UGA MBB
UGA
Contacted:
Amaree Abram PG Mississippi 6-4 190 FR TX 8.0 2.0 2.0
Ta’lon Cooper PG Minnesota 6-4 190 SR+ SC 9.8 4.0 6.3
Chris Ledlum PF Harvard 6-6 225 SR NY 18.8 8.4 1.6
Ishmael Leggett SG Rhode Island 6-3 190 SO MD 16.4 5.8 2.4
BJ Mack PF Wofford 6-8 245 SR NC 16.6 5.6 1.4
Jordan Minor PF Merrimack 6-8 240 SR MA 17.4 9.4 2.3
Johnny O’Neil PF American 6-9 200 JR FL 11.3 6.6 1.4
Jackson Paveletzke PG Wofford 6-3 185 FR WI 15.1 2.7 3.7
Kowacie Reeves SF Florida 6-6 192 SO 8.5 2.6 0.5
Myles Stute SF Vanderbilt 6-7 215 JR DC 8.4 4.6 0.6
Evan Taylor SG Lehigh 6-6 205 SR IL 14.2 6.5 1.1
Jayden Taylor SG Butler 6-4 195 SO IN 12.9 3.8 1.3
Nicolas Timberlake SG Towson 6-4 205 SR MA 17.7 3.9 2.4
Tedrick Wilcox SG St. Francis, NY 6-6 188 SR RI 11.3 3.7 2.1
Probable Contacts:
Josh Cohen PF St. Francis
UGA Follows on Twitter:
Amaree Abram PG Mississippi
Ricky Bradley PG VMI
Jaemyn Brakefield SF Mississippi
Blue Cain SG IMG (Georgia Tech)
Nate Calmese SG Lamar
Josh Cohen PF St. Francis. NY
Bradley Dean SG UVA Wise
Jared Garcia PF Salt Lake CC
EJ Jarvis PF Yale
Maxwell Land SG St. Francis, Pa
Chris Ledlum PF Harvard
Ishmael Leggett SG Rhode Island
Mike Meadows SG Portland
Johnny O’Neil PF American
Jackson Paveletzke PG Wofford
Isaiah Pope SG Utah Tech
Myles Stute SF Vanderbilt
Nicolas Timberlake SG Towson
Jaykwon Walton SF Wichita State
UGA Followers on Twitter:
Amaree Abram PG Mississippi
Ricky Bradley PG VMI
Blue Cain SG IMG (Georgia Tech)
Josh Cohen PF St. Francis, NY
Bradley Dean SG UVA Wise
Jared Garcia PF Salt Lake CC
Robert Jennings PF Texas Tech
Maxwell Land SG St. Francis, Pa
Mike Meadows SG Portland
***Jackson Paveletzke PG Wofford (following 3 UGA coaches)
Isaiah Pope SG Utah Tech
Myles Stute SF Vanderbilt
2023 HS Signees affected by coaching changes we would love to talk to:
Contacted: Blue Cain SG IMG - Georgia Tech (NIL release) 6-4 180 (UGA follows him and his parents on social media and they follow back)
Brandon Gardner PF Christ the King - St.John’s (Originally from Waynesboro
Committed Elsewhere:
Tyler Houser C VMI - Delaware
Xander Rice PG Bucknell - Monmouth
UGA WBB
Next Opponent: Iowa
Rivals.com: Preview: No. 2 seed Iowa WBB vs. No. 10 seed Georgia
“Iowa fans are understandably worried about this game. Just last year, 10-seed Creighton defeated Iowa in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to begin a Cinderella run to the Elite Eight.
Now Cedar Rapids native and former Iowa player Katie Abrahamson-Henderson brings her 10-seeded Georgia team to Iowa City looking to complete a storybook ending of her own. What problems will Georgia present for Iowa on Sunday?
GEORGIA’S ZONE
Georgia is led by its defense. The Bulldogs rank 25th nationally in opponent’s points per 100 possessions and 14th nationally in steal rate.
A big reason for that defensive success is Georgia’s zone. The Bulldogs will likely play a 3-2 (or 1-2-2) zone the entire game. At its best, the zone is meant to cause chaos on the perimeter through aggressive traps on the wing or in the corners. Against Florida State, Georgia had a couple runs of success generating turnovers in the second quarter and early fourth quarter. Those turnovers—especially in the fourth—helped swing momentum in the game.
But outside of those two periods, Georgia’s zone didn’t cause Florida State that many issues. The Seminoles average 13.5 turnovers per game and only had 14 against Georgia.
When I think of aggressive, turnover-focused zones I think Northwestern. The Wildcats were down this year, but caused Iowa problems in Caitlin Clark’s first two years because they never stop looking to turn teams over. I don’t think this Georgia defense is quite that disruptive.
The biggest benefit of Georgia’s 3-2 zone against Florida State was limiting dribble penetration. When Georgia was set Florida State got very little going to the basket all game. Instead, the Seminoles settled for jumpers that they mostly missed outside of a few hot streaks like in the game’s opening minutes.
Like all defenses, the 3-2 zone has its weaknesses. Many of Florida State’s jumpers were wide open. Had Florida State shot well from three, the game could’ve gone very differently.
In particular, Georgia’s zone is susceptible to overloads where the opposing offense has a shooter on the wing, in the corner, and a post on the low block. Like all zones, teams can also unlock it via quick passes that swing the ball before the zone has time to shift. There is no better player at putting long skip passes on the money than Clark.
Florida State also found some success in opening up the zone by completing entry passes to a high post located around the free throw line. Usually one of the bottom two zone defenders came up to guard the high post, freeing up Florida State’s post in a 1-on-1 matchup and opening cutting lanes for the opposite wing.
The good news for Iowa is that the Hawkeyes have faced Georgia’s zone and several of its key players before. Abrahamson-Henderson was at Central Florida last year, and the Knights traveled to Iowa City in December 2021. That game was tied at halftime, before Iowa took a 13-point lead in the third quarter. UCF battled back to get the deficit into single digits, but Iowa held on for a 69-61 victory.
As mentioned, Iowa has also played several good Northwestern zones and has plenty of experience with teams that like to trap and apply pressure.
GEORGIA’S REBOUNDING
Georgia’s rebounding prowess was top of Coach Bluder’s mind in yesterday’s post-game press conference. The Bulldogs 37.3% offensive rebounding rate—good for 26th nationally—is due largely to their length, athleticism, and physicality in the paint.
