AP College Basketball Writer Jim O'Connell recaps play in the NCAA tournament over the weekend. Michigan State, Villanova, North Carolina and Connecticut all won to advance to the 'Final Four'.
Familiar foes will square off in the East Regional Final, for a spot in the Final Four. The Pittsburgh Panthers snuck by Xavier, while Villanova handled Duke. Both Pitt and 'Nova play in the Big East.
The Univ. Of Connecticut Huskies will try to make it to their third final four when they take on Missouri Saturday. UConn knocked off Purdue Thursday, while Missouri upset Memphis.
Connecticut, Memphis, Missouri and Purdue will compete for the right to go to the Final Four.
Pittsburgh gets Xavier, while Duke plays Villanova in the East Regional semifinals Thursday in Boston.
AP College Basketball Writer Jim O'Connell says the top seeds in the NCAA tournament are playing well. He also discusses why it's difficult for a 'Cinderella' team to make a run in the tournament.
Eight-time national champ Tennessee was knocked out of the first round of the women's NCAA basketball tournament by Ball State. The Lady Vols had never failed to reach the regional semifinals in their storied history.
AP College Basketball Writer Jim O'Connell says he'd like to see a change in the way teams are selected for the men's NCAA basketball tournament.
Which team will win the men's NCAA basketball tournament? AP College Basketball Writer Jim O'Connell predicts a team from the Big East will take home the national championship trophy.
AP College Basketball Writer Jim O'Connell takes a detailed look at both the Midwest and West Regions of the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
AP College Basketball Writer Jim O'Connell takes an in-depth look at both the East and South Regions of the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
Louisville, Pittsburgh and Connecticut were named top seeds on 'Selection Sunday' for the men's NCAA basketball tournament. The other No. 1 seed is ACC regular-season champion North Carolina.
By EDDIE PELLS
AP National Writer
The Big East put up a big number Sunday: Three No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament.
Louisville, Pittsburgh and Connecticut helped the Big East, a group originally created for basketball only, become the first conference to put three teams on the top line. North Carolina, the regular-season Atlantic Coast Conference champion, was the other top seed.
Louisville was the top overall seed in the tournament and will play in the Midwest. The Cardinals will open against the winner of an opening-round game Tuesday between Alabama State and Morehead State.
The rest of the tournament starts Thursday and Friday. The Final Four is scheduled for Ford Field in Detroit on April 4 and 6.
Cardinals, Panthers, Heels, Huskies earn top seeds....
It was the second-longest Division One basketball game in history. No. 18 Syracuse beat No. 3 Connecticut, 127-117, in six overtimes in the Big East Tournament. Syracuse advanced to play West Virginia in the semifinals.
West Virginia upset 2nd-ranked Pittsburgh Thursday, 74-60, in the Big East tournament. Freshman Devin Ebanks scored a career-high 20 points for the Mountaineers.
Earl Clark scored 24 points as fifth-ranked Louisville defeated Providence, 73-55, in a Big East tournament quarterfinal game. The Friars nearly tied a tournament record with 26 turnovers.
Dwayne Anderson scored his only basket of the game at the buzzer as No. 10 Villanova eeked out a 76-75 win over No. 21 Marquette Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament.
Virginia Tech broke open a close game with a 14-0 run in the second half and beat Miami 65-47 in the ACC tournament on Thursday to keep the Hokies' NCAA tournament hopes alive.
