And Then There Were Eight: A Look at the Sweet Sixteen
The round of sixteen known as the Sweet Sixteen came to a close Friday night as Florida guard Chris Chiozza sank a tear drop three-pointer in the final seconds of overtime against Wisconsin. Due in large part to sophomore guard KeVaughn Allen’s 35-point performance, Florida hung in with the Badgers, the surprise sleepers of the tourney. It took them an entire overtime and a last ditch shot, but the Gators are moving on to the Elite Eight. There they will face the other big surprise of this year’s tournament, the South Carolina Gamecocks.
Gamecocks star Sindarius Thornwell scored 24 points en route to a victory over third-seed Baylor, 90-70. This was Baylor’s worst loss in tournament history, and a sad end to their stellar season. For a team that hadn’t won a single game in the Big Dance since 1973, the Gamecocks are showing a surprising amount of moxie this year. This marks their third win in as many games. And now the big question for South Carolina is, can they wrestle the Gators into submission? They’ll have their chance this Sunday at Madison Square Garden. In light of each team’s success at MSG, it’s likely to be a momentous game. No matter who wins, could any of us have expected the East region to turn out this way? I sure couldn’t.
Meanwhile down in the West, Gonzaga managed to stave off a strong bid from fourth-seed West Virginia. The final score was 61-58. It was a rough shooting night for both teams. Bulldogs guard Johnathan Williams led his team in scoring with 13 points, while West Virginia’s Jevon Carter did most of the heavy lifting for the Mountaineers with 21 points. In the end, the Mountaineers could not overcome an awful shooting slump, going 16 of 60 from the floor. Gonzaga moves on to the Elite Eight to face what many are calling their toughest test yet in the eleventh-seeded Xavier Musketeers.
Xavier finished the Sweet Sixteen with a stunning victory over tournament favorites, the second-seed Arizona Wildcats. With an incredible offensive performance from Trevon Bluiett and his 25 points, Xavier just looked like the better team Thursday night. The Musketeers outplayed Arizona by playing as a cohesive unit. They moved the ball well. They shot the ball well, 52.8% from the field to be exact. In the end, Allonzo Trier’s 19 point, 9 rebound game was not enough to lift the Wildcats. The Zags and Musketeers kick off Saturday evening at the SAP Center in San Jose, CA. Both teams are looking to notch their first ever Final Four appearance.
Then in the Midwest, top-seeded KU dominated Purdue in their most devastating performance of the tournament. For the third straight game the Jayhawks outscored their opponents by twenty points or more; this time, beating the Boilermakers 98-66. Led by USA Today Player of the Year Frank Mason III and his 26 point, 7 rebound, 7 assist game and Devonte Graham’s 26 points, KU demonstrated their prowess in a big way. Josh Jackson followed behind with a 15 point, 12 rebound double-double, as well four steals. The Jayhawks just looked incredible, scoring 51 in the second half alone while holding Purdue to 26 points. They move on to the Elite Eight to face the third-seeded Oregon Ducks at the Sprint Center Saturday night.
The Ducks will have some solid momentum heading into Saturday’s game after they beat No. 7 Michigan 69-68. Sophomore guard Tyler Dorsey led the Ducks with 20 points. Jordan Bell snagged a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. And now Oregon moves on to the Elite Eight to face Bill Self and Company.
The drama continued down in the South region where Levon Ball and UCLA got their foots in their mouth in a loss to second-seed Kentucky. That Ball ended the game with a subpar 10 points and 8 assists matters little now. Ball announced after the game that he intends to apply for the NBA Draft. While Kentucky’s tourney hopes remain alive thanks to De’Aaron Fox’s career-high 39 points. This was the most points a freshman has ever scored in a tournament game. His teammate, Malik Monk, also recorded 21 points. In the first half, the lead changed 13 times while in the second half it was all Big Blue and De’Aaron Fox. In the end, the freshman-led Wildcats made an important statement as they move on to the Elite Eight to face one-seed UNC.
Speaking of one-seed UNC, the Tar Heels handed the Butler Bulldogs a 92-80 loss. North Carolina pretty much led the entire game by double digits. At no point did Butler seem to really have a chance. Joel Berry II and Justin Jackson recorded 26 and 24 points respectively while sophomore forward Luke Maye had a career-first double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds. He also shot .600 from the field. With Maye’s help, UNC jumped out to an early lead, stretching it to as many twenty points, while shooting 54.4 percent from the floor. Andrew Chrabascz led the fourth-seeded Bulldogs (25-9) with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Kelan Martin finished with 16 points for Butler. The Bulldogs were unable to recover from poor early shooting. And now Roy Williams and Friends will face John Calipari and Co. at the FedExForum Arena in Memphis, Tennessee on Sunday evening. It’s slated to be one of the most competitive games of the tournament so far.
With three of the four number-one seeds still fighting for a spot in the Final Four, the Elite Eight is shaping up to be a real doozy, maybe even one of the most exciting rounds of college basketball we’ve seen in years. The heavyweights in the Midwest and South regions will surely give us some incredible moments, while in the East and West we’ve got a sleeper team fighting a top-seed with momentum on their side. Not to mention South Carolina’s mindblowing run into the Elite Eight. Will it continue or will Florida cut them down as they ride high from Chris Chiozza’s buzzer-beater Friday night? Stay tuned for more answers, action and recaps as we walk the road to the Final Four!
