Updates, results, brackets, highlights, and Friday’s NCAA Men’s Tournament games for March Madness

Thursday’s opening round of March Madness the NCAA Tournament had exciting comebacks, shocking outcomes, and even a contentious conclusion that tarnished Samford’s attempt to overcome Kansas.

Nicolas Timberlake attempted a dunk, but Samford guard AJ Staton-McCray appeared to block it; however, a foul was called on the floor. The Kansas guard connected on both of his free throw tries, and the Jayhawks prevailed 93-89.

Michigan State, ranked ninth, did what they do best in March in the opening game of the schedule: win. The Spartans’ 69-51 victory over Mississippi State, ranked as the eighth seed, turned out to be a precursor to SEC clubs’ difficulties in the postseason.

Infuriating Kentucky, No. 14 Oakland hands the Wildcats their second Round of 64 defeat in three years.

John Calipari’s Wildcats were eliminated in the Round of 64 for the second time in the previous three seasons on Thursday night as the No.

14 Oakland Golden Grizzlies upset the No. 3 Kentucky Wildcats 80-76 in the NCAA Tournament.

Guard Jack Gohlke made 10 three-pointers en route to a team-high 32 points for Oakland, falling just short of tying the NCAA Tournament single-game record. Trey Townsend, a forward who finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds, was also very helpful.

Following their 2022 defeat to No. 15 Saint Peter’s when it was a No. 2 seed, Kentucky’s upset loss marks the second time in the previous three seasons that it has fallen to a double-digit seed in the Round of 64.

With less than 17 minutes left in the game on Thursday night, the Golden Grizzlies had taken the lead for the first time in the game after five minutes of intense play.

The Golden Grizzlies put relentless pressure on the inexperienced Wildcats throughout the first half, creating a lead as large as six points before a late run by the Wildcats pulled them within three points at halftime, 38-35, thanks to some excellent shooting from Gohlke.

Both teams’ second halves were largely same as Gohlke kept making baskets from beyond the arc while several of Kentucky’s highly anticipated freshmen, such Reed Sheppard and D.J. Wagner, found it difficult to register points.

With just four minutes remaining, Oakland emerged from the final media break ahead of Calipari’s Wildcats, 69-65.

After being fouled while trying to make a three-point shot, Gohlke made two free throws to extend Oakland’s advantage.

With 1:03 remaining, Rob Dillingham’s step-back three cut the advantage to one, but D.Q. Cole’s subsequent Oakland answer stretched the lead back to four, 78-74, with just under 30 seconds left.

With 3.9 seconds left, Townsend made a free throw to give Oakland a four-point lead, 80-76, and secure Oakland’s triumph on the greatest stage of the NCAA for Coach Greg Kampe’s club.

Antonio Reeves of Kentucky led the squad in scoring with 27, but the three outstanding freshmen, Dillingham, Sheppard, and Wagner, combined for just 13 points.

The Golden Grizzlies, who had won four straight games and were 23-11 going into the contest, were the victors of both the Horizon League regular season and conference tournament.

Not counting the 2019–20 tournament, which was canceled because to the COVID–19 pandemic, Kentucky has now missed the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament for four straight seasons.

Oakland will move on to the South Region Round of 32, which takes place on Saturday.

March Madness Day 1

Day 1 of the NCAA Men’s Tournament is complete. Here are updates on all of Thursday’s games.

March Madness : (7) Washington State 66, (10) Drake 61

With 1:51 remaining and Isaiah Watts’ first 3-pointer in three games, Washington State defeated No. 10 Drake 66-61 in the NCAA Tournament on Thursday night. Isaac Jones finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds.

The Cougars (25-9) trailed for the whole of the second half while shooting just 29.6%, but they prevailed in their first tournament since 2008 because to Drake’s season-worst 6-of-14 shooting from the free-throw line.

WSU began to mount a comeback at 54-46, which was Drake’s (28-7) highest lead.

The Cougars were within 54-51 after Tucker DeVries’ shot went in and out and Andrej Jakimovski’s three-pointer from the wing. Darnell Brodie of Drake lost possession of the ball while attempting to drive to the hoop, and Jones slid in for a layup to tie the score at 53.

With 2:26 remaining, Brodie, who spearheaded Drake’s offensive for the majority of the second half, fouled out before Watts scored the game’s first goal. With five of six free throws, the Cougars managed to fend off the Bulldogs.

For the Bulldogs, DeVries—the two-time Missouri Valley Conference player of the year—added 14 points to Atin Wright’s 20 points.

Washington State, led by Jaylen Wells with 17 points, saw an improvement to 21-0 when leading at halftime.

March Madness 🙁 11) NC State 80, (6) Texas Tech 67

In the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday night, 11th-seeded North Carolina State easily defeated sixth-seeded Texas Tech 80-67 behind a career-high 21 points from Ben Middlebrooks.

With a strong showing from center DJ Burns Jr. and a spark from Middlebrooks coming off the bench, the Wolfpack (23–14), who triumphed in five games over the course of five days in the ACC Tournament, won their first March Madness game in nine years.

The 6-foot-9, 275-pound Burns scored 16 points in the end. For N.C. State, Mo Diarra finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while DJ Horne added 16 points.

March Madness (2) Tennessee 83, (15) St. Peter’s 49

Dalton Knecht of Tennessee forced the ball into transition, was bumped by a Saint Peter’s defender, and scored a layup just before the buzzer. He tripped over a baseline cameraman upon landing, but he contorted to get back up and landed in a form that was worthy of a superior pushup.

It was too much for the Volunteers. Overly profound. Furthermore, they refused to give the Peacocks the slightest chance for another outstanding March Madness run.

On Thursday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Tennessee defeated Saint Peter’s 83-49 thanks to Knecht’s 23 points and a 64% first-half shooting percentage.

For the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region, Jonas Aidoo scored 13 of his 15 points by the half.

In the opening eight minutes, Tennessee jumped out to a double-digit lead, then utilized a 9-0 run to extend the lead above 20 points. Just before halftime, Tennessee’s lead reached 29 points.

(14) Oakland 80, (3) Kentucky 76

The 14th-seeded Golden Grizzlies shocked everyone by defeating the third-seeded Wildcats 80-76, led by a career-high 32 points by Jack Gohlke, who nailed 10 3-pointers.

Trey Townsend, the Horizon League Player of the Year, led Oakland with 17 points. With 28 seconds remaining, DQ Cole made a 3-pointer from the corner to give the Grizzlies a four-point advantage. Cole finished with 12 points. Over the last 14:32, Oakland never trailed, sending coach John Calipari and the Wildcats to yet another early tournament exit.

(2) Iowa State 82, (15) South Dakota State 65

Milan Momcilovic looked nothing like a freshman while pouring in 19 points for Iowa State in an 82-65 win over South Dakota State.

Tamin Lipsey had 17 with seven assists, and Keshon Gilbert finished with 15 points, helping them avenge an embarrassing first-round loss to Pittsburgh a year ago.