The Bulldogs generally play with two posts around the basket. They also try to drive and shoot a lot of two-point jumpers. As a result, they have a lot of bodies in the paint available to grab offensive rebounds. The offensive rebounds are a key component of the Bulldog offense, because they don’t shoot particularly well from any position on the floor.
Iowa is a good defensive rebounding team. Its 76% defensive rebounding rate ranks 5th nationally. But the Hawks also haven’t played many teams that rebound as well and that are as physical as Georgia.
If Iowa can win the battle on the defensive glass, the Hawkeyes have a great chance to win this game. If they can’t, then Georgia might be able to keep pace with Iowa even if the Hawks are scoring well on the other end.
GEORGIA’S OFFENSE
Georgia’s offense is almost the opposite of Iowa’s offense. The Bulldogs would rather slow things down than play fast. They don’t take many three-pointers, preferring instead to shoot from two. Sometimes they get to the basket, but often they pull-up and shoot two-point jumpers, hoping that those shots fall or that they can rely on their offensive rebounding to get a second chance.
Georgia’s offense is also fairly balanced. The Bulldogs' leading scorer shoots 11.9 shots per game. After her, they have five players that average between 6-10 shots per games. On the one hand, that is a good thing. Iowa doesn’t have to try and stop a great post like Indiana’s Mackenzie Holmes or a pure shooter like UConn’s Azzi Fudd. On the other hand, it means Iowa can’t key its defense on any one player and that Georgia has plenty of players who can step up if one or two are having a rough game.
GEORGIA’S BEST PLAYERS
5’8" guard Diamond Battles is Georgia’s leading scorer. She averages 14.5 ppg, 1.7 spg, and shoots 44.3% from 2 and 26.2% from 3. Battles is a transfer from UCF. She scored 12 points against Iowa in last year’s UCF game, though she shot just 3-11 on the day.
6’3" forward Brittney Smith is Georgia’s second leading scorer. She averages 11.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, and shoots 49.8 percent from 2.
Fellow forward Javyn Nicholson, listed at 6'2", is the team’s leading rebounder at 7.0 rpg. She also 9.5 ppg and shoots 52.8% from 2.
Finally, Alisha Lewis, listed at 5'7", has only started four games all season, but to my eye she is the best facilitator on Georgia’s team. She averages a team best 4.4 assists per game, and also leads the team with 2.1 steals per game. She also has experience against Iowa, playing nearly 34 minutes in UCF’s loss to the Hawkeyes last year.
KEY TO THE GAME
Shooting. Florida State shot 29 three-pointers in its first-round game against Georgia. Many of those shots were open because Georgia was more focused on keeping Florida State out of the paint. The Seminoles made just 8 of those threes, good for 27.6% on the day. Had Florida State converted on a couple more of those three-point attempts, the game might’ve turned out differently. Georgia only really seized control in the fourth quarter.
Iowa is a very good shooting team. If Georgia keeps Iowa out of the paint early, the Hawks will need to hit the open threes it gets to keep pace. Hitting threes should also open up the zone a bit, as Georgia will need to stretch its zone to prevent further open shots.”
https://iowa.rivals.com/news/preview-no-2-seed-iowa-wbb-vs-no-10-seed-georgia
The Gazette: Georgia-Iowa in Round 2 of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament: ‘The lights are on and it's time to show up’
“IOWA CITY — Always high-scoring. Always entertaining.
If there was a knock on the Iowa women’s basketball program in recent years, it was that they could be pushed around. Bullied.
As the third-ranked Hawkeyes (27-6) prepare for their NCAA tournament second-round encounter with Georgia (22-11), they feel they are more equipped now to match muscle, and to push back.
“I would say for sure,” senior guard Gabbie Marshall said. “We've faced teams that are physical and tough, and we're just going to have to play through it and play through the toughness and be gritty on defense.”
Or, as Kate Martin said: Bring on the chaos.
“(Georgia is) going to push you around a little bit,” Martin said. “Their (zone defense) is kind of chaotic, not a lot of rhyme or reason to it. But the middle can be open.”
Tipoff is 2 p.m. in front of a sold-out Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The game will be telecast nationally by ABC.
Iowa is an 11-point favorite to advance to Seattle next week for the Sweet 16.
To do so, the Hawkeyes will have to absorb some body blows. To be succinct, they’ll need to be strong. Tough.
“I think valuing the ball will be very important,” Iowa’s Caitlin Clark said. “Shot fakes against a team that is more athletic, bigger, longer than us.
“At the same time, I'm not sure they've seen a team that has as many shooters as we do on the perimeter.”
So, yeah, this is absolutely a contrast of styles.
A track meet favors the Hawkeyes, who lead the nation in scoring at 87.5 points per game. A slog plays into the hands of the Bulldogs, who allow 58.4 points per contest.
“They can be physical,” Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said of the Bulldogs. “They have a lot of fouls to give. The more we can shoot the 3, the more they’ll have to spread out their zone.”
Without a doubt, Iowa will have the best player on the floor in Clark. The national-player-of-the-year front-runner averages 27.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and a nation’s-best 8.5 assists per game.
“Caitlin is a great player and does a lot for her team,” Georgia’s Diamond Battles said. “She disrupts, she makes you change your game plan and everything.”
A Cedar Rapids native, Georgia Coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson has her fourth different school in the NCAA tournament (she previously took Missouri State, Albany and Central Florida into March Madness).
She is in her first year in Athens and reloaded the program quickly.
“I don't think anybody in their right mind would have ever thought our team would have been here, signing 10 portal kids,” she said. “Ten, that’s a lot.”
Win or lose, Iowa’s Monika Czinano and McKenna Warnock will play their final games at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday. Czinano ranks third all-time at Iowa in scoring, with 2,338 points; Warnock is 30th, with 1,220.
“Right now, it’s all business,” Warnock said.
Czinano was a little more reflective:
“It’s special to think about,” she said. “This place has given me so much, so I want to protect it.”
This will be Iowa’s third consecutive sellout. The Hawkeyes aren’t the only ones eager for the noise.
“Every athlete lives for this moment, whether they are cheering for you or cheering against you,” Battles said. “You get to play in front of a sold-out arena, who wouldn't want to do that?
