Miami holds off Indiana rally to advance in March Madness

Associated PressMar 20, 2023, 11:02 PM EDT

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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Destiny Harden made a shot in the lane with 3.5 seconds left to send ninth-seeded Miami past top-seeded Indiana 70-68 on Monday night, lifting the Hurricanes to their first Sweet 16 since 1992.

The Hoosiers (28-4) became the second No. 1 seed to be eliminated in two nights. Stanford was upset Sunday on its home court.

Harden finished with 18 points and Lola Pendade had 19 points for the Hurricanes (21-12), who never trailed.

Indiana tied the score at 68 on Yarden Garzon’s 3-pointer with 6.6 seconds left but couldn’t get the defensive stop it needed and turned the ball over on the final possession to seal their only home loss of the season.

UP NEXT

While the Hoosiers head home earlier than expected, the Hurricanes head to Greenville, South Carolina, for a showdown with fourth-seeded Villanova, which was ranked No. 10 in the final Associated Press Top 25.

No. 3 Ohio State beats No. 6 UNC 71-69, advances to Sweet 16

Associated PressMar 20, 2023, 10:53 PM EDT

Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Jacy Sheldon made a tiebreaking jumper in the lane with 1.8 seconds left to lift No. 3 Ohio State to a 71-69 win over No. 6 seed North Carolina and help the Buckeyes advance to the Sweet 16 for the second straight season.

With the game tied, Sheldon took the pass from Eboni Walker and floated in the game-winning score. North Carolina had one final chance, but turned it over with a second remaining.

“Eboni did a great job,” Sheldon said. “It didn’t go as planned and she made a great play there, and that’s what led to that bucket. So I think keeping our composure in that situation was huge, keeping possession of the ball. And that was all Eboni.”

Ohio State (27-7) saw its 12-point lead with 7:02 to go erased as the Tar Heels went on a 13-2 run midway through the fourth quarter. The Tar Heels did most of that run without star Deja Kelly, who exited midway through the final quarter with a leg injury. She went to the locker room, but returned to the court a short time later.

Trailing 66-63, Kelly made two free throws before Paulina Paris made a layup in transition to give the Tar Heels (22-11) its first lead of the game with 2:09 left.

Sheldon scored to give the Buckeyes the lead back with 1:07 left. She added a free throw 29 seconds later to make it a two-point game.

Kelly, who finished with 22 points to lead North Carolina, hit a jumper to tie the game at 69 with 9 seconds left.

“I asked them to be what they have been all year, which is a group of fighters,” North Carolina coach Courtney Banghart said. “We asked them to be hard to beat, and we thought those things would get us to a Sweet 16. They did all of those things, right, but you got to be so good to win in March, so good, and we just were not quite good enough.”

Ohio State led the entirety of the first half, including by as many as nine points in the first quarter, on 46% shooting. Taylor Mikesell went 3-of-6 from beyond the arc in the first half.

Sheldon finished with 16 points, Walker added 15 and Cotie McMahon scored 14. Taylor Mikesell had a team-high 17.

“This is a great win for us because it puts us in the Sweet 16 but also just I have so much respect for North Carolina,” Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said. “We beat a great opponent today.”

X’S AND O’S

McGuff said Ohio State’s final play design was intended to give Sheldon the basketball, but it didn’t unfold according to plan.

Walker, who averaged over 14 minutes and 4 1/2 points per game this season, took the inbounds pass from Rikki Harris, looked toward Sheldon after catching the ball, dribbled to the top of the key and hooked it back to Sheldon for the game-winning score.

“Eboni made a great decision not passing the initial one to Jacy because she really wasn’t open, and then we swung the ball back around and got it back in her hands,” McGuff said. “I told her in the locker room sometimes it’s about X’s and O’s and sometimes it’s about having the best player on the court.”

BIG PICTURE

North Carolina: The Tar Heels allowed an opposing team to shoot at least 50% for the third time all season and first time since December. North Carolina allowed the Buckeyes to shoot 54.2% in the second half.

Ohio State: The Buckeyes have made second-half comebacks in all four of their postseason victories, including a 24-point resurgence that broke the Big Ten Tournament record March 4. Ohio State advances to the Sweet 16 for the fourth time since the 2015-16 season.

UP NEXT

Ohio State will play the winner of No. 2 seed UConn and No. 7 seed Baylor in the Seattle 3 Regional.