- 1. Connecticut (45) 31-0 1125
- 2. Stanford 26-4 1046
- 3. Oklahoma 27-3 1026
- 4. Maryland 28-4 1011
- 5. Louisville 28-3 944
- 6. Duke 26-5 859
- 7. Baylor 24-5 831
- 8. Auburn 29-3 830
- 9. Ohio State 27-5 723
- 10. Texas A&M 23-6 710
- 11. North Carolina 26-6 697
- 12. California 24-5 615
- 13. Florida State 25-7 553
- 14. Pittsburgh 23-6 521
- 15. Vanderbilt 24-8 458
- 16. Arizona State 23-7 401
- 17. South Dakota State 29-2 368
- 18. Iowa State 23-7 315
- 19. Tennessee 22-10 310
- 20. Xavier 25-6 246
- 21. Florida 23-7 198
- 22. Kansas State 23-6 193
- 23. Texas 20-10 179
- 24. Notre Dame 22-8 161
- 25. Virginia 23-9 160
OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Middle Tennessee State 28, Wisconsin-Green Bay 22, LSU 18, Marist 16, Bowling Green 16, DePaul 15, Purdue 15, San Diego State 8, Gonzaga 3, Virginia Commonwealth 2, Florida Gulf Coast 1, Villanova 1,
- 1. North Carolina (23) 27-3 767
- 2. Pittsburgh (5) 28-3 740
- 3. Memphis (3) 28-3 702
- 4. Connecticut 27-3 679
- 5. Louisville 25-5 659
- 6. Michigan State 25-5 608
- 7. Oklahoma 27-4 592
- 8. Duke 25-6 545
- 9. Wake Forest 24-5 532
- 10. Washington 24-7 466
- 11. Kansas 25-6 444
- 12. Gonzaga 25-5 426
- 13. Villanova 25-6 410
- 14. UCLA 24-7 369
- 15. Missouri 25-6 327
- 16. LSU 25-6 274
- 17. Butler 26-4 251
- 18. Clemson 23-7 223
- 19. Xavier 24-6 196
- 20. Syracuse 23-8 182
- 21. Marquette 23-8 157
- 22. Florida State 23-8 135
- 23. Arizona State 22-8 133
- 24. Purdue 22-9 68
- 25. Illinois 23-8 57
Others Receiving Votes
Saint Mary's 43, Brigham Young 30, Utah State 23, Dayton 11, California 9, Utah 7, Boston College 3, Texas 3, Texas A&M 2, Siena 1, Weber State 1.
- 1. North Carolina (35) 27-3 1,734
- 2. Pittsburgh (33) 28-3 1,731
- 3. Connecticut 27-3 1,592
- 4. Memphis (2) 28-3 1,544
- 5. Louisville (1) 25-5 1,513
- 6. Oklahoma 27-4 1,399
- 7. Michigan State 25-5 1,349
- 8. Wake Forest 24-5 1,246
- 9. Duke 25-6 1,237
- 10. Villanova 25-6 1,108
- 11. Kansas 25-6 1,038
- 12. Gonzaga 25-5 978
- 13. Washington 24-7 910
- 14. Missouri 25-6 779
- 15. UCLA 24-7 752
- 16. Butler 26-4 536
- 17. Clemson 23-7 528
- 18. Syracuse 23-8 518
- 19. Xavier 24-6 465
- 20. LSU 25-6 461
- 21. Marquette 23-8 453
- 22. Florida State 23-8 333
- 23. Arizona State 22-8 199
- 24. Purdue 22-9 169
- 25. Brigham Young 24-6 158
Others Receiving Votes
Illinois 131, Texas A&M 63, Saint Mary's 56, Utah 21, West Virginia 17, Auburn 9, Dayton 7, Utah State 6, Virginia Commonwealth 6, Weber State 5, Creighton 4, Northern Iowa 3, Siena 3, Oklahoma State 3, Penn State 2, New Mexico 2, California 2, Texas 2, American University 1, Ohio State 1, Tennessee 1.
No. 1 Connecticut just completed its' fifth undefeated regular season. The Lady Huskies finished 30-0. They start postseason play in the Big East quarterfinals Sunday.