“The lights are on and it's time to show up.”
https://www.thegazette.com/iowa-bas...rnament-the-lights-are-on-and-its-time/?amp=1
NCAA Basketball
Rothstein: The Breakfast Buffet: Sean Miller faces his alma mater, Marquette meets “Mr. March”, Eric Musselman
https://collegehoopstoday.com/index...ater-marquette-meets-mr-march-eric-musselman/
Field of 68: Real Genius
15-seed Princeton looked smart in its win against Mizzou that put it in the Sweet 16. Plus, Kansas gets KO'd, Houston survives, and Bama rolls, plus much more from Saturday.
https://fieldof68.beehiiv.com/p/princeton-kansas-alabama-houston-texas-arkansas
Alabama:
Alabama.com: Alabama basketball roughs up Maryland, advances to Sweet 16 in March Madness
https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/stor...nd-march-madness-ncaa-tournament/69992420007/
Alabama.com: Turn the game into a rock fight? Alabama shows it can still win in March Madness
https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/stor...madness-ncaa-tournament-sweet-16/69992467007/
Arkansas
Southwest Times Record: Arkansas basketball stuns top-seeded Kansas to advance to Sweet 16
https://www.swtimes.com/story/sport...ed-kansas-to-advance-to-sweet-16/70018670007/
Auburn
Alabama.com: The inside story on Auburn’s big miss
“Pearl revisited Henderson’s choice in the news conference after Auburn’s 81-64 loss to Houston. How did the decision of Henderson reshape the SEC?
Pearl didn’t answer that question directly, but he did offer keen insight into the inner workings of modern day team building for major programs like Auburn and Alabama.
“That was pre-NIL,” Pearl said. “So is there a chance that with NIL Scoot Henderson comes to Auburn? Possibly.”
And along with Henderson, other elite players probably would have followed. Maybe even some of the players on Houston and even Alabama’s team.
“I finished second on a bunch of the guys in this tournament,” Pearl said on the day between Auburn’s first- and second-round games.
Pearl got the most out of a limited roster this season. It might not feel that way with Alabama clowning teams in the NCAA Tournament like the Harlem Globetrotters, but Auburn will remain an elite basketball destination after this season. Why? One reason is because Pearl is a great coach, but another is because Auburn has made a major commitment to helping grow that thing called NIL.
“NIL,” or name, image and likeness, represents a path for NIL collectives to match or exceed money from the G-League. Universities can’t pay players as employees, but NIL collectives associated with universities can pool the money to pay players for their NIL. It’s a shady workaround, but that’s the business of college basketball and football these days.
Under that backdrop, and behind the scenes, the money of the game is reshaping the sport of college basketball and this NCAA Tournament is being affected by it. How do you put together a championship contender of future NBA players? You pay them money through NIL collectives, and then convince them to play defense.
College athletics are changing, and the NCAA Tournament games in Birmingham and elsewhere served as the stages for the opening weekend of a new era. Now it’s on to Louisville for Alabama and the Kansas City regional for Houston. Guess where Duke and North Carolina will be? Back at home.
The ACC used to be the best and the baddest basketball conference around. Maryland joined the Big Ten long ago, Duke went out to Tennessee on Saturday and the only teams from the ACC that remain in the field are Miami and Pitt. Both play on Sunday.
North Carolina didn’t even make the NCAA Tournament, and then the Tar Heels refused to play in the NIT.
In Birmingham, the two best basketball players here took over their games on Saturday when the moments called for greatness. It doesn’t always happen that way in the NCAA Tournament, which banks — and makes huge bank — on the big guys cracking under pressure, but the No.1 seeds in Birmingham proved they were made of tougher stuff than the top-line teams elsewhere on the first weekend of March Madness. No.1 Purdue fell to 16-seed Fairleigh-Dickson on Friday and No.1 Kansas flamed out against No.8 Arkansas on Saturday.
Something tells me Fairleigh-Dickinson’s NIL stores probably don’t come close to matching the resources of an Arkansas team backed by Wal-Mart money. It wouldn’t surprise me if Alabama met Arkansas in the championship game of this tournament. The Hogs, like Alabama, are loaded with future pros.
Alabama has Brandon Miller, who is projected to be one of the top picks in the NBA, and he played great in the Crimson Tide’s easy 73-51 victory against eight-seed Maryland. Houston’s star was Marcus Sasser, and he delivered the goods despite playing with an injury in the Cougars’ mauling of Auburn.
In the end, it was about unmatched talent, and more than likely it will be that way until the Final Four in Houston. Alabama looks unbeatable with its length and its defense. Houston’s athleticism is equaled only by its furious effort. They started together in Birmingham, and perhaps they’ll end it all together, too.
It’s all about the players, though, and Birmingham’s return to the NCAA Tournament proved that in more ways than one. Either coaches land the blue-chip recruits needed for a deep tournament run, or they’re nine-seed Auburn. The Tigers didn’t lack anything for energy. Skill? Auburn could have used a little more.
In the end, Auburn missed 20 free throws and only made four field goals the entire second half. In the beginning, and I mean long before this season, Auburn missed out on one of the best players in the country when teams built like Houston and Alabama did not. Houston had Sasser, and he made five 3-pointers. Alabama had Miller, and he took over the game when the run of play demanded it.
Auburn, like Pearl said after his loss, will be out recruiting on Sunday, and this time the Tigers better not miss.”
https://www.al.com/auburnbasketball/2023/03/joseph-goodman-the-inside-story-on-auburns-big-miss.html
FDU
NY Post: Behind FDU coach Tobin Anderson’s journey to engineer shocker over Purdue
https://nypost.com/2023/03/18/behind-fdu-coach-tobin-andersons-journey-to-upset-purdue/
The Athletic: Can we talk about how Fairleigh Dickinson got here?
“It was Nov. 30 when Fairleigh Dickinson, a team coming off a four-win season the year prior, walked into the gym at Hartford, a program facing its final days as a Division I basketball team.
When university officials at Hartford decided D1 athletics should no longer be part of the school’s makeup two years ago, the decision left the men’s basketball team as an abandoned ship set adrift. Players transferred out. The head coach, John Gallagher, walked away before the start of this season, while also suing the school. A whole ordeal.
In the end, Hartford, as expected, struggled this year. Only six scholarship players. A 5-23 campaign held together by toughness and duct tape. But you know something about that Hartford team?
It beat FDU, 74-66, one of only two D1 wins it had all season.
The other was Stonehill College, a first-year D1 program from Easton, Mass. Hartford beat ’em, 73-56.
And that Stonehill team?
It also beat FDU. That came on Jan. 16 on the Knights’ own home court.