Michigan State outlasts Marquette; Izzo back to Sweet 16

Associated PressMar 20, 2023, 12:54 AM EDT

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Tom Izzo leaned on star guard and native New Yorker Tyson Walker to get Michigan State to Madison Square Garden for the Sweet 16.

Walker, a fourth-year player who grew up in Westbury on Long Island, delivered against Marquette in March Madness on Sunday night, scoring 23 points and punctuating Michigan State’s 69-60 victory with a steal and his first ever collegiate dunk late in the game.

And Walker wants to make sure his 68-year-old, Hall of Fame coach has a quintessential Big Apple experience.

“It means everything,” said Walker, who played two years at Northeastern before transferring to Michigan State. “Just growing up, seeing everything, playing at the Garden. Just to make those shots, look over see my dad, see how excited he was. That means everything. And I just owe Coach some pizza now. And a cab ride.”

Joey Hauser – a Marquette transfer – had 14 points and A.J. Hoggard had 13 as seventh-seeded Michigan State (21-12) took over in the last three minutes. The Spartans advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time in four years and will play third-seeded Kansas State in the East Region semifinals on Thursday.

“I’ve been in Elite Eight games; I’ve been in the Final Four – that was as intense and tough a game as I’ve been in my career,” Izzo said. “And a lot of credit goes to Marquette and (coach) Shaka (Smart) and how they played, too.”

Izzo reached his 15th regional semifinal and won his record 16th March Madness game with a lower-seeded team – one more than Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim, who retired after this season.

This one was particularly meaningful. Izzo became the face of a grieving school where three students were killed in a campus shooting on Feb. 13.

“It’s been a long year,” an emotional Izzo said in a courtside interview. “I’m just happy for our guys.”

Olivier-Maxence Prosper led second-seeded Marquette (29-7) with 16 points and Kam Jones had 14 points, including three 3-pointers, for the Big East champions.

Michigan State led by as many as 12 in the first half, but Ben Gold and Prosper made back-to-back 3-pointers to help the Golden Eagles close within 33-28 at halftime.

Prosper hit two more 3s in the first minute of the second half to give Marquette its first lead of the day. Michigan State grabbed back the lead with an 8-0 run and didn’t relinquish it.

Back-to-back baskets in the paint by Hoggard and then Walker, both times as the shot clock expired, gave the Spartans a 60-55 lead with 2:20 left. Mady Sissoko then blocked shots on consecutive Marquette possessions, and Walker had a steal followed by a game-sealing dunk with 39 seconds left.

Marquette’s nine-game winning streak ended, concluding a season in which the Golden Eagles exceeded expectations under coach Smart, who has referred to Izzo as a mentor.

Michigan State, meanwhile, finished fourth in the Big Ten but appears to be improving at the right time.

“We’ve still got some dancing to do,” Izzo said. “And we’re going to New York. I couldn’t be more excited for Tyson and even A.J., being a Philly guy.

“After watching the tournament, it doesn’t matter who we play, when we play, where we play, or how, it’s going to be a hell of a game. And I’m looking forward to it.”

BIG PICTURE

Marquette: Coming off their first Big East Tournament title, the Golden Eagles dominated Vermont in the first round of March Madness, but Michigan State was a much tougher opponent. The Golden Eagles committed 11 of their 16 turnovers in the second half, and those giveaways led to 19 Spartans points.

“I thought (Michigan State) played with great aggressiveness, particularly early in the game and at the very end of the game,” Smart said. “And those two the stretches were the difference in the outcome of the game.”

Michigan State: The Spartans came out of their shooting funk after the halfway point of the second half and pulled away. They made 15 of their 17 free throws after halftime.

KOLEK HURTING

Tyler Kolek, the Big East Player of the Year, injured his thumb when he caught it on the jersey of a Vermont player in the opening round Friday night.

He finished that game with eight points. He wasn’t much of a factor against Michigan State, either, scoring seven points, losing six turnovers and committing four fouls.

Kolek insisted the thumb “wasn’t an issue at all.”

“Just trying to be out there for my team and command the game. And I didn’t do that today,” he said.

UP NEXT

Michigan State’s next opponent, Kansas State, is making its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2018 and first under coach Jerome Tang.

