Games I watched (some of):
(4) Arkansas 74-68 (1) Gonzaga
Well, the refs didn't do Gonzaga any favors (I thought all three 2nd half fouls on Chet Holmgren were lame and they missed a bunch of calls on the Razorbacks), but really it was Arkansas's scrappy defensive guard play that kept Gonzaga off balance all night. They took too long to get Drew Timme going and he just couldn't get it done by himself. I watched JD Notae a bit this year and that guy can get hot from downtown, didn't even think he was that great against Gonzaga (meaning Duke better watch out). Tough L for the Zags but they had their chances. Great W for the Razorbacks, they've got size and shooting, a great combo this time of year.
(3) Texas Tech 73-78 (2) Duke
Good back and forth action but Duke made the shots down the stretch (man, Roach is that classic PG that was built for the tourney--shades of Mateen Cleeves) and Tech just couldn't hang. But until the last TV timeout, this was a really competitive game. Williams came up big for Duke and Banchero had some nice moments, too. On the Tech side, they played well just didn't hit the shots down the stretch and couldn't stop Roach from taking over (shades of Mateen Cleaves!). Also, I kinda loved Obanor, the guy plays with a lot of grit and does a little bit of everything, I haven't noticed him in any mock drafts, but I wouldn't be at all surprised to see that guy blowing up at Summer League this year. As for Banchero: oh, I get it, his game is Cade Cunningham....but I think Cade has more upside and is already better, suggesting to me that the 2022 draft isn't gonna be as good at the top as last year; we'll see. Tech played well but couldn't seal it, Duke tightened up when need be and that's a bad sign for everyone else.
(15) St. Peter's 67-61 (3) Purdue
Frankly I thought Purdue kinda sucked. Back and forth 1st half, Purdue snatched the lead late and then went on a nice run early in the 2nd half. But that was pretty much it for the Boilermakers. Once St. Peter's got their offense going, I thought they cruised to the finish. The magnificent run of St. Peter's is still going and the lesson is clear: hey, man, the big schools are often times not as good as you think they are. (Also: Jaden Ivey (Purdue) is a concensus top 5 pick in the draft, some mocks have him #1 overall, but I gotta say....I don't see it. With, say, Trae Young a few years back, I doubted his ability to translate his game to the next level; but with Ivey, I don't see any mastery of any part of the game, he's got nice shoulder and a nice handle on the ball, but so what? I don't see him as a playmaker or a finisher or a dominant defender, so what does he do? He's a Moneyball-er: he looks like he ought to be a pro but that doesn't mean he has skills. We'll see)
(8) North Carolina 73-66 (4) UCLA
Fun game! I thought UCLA was the better team, the more complete team, but their scoring dried up in the 2nd half. Then when Caleb Love went off in the 2nd half, the Bruins kinda got buried. Oh well, we've seen this Tarheel team beat Duke this year, but I really thought UCLA was better built to give the Dukies a for-real match. We'll see.
Other results:
(11) Michigan 63-55 (2) Villanova
Sounds about right. I thought Michigan was playing a bit above themselves lately and Villanova was ready for a convincing win.
(5) Houston 72-60 (1) Arizona
I think Houston is one to keep an eye on. This was an interesting season in that there were no great teams at the top (unless you thought Gonzaga was the real deal) and Arizona struck me as suspect the whole time. Likewise, there were a bunch of 2nd tier teams that could win it all if they get hot at the right time and it looks like the Cougars are one of those squads.
(4) Providence 61-66 (1) Kansas
Low scoring affair early on, kinda ballooned up some points down the stretch. Kansas seemed to control throughout.
(11) Iowa State 56-70 (10) Miami
Miami was up at halftime, kinda dominated the 2nd half. Two nice teams, feels like Miami just had the better/deeper talent.
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