This is the same FDU team that beat No. 1-seeded Purdue, who with 7-foot-4 Zach Edey felt like the biggest team in all the land, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday…”
https://theathletic.com/4322981/2023/03/19/fairleigh-dickinson-schedule-march-madness/
Houston
Forde SI.com: Houston Halts the Fall of the No. 1 Seeds—and a Day of SEC Dominance
https://www.si.com/college/2023/03/19/houston-halts-fall-1-seeds-sec-dominance
Kentucky
Clay Lexington Herald: In a crazy NCAA Tournament, Kentucky basketball will do something crazy on Sunday
“On paper, the difference between UK and K-State is razor thin. Kansas State is 23rd in Ken Pomeroy’s ratings. Kentucky is 24th. UK is 16th in offensive efficiency. Kansas State is 20th in defensive efficiency. Kansas State’s conference, the Big 12, was the nation’s best this season. Kentucky’s strength (offensive rebounding) is Kansas State’s weakness (defensive rebounding).
Missouri
St.Louis Post Dispatch: Princeton dashes Mizzou basketball’s postseason dreams short of Sweet 16
“Did Princeton (23-8) have the better team or the better season before Saturday’s tip-off? Few could argue yes. But the Ivy Leaguers played the far superior game, leading Mizzou (25-10) on the scoreboard for nearly 38 minutes.
“We were able to get the lead one time,” Mizzou coach Dennis Gates said. “We held the lead for 30 seconds in the entire game. Every time we got the lead or when they had the lead, we cut it to six, they came back down and did what a good team would do: Make a shot or make a play.
“It just wasn't our day to make those plays or make the same shots.”
Princeton also exploited two of Mizzou’s season-long weaknesses that resurfaced at the worst of times: rebounding and 3-point defense. Mitch Henderson's team dominated the glass 44-30 and outscored MU on second-chance points 19-2. Two days after stifling Utah State from the perimeter, Mizzou let Princeton run its halfcourt offense to maximum precision. The underdogs from New Jersey consistently created open looks from 3-point range, connecting on 12 of 33 shots from deep. Reserve guard Blake Peters, the grandson of two Mizzou graduates, torched his grandparents’ alma mater with five 3s and matched his career-high with 17 points. Ryan Langborg was Princeton’s most lethal threat, finishing with a game-high 22 points.
Princeton’s Caden Pierce, a 6-6 freshman, grabbed 16 rebounds by himself, including seven offensive boards. Ivy League player of the year Tosan Evbuomwan scored only nine points but directed quarterbacked Henderson's attack from the frontcourt with five assists.
“I would say it was a complete opposite of Utah State,” Honor said. “Rebounds and 3s when it came to it. They’re a hell of a team.”
“Truthfully, we let them do what they do best, run their offense, the Princeton offense,” Brown added. “They had a lot of tough shots but also a lot of open shots. That was our fault. We let them get to what they wanted to do and that really changed the game.”
On the other end of the floor, Mizzou’s offense was stagnant from the start as Princeton clogged the driving lanes, forcing the Tigers to settle for jumpers that rarely fell. Gates’ team shot just 6 of 22 from behind the arc and wasn’t much better closer to the rim, missing 10 layups. The officials barely used their whistles when Mizzou had the ball, calling just nine Princeton fouls. When bodies collided in the paint — or in D’Moi Hodge’s case, when his skull crashed onto the court early in the second half — the crew consistently let the action flow. As a result, Mizzou attempted a season-low seven free throws.
“They keep their body in front of their guys,” Henderson said of his defenders. “Good old-fashioned, tough-nosed defense.”
For the other Tigers, Saturday’s season finale officially sent Gates into the offseason. He sat on the postgame dais alongside his four players whose college eligibility expired with Saturday’s loss: Hodge, DeAndre Gholston (19 points) and team captains Ben Sternberg and Tre Gomillion, whose groin injury kept him on the sideline for all four of MU’s postseason games. Brown, coming off by far his best college season, could elect to turn professional or use his final season of eligibility. Others, too, will have decisions to make, though core veterans like Honor, Carter and East figure to return for their final college season…”
https://www.stltoday.com/sports/col...cle_10da116b-f1c1-5195-bf1f-1f4195540435.html
Princeton
NJ.com: First Saint Peter’s, now Princeton. New Jersey is the new Cinderella State
https://www.nj.com/sports/2023/03/f...ersey-is-the-new-cinderella-state-politi.html
WSJ: “The 5 seniors on the roster have a little something extra to juggle, too: their theses, a graduation requirement for all Princeton students, are due in two weeks.
“There’s no extensions,” Henderson said. “They got to get to work.”
St. John’s
NYP: Mike Repole eager to help St. John’s again if it hires Rick Pitino: ‘Definitely’ be involved
https://nypost.com/2023/03/18/mike-repole-eager-to-help-st-johns-if-it-hires-rick-pitino/amp/
Tennessee
The Athletic: Vols smear Duke, get Rick Barnes clean to Sweet 16 with muddy masterpiece
“Then, beyond the normal scouting-report stuff on Duke, he showed the Vols what teams such as Miami and NC State did in bullying the young Blue Devils around the basket this season.
The Vols knew, for as well as Duke had been playing, that they had no real matchup issues, would be fine switching everything and could affect the Blue Devils physically.
“Take them in the mud — they might drown in it,” Plavsic said.”
https://theathletic.com/4323756/2023/03/19/tennessee-vols-ncaa-tournament-duke/?amp=1
Vanderbilt
The Tennessee: Why Vanderbilt basketball's Jerry Stackhouse is cheering for SEC teams in March Madness
"I never thought I would cheer for Kentucky, but I was cheering for Kentucky last night," Stackhouse said. "I'm cheering for the whole SEC right now. I want all of our teams to win, but I feel like again, we're the best best league in the country. And hopefully we continue to showcase that and it just makes it even more an argument for us because we kicked a lot of their (expletive) this year and so it feels good to sit back and and watch the SEC have success. ... Right now I'm Big Blue Nation. I'm Arkansas, woo sooie, whatever they call it. But I want our teams to have success and hopefully they're cheering for us the same way."