No. 1 seed Alabama beats Maryland 73-51 in drama-free game

Associated PressMar 19, 2023, 3:17 PM EDT

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Before Alabama took the court, two No. 1 seeds had fallen and a third had to rally from a double-digit deficit.

By comparison, the Crimson Tide had a drama-free night.

Jahvon Quinerly scored 22 points, Brandon Miller heated up with 19 and top overall seed Alabama brushed aside Maryland 73-51 behind a dominant second half Saturday.

The second-round romp followed a 21-point blowout of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the Tide’s tournament opener.

“I feel like our job’s not done,” Miller said. “We’re here to win a national championship.”

The Crimson Tide (31-5) advanced to their second Sweet 16 in the past three tournaments and ninth overall. Alabama will face fifth-seeded San Diego State in the South Region semifinals Friday in Louisville, Kentucky.

Before the late-night game, Purdue and defending national champion Kansas had lost, and No. 1 seed Houston trailed Tide rival Auburn by 10 points at halftime earlier at Legacy Arena before pulling away.

“Of course we watched those games and that was crazy,” Quinerly said. “But Coach (Nate Oats) didn’t really address the team.

“We all know anybody can win in March. We just kind of focused on the task at hand.”

Alabama and Miller got off to a slow start, but the All-America freshman and top NBA prospect wound up with a more typical performance after going scoreless in the first-round game. Miller has been nursing a groin injury and missed his first nine shots of the tournament.

“It seems the more he goes, the looser it got,” Oats said. “He didn’t have the same pop. He was 3 of 11 on 2s. A lot of those were at the rim. His finishing has been really good. He definitely wasn’t 100%. He’s a tough kid. He’s playing through some stuff. He doesn’t let people know he’s hurt.”

Quinerly had a big game on the one-year anniversary of his left knee injury early in a second-round loss to Notre Dame, which still limited him early this season. He shot 4 of 6 on 3-pointers.

Maryland coach Kevin Willard had offered the New Jersey native a scholarship while at Seton Hall when Quinerly was just a ninth-grader.

Charles Bediako had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Alabama’s starters hit the bench with a couple of minutes left to chants of “Sweet 16” in the friendly crowd.

“It’s been unbelievable to play in front of our hometown fans to have a chance to go to the Sweet 16,” Oats said.

Julian Reese had 14 points for Maryland (22-13) before fouling out. Jahmir Young scored 12.

Reese scored seven quick points but picked up his second foul three minutes into the game and only played four minutes in the first half, picking up a quick third.

“His first foul was a foul. But the second one was mysterious, and the third one was the game,” Willard said. “You can’t call that second foul in a physical game. It was a horrible call. It changed the game.

“I’ll elaborate as much as you want. Do you want me to get in a little bit of trouble or a lot of trouble? But the second call was a terrible foul call. A horrible call. It changed our whole game plan. We were gonna pound it inside, pound it inside.”

The Tide wound up with a 44-32 rebounding advantage.

Alabama had an easy time in the end, unlike the other No. 1 seeds.

No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson toppled top-seeded Purdue 63-58 on Friday night in only the second such upset. Then No. 8 seed Arkansas beat the Jayhawks 72-71 earlier Saturday. Houston ultimately pulled away from Auburn as the Tide waited for their opportunity.

The first half was more to Maryland’s liking – other than the 28-23 deficit – for a team that came in giving up just 63 points a game.

BIG PICTURE

Maryland: The 2002 national champion Terps failed to make their 15th trip to the Sweet 16 in Willard’s first season. They also lost to Alabama in the second round two years ago under former coach Mark Turgeon. Maryland’s defense was on point enough that it kept the lead for much of the first half despite a stretch of nine straight misses.

Alabama: It was the largest win in NCAA Tournament history by a team that shot under 40% overall and under 30% on 3-pointers, according to STATS. … Alabama’s depth has been on display so far. The Tide controlled the game despite not getting much scoring from starters Mark Sears and Noah Clowney or Nick Pringle, the star of the opening game against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

UP NEXT

Alabama faces a San Diego State team making its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2004, which was also the year of the Tide’s only Elite Eight run. The Crimson Tide have never reached the Final Four.

“I know San Diego State’s defense is elite,” Oats said.