- 1. Connecticut (45) 29-0 1125
- 2. Stanford 24-4 1043
- 3. Oklahoma 25-3 999
- 4. Maryland 25-4 971
- 5. Baylor 23-4 927
- 6. Auburn 27-2 915
- 7. Louisville 26-3 887
- 8. Duke 24-4 806
- 9. California 23-4 743
- 10. Texas A&M 22-5 731
- 11. North Carolina 25-5 710
- 12. Florida State 24-6 603
- 12. Ohio State 24-5 603
- 14. Pittsburgh 21-6 434
- 15. Texas 20-8 408
- 16. Xavier 25-5 363
- 17. South Dakota State 27-2 324
- 18. Arizona State 22-6 307
- 19. Tennessee 20-9 302
- 20. Notre Dame 20-7 291
- 21. Florida 23-6 268
- 22. Vanderbilt 21-8 217
- 23. Iowa State 21-7 212
- 24. Virginia 22-8 194
- 25. Bowling Green 25-2 74
OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
Kansas State 63, LSU 27, Middle Tennessee State 26, Wisconsin-Green Bay 12, DePaul 10, Georgia Tech 9, Marist 7, Michigan State 7, Virginia Commonwealth 2, Florida Gulf Coast 1, Gonzaga 1, San Diego State 1, Purdue 1, Temple 1,
- 1. Connecticut (27) 27-2 769
- 2. North Carolina 25-3 711
- 3. Memphis (4) 26-3 698
- 4. Pittsburgh 26-3 667
- 5. Oklahoma 26-3 653
- 6. Louisville 23-5 630
- 7. Duke 24-5 597
- 8. Michigan State 23-5 557
- 9. Kansas 24-5 509
- 10. Wake Forest 22-5 480
- 11. LSU 25-4 420
- 12. Missouri 24-5 377
- 13. Washington 22-7 346
- 14. Gonzaga 23-5 339
- 15. Marquette 23-6 327
- 16. Villanova 23-6 324
- 17. UCLA 22-7 295
- 18. Xavier 23-5 260
- 19. Clemson 22-6 219
- 20. Purdue 22-7 211
- 21. Arizona State 21-7 189
- 22. Butler 25-4 168
- 23. Illinois 23-7 107
- 24. Florida State 22-7 67
- 25. Syracuse 21-8 37
Others Receiving Votes
Saint Mary's 26, Utah State 17, Texas 15, Creighton 13, Brigham Young 12, Utah 10, Dayton 9, California 6, Providence 4, Boston College 4, West Virginia 2.
- 1. Connecticut (67) 27-2 1,792
- 2. North Carolina (3) 25-3 1,678
- 3. Pittsburgh (1) 26-3 1,612
- 4. Oklahoma 26-3 1,576
- 5. Memphis (1) 26-3 1,543
- 6. Louisville 23-5 1,462
- 7. Duke 24-5 1,340
- 8. Michigan State 23-5 1,302
- 9. Kansas 24-5 1,190
- 10. Wake Forest 22-5 1,158
- 11. Villanova 23-6 913
- 12. LSU 25-4 894
- 13. Marquette 23-6 860
- 14. Gonzaga 23-5 837
- 15. Missouri 24-5 795
- 16. Washington 22-7 704
- 17. Xavier 23-5 629
- 18. Clemson 22-6 564
- 19. Purdue 22-7 545
- 20. UCLA 22-7 497
- 21. Arizona State 21-7 347
- 22. Butler 25-4 302
- 23. Illinois 23-7 287
- 24. Florida State 22-7 272
- 25. Syracuse 21-8 99
Others Receiving Votes
Creighton 52, Brigham Young 41, Utah 22, Saint Mary's 13, Dayton 11, West Virginia 10, Davidson 9, Texas 9, California 8, South Carolina 7, Providence 7, Washington State 4, Arizona 3, Oklahoma State 2, Boston College 1, Rhode Island 1, American University 1, Utah State 1.
Andre McGee scored a season-high 16 points as No. 6 Louisville beat No. 8 Marquette, 62-58. Ninth-ranked Michigan State beat No. 20 Illinois, 74-66.