https://www.tennessean.com/story/sp...-march-madness-kentucky-arkansas/70024478007/
Western Kentucky
Louisville Courier & Journal: Steve Lutz, who led Texas A&M-CC to back-to-back NCAA tournaments, named WKU basketball coach
https://www.courier-journal.com/sto...rings-ncaa-tournament-experience/70024375007/
Xavier
DeCourcy TSN: Former Pitt star Sean Miller creates dilemma for ex-teammates as coach of Xavier
https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nca...-ex-teammates-xavier/cb4ruh0ts6rustg714xopyoa
UGA
Contacted:
Amaree Abram PG Mississippi 6-4 190 FR TX 8.0 2.0 2.0
Ta’lon Cooper PG Minnesota 6-4 190 SR+ SC 9.8 4.0 6.3
Chris Ledlum PF Harvard 6-6 225 SR NY 18.8 8.4 1.6
Ishmael Leggett SG Rhode Island 6-3 190 SO MD 16.4 5.8 2.4
BJ Mack PF Wofford 6-8 245 SR NC 16.6 5.6 1.4
Jordan Minor PF Merrimack 6-8 240 SR MA 17.4 9.4 2.3
Johnny O’Neil PF American 6-9 200 JR FL 11.3 6.6 1.4
Jackson Paveletzke PG Wofford 6-3 185 FR WI 15.1 2.7 3.7
Kowacie Reeves SF Florida 6-6 192 SO 8.5 2.6 0.5
Myles Stute SF Vanderbilt 6-7 215 JR DC 8.4 4.6 0.6
Evan Taylor SG Lehigh 6-6 205 SR IL 14.2 6.5 1.1
Jayden Taylor SG Butler 6-4 195 SO IN 12.9 3.8 1.3
Nicolas Timberlake SG Towson 6-4 205 SR MA 17.7 3.9 2.4
Tedrick Wilcox SG St. Francis, NY 6-6 188 SR RI 11.3 3.7 2.1
Probable Contacts:
Josh Cohen PF St. Francis
UGA Follows on Twitter:
Amaree Abram PG Mississippi
Ricky Bradley PG VMI
Jaemyn Brakefield SF Mississippi
Blue Cain SG IMG (Georgia Tech)
Nate Calmese SG Lamar
Josh Cohen PF St. Francis. NY
Bradley Dean SG UVA Wise
Jared Garcia PF Salt Lake CC
EJ Jarvis PF Yale
Maxwell Land SG St. Francis, Pa
Chris Ledlum PF Harvard
Ishmael Leggett SG Rhode Island
Mike Meadows SG Portland
Johnny O’Neil PF American
Jackson Paveletzke PG Wofford
Isaiah Pope SG Utah Tech
Myles Stute SF Vanderbilt
Nicolas Timberlake SG Towson
Jaykwon Walton SF Wichita State
UGA Followers on Twitter:
Amaree Abram PG Mississippi
Ricky Bradley PG VMI
Blue Cain SG IMG (Georgia Tech)
Josh Cohen PF St. Francis, NY
Bradley Dean SG UVA Wise
Jared Garcia PF Salt Lake CC
Robert Jennings PF Texas Tech
Maxwell Land SG St. Francis, Pa
Mike Meadows SG Portland
***Jackson Paveletzke PG Wofford (following 3 UGA coaches)
Isaiah Pope SG Utah Tech
Myles Stute SF Vanderbilt
2023 HS Signees affected by coaching changes we would love to talk to:
Contacted: Blue Cain SG IMG - Georgia Tech (NIL release) 6-4 180 (UGA follows him and his parents on social media and they follow back)
Brandon Gardner PF Christ the King - St.John’s (Originally from Waynesboro
Committed Elsewhere:
Tyler Houser C VMI - Delaware
Xander Rice PG Bucknell - Monmouth
UGA WBB
Next Opponent: Iowa
Rivals.com: Preview: No. 2 seed Iowa WBB vs. No. 10 seed Georgia
“Iowa fans are understandably worried about this game. Just last year, 10-seed Creighton defeated Iowa in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to begin a Cinderella run to the Elite Eight.
Now Cedar Rapids native and former Iowa player Katie Abrahamson-Henderson brings her 10-seeded Georgia team to Iowa City looking to complete a storybook ending of her own. What problems will Georgia present for Iowa on Sunday?
GEORGIA’S ZONE
Georgia is led by its defense. The Bulldogs rank 25th nationally in opponent’s points per 100 possessions and 14th nationally in steal rate.
A big reason for that defensive success is Georgia’s zone. The Bulldogs will likely play a 3-2 (or 1-2-2) zone the entire game. At its best, the zone is meant to cause chaos on the perimeter through aggressive traps on the wing or in the corners. Against Florida State, Georgia had a couple runs of success generating turnovers in the second quarter and early fourth quarter. Those turnovers—especially in the fourth—helped swing momentum in the game.
But outside of those two periods, Georgia’s zone didn’t cause Florida State that many issues. The Seminoles average 13.5 turnovers per game and only had 14 against Georgia.
When I think of aggressive, turnover-focused zones I think Northwestern. The Wildcats were down this year, but caused Iowa problems in Caitlin Clark’s first two years because they never stop looking to turn teams over. I don’t think this Georgia defense is quite that disruptive.
The biggest benefit of Georgia’s 3-2 zone against Florida State was limiting dribble penetration. When Georgia was set Florida State got very little going to the basket all game. Instead, the Seminoles settled for jumpers that they mostly missed outside of a few hot streaks like in the game’s opening minutes.
Like all defenses, the 3-2 zone has its weaknesses. Many of Florida State’s jumpers were wide open. Had Florida State shot well from three, the game could’ve gone very differently.
In particular, Georgia’s zone is susceptible to overloads where the opposing offense has a shooter on the wing, in the corner, and a post on the low block. Like all zones, teams can also unlock it via quick passes that swing the ball before the zone has time to shift. There is no better player at putting long skip passes on the money than Clark.
Florida State also found some success in opening up the zone by completing entry passes to a high post located around the free throw line. Usually one of the bottom two zone defenders came up to guard the high post, freeing up Florida State’s post in a 1-on-1 matchup and opening cutting lanes for the opposite wing.
The good news for Iowa is that the Hawkeyes have faced Georgia’s zone and several of its key players before. Abrahamson-Henderson was at Central Florida last year, and the Knights traveled to Iowa City in December 2021. That game was tied at halftime, before Iowa took a 13-point lead in the third quarter. UCF battled back to get the deficit into single digits, but Iowa held on for a 69-61 victory.
As mentioned, Iowa has also played several good Northwestern zones and has plenty of experience with teams that like to trap and apply pressure.
GEORGIA’S REBOUNDING
Georgia’s rebounding prowess was top of Coach Bluder’s mind in yesterday’s post-game press conference. The Bulldogs 37.3% offensive rebounding rate—good for 26th nationally—is due largely to their length, athleticism, and physicality in the paint.