Minnesota hires West Virginia’s Plitzuweit to replace Whalen

Associated PressMar 18, 2023, 1:20 PM EDT

Syndication: Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Minnesota hired West Virginia head coach Dawn Plitzuweit on Saturday to a six-year contract, turning to another leader with strong regional ties to try to lift up the lagging program.

Plitzuweit, who replaces Lindsay Whalen, has 16 years of experience as a head coach with a career record of 356-141 at four schools. She spent just one season with the Mountaineers, who as a 10th seed lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to No. 7 seed Arizona on Friday.

Prior to that, Plitzuweit took South Dakota to the NCAA Tournament in four of her six seasons there. She was a three-time winner of the Summit League Coach of the Year award with the Coyotes, who reached the Sweet 16 in 2022.

Plitzuweit also spent four seasons at Northern Kentucky and five seasons at Grand Valley State, which won the NCAA Division II national championship in 2006. Between those stops, she was an assistant at Michigan.

The 50-year-old native of West Bend, Wisconsin, has also worked as an assistant at Michigan Tech, Wisconsin and Green Bay.

“This is a homecoming of sorts, and Minnesota is a program that I am very familiar with from my previous time in the surrounding area and in the Big Ten,” Plitzuweit said in a statement. “I am looking forward to getting back to the area and to meet the team, alumni and fans. I am also looking forward to reconnecting with local high school and club coaches. I can’t wait to get to work.”

The university scheduled a news conference on Monday afternoon to introduce Plitzuweit. Terms of her contract weren’t immediately available. Whalen’s base salary this season was $547,000.

Whalen’s departure was described by Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle as a mutual decision, but it seemed like she wasn’t ready to leave. She was supposed to appear at a news conference with Coyle on March 2 when the change was announced, but later said she was too emotional to participate.

Whalen was hired five years ago with no previous coaching experience. But she is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and led her home-state Gophers to their only Final Four appearance as a player in 2004, going on to star for the Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA and for the U.S. national team in the Olympics.

Whalen went 71-76 with Minnesota, including a 32-58 record in Big Ten play and no NCAA Tournament appearances. The Gophers made it to the NCAAs twice in four years under Whalen’s predecessor, Marlene Stollings, their only appearances in the last 14 seasons.

Whalen brought in a highly regarded freshman class this season, with four in-state players including leading scorer Mara Braun. The Gophers’ 11-19 season ended with a first-round loss to Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament on Wednesday. They tied for 12th in the Big Ten with a 4-12 record, their fewest wins in 12 years.

Plitzuweit will be the 13th head coach in Gophers program history. Her teams have been fifth or higher in regular season conference play in all 16 seasons as a coach, including 11 top-three finishes.

“We have everything in place,” Coyle said in early March. “There is no reason why it cannot be done here. That’s the question we have to figure out.”

As a player, Plitzuweit was a two-time Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year at Michigan Tech with four trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament.

She and her husband, Jay, have a son, A.J., who plays for South Dakota, and daughter Lexi plays for Grand Valley State.

Fairleigh Dickinson stuns No. 1 seed Purdue in March Madness

Associated PressMar 17, 2023, 9:41 PM EDT

Rick Osentoski/USA TODAY Sports

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Fairleigh Dickinson became the second No. 16 seed in history to win an NCAA Tournament game, stunning top-seeded Purdue 63-58 behind 19 points from Sean Moore and a relentless, hustling defense on Friday night.

The shortest team in the tourney, the Knights (21-15) showed no fear in swarming 7-foot-4 All-America center Zach Edey from the start. FDU’s players were quicker and more composed than the Big Ten champion Boilermakers (29-6).

Five years ago, UMBC showed the way for the little guys by overwhelming Virginia in the first 16-over-1 victory after numerous close calls over the years. Still, No. 16s had a 1-150 record before FDU’s shocker.

Fairleigh Dickinson didn’t even win the Northeast Conference Tournament, falling by one point in the title game to Merrimack, which couldn’t participate in the NCAA Tournament because of an NCAA rule that bars it from the postseason because it’s still completing its four-year transition from Division II.

FDU held Purdue scoreless for more than 5 1/2 minutes down the stretch and moved ahead by five on a 3-pointer by Moore with 1:03 left. The Knights held on from there, becoming the second straight double-digit seed to send the Boilermakers home. Purdue was a 3 seed when it lost to 15 seed Saint Peter’s in the Sweet 16 last year.