his players have gone through in the last four years to get Indiana to a place where it can win an NCAA Tournament game.

Sights & Sounds. What’s better than the traditional Indiana candy stripe warm-up pants? Glad to see the Hoosiers back in the Tournament.

What’s Next? Indiana advances to play Shaka Smart’s VCU Rams on Saturday, which will be a much more equally-matched game than their seeds would indicate. Indiana makes a lot of threes and shoots them at a very high percentage, but as we’ve seen, VCU is really good at forcing teams into zones of discomfort. Can’t wait for this one.