The Bulldogs generally play with two posts around the basket. They also try to drive and shoot a lot of two-point jumpers. As a result, they have a lot of bodies in the paint available to grab offensive rebounds. The offensive rebounds are a key component of the Bulldog offense, because they don’t shoot particularly well from any position on the floor.
Iowa is a good defensive rebounding team. Its 76% defensive rebounding rate ranks 5th nationally. But the Hawks also haven’t played many teams that rebound as well and that are as physical as Georgia.
If Iowa can win the battle on the defensive glass, the Hawkeyes have a great chance to win this game. If they can’t, then Georgia might be able to keep pace with Iowa even if the Hawks are scoring well on the other end.
GEORGIA’S OFFENSE
Georgia’s offense is almost the opposite of Iowa’s offense. The Bulldogs would rather slow things down than play fast. They don’t take many three-pointers, preferring instead to shoot from two. Sometimes they get to the basket, but often they pull-up and shoot two-point jumpers, hoping that those shots fall or that they can rely on their offensive rebounding to get a second chance.
Georgia’s offense is also fairly balanced. The Bulldogs' leading scorer shoots 11.9 shots per game. After her, they have five players that average between 6-10 shots per games. On the one hand, that is a good thing. Iowa doesn’t have to try and stop a great post like Indiana’s Mackenzie Holmes or a pure shooter like UConn’s Azzi Fudd. On the other hand, it means Iowa can’t key its defense on any one player and that Georgia has plenty of players who can step up if one or two are having a rough game.
GEORGIA’S BEST PLAYERS
5’8" guard Diamond Battles is Georgia’s leading scorer. She averages 14.5 ppg, 1.7 spg, and shoots 44.3% from 2 and 26.2% from 3. Battles is a transfer from UCF. She scored 12 points against Iowa in last year’s UCF game, though she shot just 3-11 on the day.
6’3" forward Brittney Smith is Georgia’s second leading scorer. She averages 11.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, and shoots 49.8 percent from 2.
Fellow forward Javyn Nicholson, listed at 6'2", is the team’s leading rebounder at 7.0 rpg. She also 9.5 ppg and shoots 52.8% from 2.
Finally, Alisha Lewis, listed at 5'7", has only started four games all season, but to my eye she is the best facilitator on Georgia’s team. She averages a team best 4.4 assists per game, and also leads the team with 2.1 steals per game. She also has experience against Iowa, playing nearly 34 minutes in UCF’s loss to the Hawkeyes last year.
KEY TO THE GAME
Shooting. Florida State shot 29 three-pointers in its first-round game against Georgia. Many of those shots were open because Georgia was more focused on keeping Florida State out of the paint. The Seminoles made just 8 of those threes, good for 27.6% on the day. Had Florida State converted on a couple more of those three-point attempts, the game might’ve turned out differently. Georgia only really seized control in the fourth quarter.
Iowa is a very good shooting team. If Georgia keeps Iowa out of the paint early, the Hawks will need to hit the open threes it gets to keep pace. Hitting threes should also open up the zone a bit, as Georgia will need to stretch its zone to prevent further open shots.”
https://iowa.rivals.com/news/preview-no-2-seed-iowa-wbb-vs-no-10-seed-georgia
The Gazette: Georgia-Iowa in Round 2 of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament: ‘The lights are on and it's time to show up’
“IOWA CITY — Always high-scoring. Always entertaining.
If there was a knock on the Iowa women’s basketball program in recent years, it was that they could be pushed around. Bullied.
As the third-ranked Hawkeyes (27-6) prepare for their NCAA tournament second-round encounter with Georgia (22-11), they feel they are more equipped now to match muscle, and to push back.
“I would say for sure,” senior guard Gabbie Marshall said. “We've faced teams that are physical and tough, and we're just going to have to play through it and play through the toughness and be gritty on defense.”
Or, as Kate Martin said: Bring on the chaos.
“(Georgia is) going to push you around a little bit,” Martin said. “Their (zone defense) is kind of chaotic, not a lot of rhyme or reason to it. But the middle can be open.”
Tipoff is 2 p.m. in front of a sold-out Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The game will be telecast nationally by ABC.
Iowa is an 11-point favorite to advance to Seattle next week for the Sweet 16.
To do so, the Hawkeyes will have to absorb some body blows. To be succinct, they’ll need to be strong. Tough.
“I think valuing the ball will be very important,” Iowa’s Caitlin Clark said. “Shot fakes against a team that is more athletic, bigger, longer than us.
“At the same time, I'm not sure they've seen a team that has as many shooters as we do on the perimeter.”
So, yeah, this is absolutely a contrast of styles.
A track meet favors the Hawkeyes, who lead the nation in scoring at 87.5 points per game. A slog plays into the hands of the Bulldogs, who allow 58.4 points per contest.
“They can be physical,” Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said of the Bulldogs. “They have a lot of fouls to give. The more we can shoot the 3, the more they’ll have to spread out their zone.”
Without a doubt, Iowa will have the best player on the floor in Clark. The national-player-of-the-year front-runner averages 27.0 points, 7.5 rebounds and a nation’s-best 8.5 assists per game.
“Caitlin is a great player and does a lot for her team,” Georgia’s Diamond Battles said. “She disrupts, she makes you change your game plan and everything.”
A Cedar Rapids native, Georgia Coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson has her fourth different school in the NCAA tournament (she previously took Missouri State, Albany and Central Florida into March Madness).
She is in her first year in Athens and reloaded the program quickly.
“I don't think anybody in their right mind would have ever thought our team would have been here, signing 10 portal kids,” she said. “Ten, that’s a lot.”
Win or lose, Iowa’s Monika Czinano and McKenna Warnock will play their final games at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday. Czinano ranks third all-time at Iowa in scoring, with 2,338 points; Warnock is 30th, with 1,220.
“Right now, it’s all business,” Warnock said.
Czinano was a little more reflective:
“It’s special to think about,” she said. “This place has given me so much, so I want to protect it.”
This will be Iowa’s third consecutive sellout. The Hawkeyes aren’t the only ones eager for the noise.
“Every athlete lives for this moment, whether they are cheering for you or cheering against you,” Battles said. “You get to play in front of a sold-out arena, who wouldn't want to do that?
“The lights are on and it's time to show up.”
https://www.thegazette.com/iowa-bas...rnament-the-lights-are-on-and-its-time/?amp=1
NCAA Basketball
Rothstein: The Breakfast Buffet: Sean Miller faces his alma mater, Marquette meets “Mr. March”, Eric Musselman
https://collegehoopstoday.com/index...ater-marquette-meets-mr-march-eric-musselman/
Field of 68: Real Genius
15-seed Princeton looked smart in its win against Mizzou that put it in the Sweet 16. Plus, Kansas gets KO'd, Houston survives, and Bama rolls, plus much more from Saturday.
https://fieldof68.beehiiv.com/p/princeton-kansas-alabama-houston-texas-arkansas
Alabama:
Alabama.com: Alabama basketball roughs up Maryland, advances to Sweet 16 in March Madness
https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/stor...nd-march-madness-ncaa-tournament/69992420007/
Alabama.com: Turn the game into a rock fight? Alabama shows it can still win in March Madness
https://www.tuscaloosanews.com/stor...madness-ncaa-tournament-sweet-16/69992467007/
Arkansas
Southwest Times Record: Arkansas basketball stuns top-seeded Kansas to advance to Sweet 16
https://www.swtimes.com/story/sport...ed-kansas-to-advance-to-sweet-16/70018670007/
Auburn
Alabama.com: The inside story on Auburn’s big miss
“Pearl revisited Henderson’s choice in the news conference after Auburn’s 81-64 loss to Houston. How did the decision of Henderson reshape the SEC?
Pearl didn’t answer that question directly, but he did offer keen insight into the inner workings of modern day team building for major programs like Auburn and Alabama.
“That was pre-NIL,” Pearl said. “So is there a chance that with NIL Scoot Henderson comes to Auburn? Possibly.”
And along with Henderson, other elite players probably would have followed. Maybe even some of the players on Houston and even Alabama’s team.
“I finished second on a bunch of the guys in this tournament,” Pearl said on the day between Auburn’s first- and second-round games.
Pearl got the most out of a limited roster this season. It might not feel that way with Alabama clowning teams in the NCAA Tournament like the Harlem Globetrotters, but Auburn will remain an elite basketball destination after this season. Why? One reason is because Pearl is a great coach, but another is because Auburn has made a major commitment to helping grow that thing called NIL.
“NIL,” or name, image and likeness, represents a path for NIL collectives to match or exceed money from the G-League. Universities can’t pay players as employees, but NIL collectives associated with universities can pool the money to pay players for their NIL. It’s a shady workaround, but that’s the business of college basketball and football these days.
Under that backdrop, and behind the scenes, the money of the game is reshaping the sport of college basketball and this NCAA Tournament is being affected by it. How do you put together a championship contender of future NBA players? You pay them money through NIL collectives, and then convince them to play defense.
College athletics are changing, and the NCAA Tournament games in Birmingham and elsewhere served as the stages for the opening weekend of a new era. Now it’s on to Louisville for Alabama and the Kansas City regional for Houston. Guess where Duke and North Carolina will be? Back at home.
The ACC used to be the best and the baddest basketball conference around. Maryland joined the Big Ten long ago, Duke went out to Tennessee on Saturday and the only teams from the ACC that remain in the field are Miami and Pitt. Both play on Sunday.
North Carolina didn’t even make the NCAA Tournament, and then the Tar Heels refused to play in the NIT.
In Birmingham, the two best basketball players here took over their games on Saturday when the moments called for greatness. It doesn’t always happen that way in the NCAA Tournament, which banks — and makes huge bank — on the big guys cracking under pressure, but the No.1 seeds in Birmingham proved they were made of tougher stuff than the top-line teams elsewhere on the first weekend of March Madness. No.1 Purdue fell to 16-seed Fairleigh-Dickson on Friday and No.1 Kansas flamed out against No.8 Arkansas on Saturday.
Something tells me Fairleigh-Dickinson’s NIL stores probably don’t come close to matching the resources of an Arkansas team backed by Wal-Mart money. It wouldn’t surprise me if Alabama met Arkansas in the championship game of this tournament. The Hogs, like Alabama, are loaded with future pros.
Alabama has Brandon Miller, who is projected to be one of the top picks in the NBA, and he played great in the Crimson Tide’s easy 73-51 victory against eight-seed Maryland. Houston’s star was Marcus Sasser, and he delivered the goods despite playing with an injury in the Cougars’ mauling of Auburn.
In the end, it was about unmatched talent, and more than likely it will be that way until the Final Four in Houston. Alabama looks unbeatable with its length and its defense. Houston’s athleticism is equaled only by its furious effort. They started together in Birmingham, and perhaps they’ll end it all together, too.
It’s all about the players, though, and Birmingham’s return to the NCAA Tournament proved that in more ways than one. Either coaches land the blue-chip recruits needed for a deep tournament run, or they’re nine-seed Auburn. The Tigers didn’t lack anything for energy. Skill? Auburn could have used a little more.
In the end, Auburn missed 20 free throws and only made four field goals the entire second half. In the beginning, and I mean long before this season, Auburn missed out on one of the best players in the country when teams built like Houston and Alabama did not. Houston had Sasser, and he made five 3-pointers. Alabama had Miller, and he took over the game when the run of play demanded it.
Auburn, like Pearl said after his loss, will be out recruiting on Sunday, and this time the Tigers better not miss.”
https://www.al.com/auburnbasketball/2023/03/joseph-goodman-the-inside-story-on-auburns-big-miss.html
FDU
NY Post: Behind FDU coach Tobin Anderson’s journey to engineer shocker over Purdue
https://nypost.com/2023/03/18/behind-fdu-coach-tobin-andersons-journey-to-upset-purdue/
The Athletic: Can we talk about how Fairleigh Dickinson got here?
“It was Nov. 30 when Fairleigh Dickinson, a team coming off a four-win season the year prior, walked into the gym at Hartford, a program facing its final days as a Division I basketball team.
When university officials at Hartford decided D1 athletics should no longer be part of the school’s makeup two years ago, the decision left the men’s basketball team as an abandoned ship set adrift. Players transferred out. The head coach, John Gallagher, walked away before the start of this season, while also suing the school. A whole ordeal.
In the end, Hartford, as expected, struggled this year. Only six scholarship players. A 5-23 campaign held together by toughness and duct tape. But you know something about that Hartford team?
It beat FDU, 74-66, one of only two D1 wins it had all season.
The other was Stonehill College, a first-year D1 program from Easton, Mass. Hartford beat ’em, 73-56.
And that Stonehill team?
It also beat FDU. That came on Jan. 16 on the Knights’ own home court.
This is the same FDU team that beat No. 1-seeded Purdue, who with 7-foot-4 Zach Edey felt like the biggest team in all the land, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday…”
https://theathletic.com/4322981/2023/03/19/fairleigh-dickinson-schedule-march-madness/
Houston
Forde SI.com: Houston Halts the Fall of the No. 1 Seeds—and a Day of SEC Dominance
https://www.si.com/college/2023/03/19/houston-halts-fall-1-seeds-sec-dominance
Kentucky
Clay Lexington Herald: In a crazy NCAA Tournament, Kentucky basketball will do something crazy on Sunday
“On paper, the difference between UK and K-State is razor thin. Kansas State is 23rd in Ken Pomeroy’s ratings. Kentucky is 24th. UK is 16th in offensive efficiency. Kansas State is 20th in defensive efficiency. Kansas State’s conference, the Big 12, was the nation’s best this season. Kentucky’s strength (offensive rebounding) is Kansas State’s weakness (defensive rebounding).
Missouri
St.Louis Post Dispatch: Princeton dashes Mizzou basketball’s postseason dreams short of Sweet 16
“Did Princeton (23-8) have the better team or the better season before Saturday’s tip-off? Few could argue yes. But the Ivy Leaguers played the far superior game, leading Mizzou (25-10) on the scoreboard for nearly 38 minutes.
“We were able to get the lead one time,” Mizzou coach Dennis Gates said. “We held the lead for 30 seconds in the entire game. Every time we got the lead or when they had the lead, we cut it to six, they came back down and did what a good team would do: Make a shot or make a play.
“It just wasn't our day to make those plays or make the same shots.”
Princeton also exploited two of Mizzou’s season-long weaknesses that resurfaced at the worst of times: rebounding and 3-point defense. Mitch Henderson's team dominated the glass 44-30 and outscored MU on second-chance points 19-2. Two days after stifling Utah State from the perimeter, Mizzou let Princeton run its halfcourt offense to maximum precision. The underdogs from New Jersey consistently created open looks from 3-point range, connecting on 12 of 33 shots from deep. Reserve guard Blake Peters, the grandson of two Mizzou graduates, torched his grandparents’ alma mater with five 3s and matched his career-high with 17 points. Ryan Langborg was Princeton’s most lethal threat, finishing with a game-high 22 points.
Princeton’s Caden Pierce, a 6-6 freshman, grabbed 16 rebounds by himself, including seven offensive boards. Ivy League player of the year Tosan Evbuomwan scored only nine points but directed quarterbacked Henderson's attack from the frontcourt with five assists.
“I would say it was a complete opposite of Utah State,” Honor said. “Rebounds and 3s when it came to it. They’re a hell of a team.”
“Truthfully, we let them do what they do best, run their offense, the Princeton offense,” Brown added. “They had a lot of tough shots but also a lot of open shots. That was our fault. We let them get to what they wanted to do and that really changed the game.”
On the other end of the floor, Mizzou’s offense was stagnant from the start as Princeton clogged the driving lanes, forcing the Tigers to settle for jumpers that rarely fell. Gates’ team shot just 6 of 22 from behind the arc and wasn’t much better closer to the rim, missing 10 layups. The officials barely used their whistles when Mizzou had the ball, calling just nine Princeton fouls. When bodies collided in the paint — or in D’Moi Hodge’s case, when his skull crashed onto the court early in the second half — the crew consistently let the action flow. As a result, Mizzou attempted a season-low seven free throws.
“They keep their body in front of their guys,” Henderson said of his defenders. “Good old-fashioned, tough-nosed defense.”
For the other Tigers, Saturday’s season finale officially sent Gates into the offseason. He sat on the postgame dais alongside his four players whose college eligibility expired with Saturday’s loss: Hodge, DeAndre Gholston (19 points) and team captains Ben Sternberg and Tre Gomillion, whose groin injury kept him on the sideline for all four of MU’s postseason games. Brown, coming off by far his best college season, could elect to turn professional or use his final season of eligibility. Others, too, will have decisions to make, though core veterans like Honor, Carter and East figure to return for their final college season…”
https://www.stltoday.com/sports/col...cle_10da116b-f1c1-5195-bf1f-1f4195540435.html
Princeton
NJ.com: First Saint Peter’s, now Princeton. New Jersey is the new Cinderella State
https://www.nj.com/sports/2023/03/f...ersey-is-the-new-cinderella-state-politi.html
WSJ: “The 5 seniors on the roster have a little something extra to juggle, too: their theses, a graduation requirement for all Princeton students, are due in two weeks.
“There’s no extensions,” Henderson said. “They got to get to work.”
St. John’s
NYP: Mike Repole eager to help St. John’s again if it hires Rick Pitino: ‘Definitely’ be involved
https://nypost.com/2023/03/18/mike-repole-eager-to-help-st-johns-if-it-hires-rick-pitino/amp/
Tennessee
The Athletic: Vols smear Duke, get Rick Barnes clean to Sweet 16 with muddy masterpiece
“Then, beyond the normal scouting-report stuff on Duke, he showed the Vols what teams such as Miami and NC State did in bullying the young Blue Devils around the basket this season.
The Vols knew, for as well as Duke had been playing, that they had no real matchup issues, would be fine switching everything and could affect the Blue Devils physically.
“Take them in the mud — they might drown in it,” Plavsic said.”
https://theathletic.com/4323756/2023/03/19/tennessee-vols-ncaa-tournament-duke/?amp=1
Vanderbilt
The Tennessee: Why Vanderbilt basketball's Jerry Stackhouse is cheering for SEC teams in March Madness
"I never thought I would cheer for Kentucky, but I was cheering for Kentucky last night," Stackhouse said. "I'm cheering for the whole SEC right now. I want all of our teams to win, but I feel like again, we're the best best league in the country. And hopefully we continue to showcase that and it just makes it even more an argument for us because we kicked a lot of their (expletive) this year and so it feels good to sit back and and watch the SEC have success. ... Right now I'm Big Blue Nation. I'm Arkansas, woo sooie, whatever they call it. But I want our teams to have success and hopefully they're cheering for us the same way."
https://www.tennessean.com/story/sp...-march-madness-kentucky-arkansas/70024478007/
Western Kentucky
Louisville Courier & Journal: Steve Lutz, who led Texas A&M-CC to back-to-back NCAA tournaments, named WKU basketball coach
https://www.courier-journal.com/sto...rings-ncaa-tournament-experience/70024375007/
Xavier
DeCourcy TSN: Former Pitt star Sean Miller creates dilemma for ex-teammates as coach of Xavier
https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nca...-ex-teammates-xavier/cb4ruh0ts6rustg714xopyoa
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