It was a crazy weekend for college hoops fans, and our local teams got into the act, to some extent. While the men’s teams’ seasons may be over, at least our area women are still making a run. Here’s our rundown of what happened for NCAA tournament teams Georgetown, Loyola, VCU, Virginia, Norfolk State and Maryland.
Georgetown: For the first time in three seasons, the Hoyas weren’t upset in their opening game of the tournament, beating No. 14 seed Belmont 74-59. The Bears were a trendy upset pick in many brackets, but Georgetown shot over 60 percent for the game and coasted to a win. That’s the good news. The bad news is that for the third time in as many seasons, the Hoyas lost to a double-digit seed, falling to No. 11 North Carolina State. The Wolfpack looked like a very good team on both ends of the court, and were helped by fouls: Georgetown center Henry Sims fouled out after only 21 minutes, and N.C. State enjoyed a 31-17 free throw differential.
VCU: All week the talking heads had been saying that this wasn’t last year’s Final Four VCU team, and then as if on cue, the Rams upset a very good Wichita State squad 62-59, holding off a late run by the Shockers. Coach Shaka Smart’s luck didn’t hold up in the next game, however, as Indiana came back from a nine-point deficit and shut down the Rams defensively. VCU also missed some key free throws towards the end, but for awhile there, people were getting excited about another run. We’ll see what happens next year in Richmond.
Norfolk State: For the first time ever, two No. 15 seeds beat two No. 2 seeds, and one of those underdogs was Norfolk State, who shocked Missouri 86-84. Norfolk State center Kyle O’Quinn was the story of the night, scoring 26 points and adding 14 rebounds for the Spartans, who won in their first-ever NCAA tournament appearance. However, their time in the spotlight came to a swift end against seventh-seeded Florida, which drubbed the Spartans 84-50. Chris McEachin, Pendarvis Williams and O’Quinn, who combined for 66 points against Missouri, shot a combined 4 for 27 against the Gators. But, hey, Norfolk State will be remembered for a long time, joining the small fraternity of No. 15 seeds that have won a game in the tournament.
Virginia: The Florida Gators seem to have something against the state of Virginia. That same Florida team who trounced Norfolk State also handled No. 10 seed Virginia in the first round, beating the Cavaliers 71-45 while shooting over 50 percent. Virginia was led by this season’s leading scorer Mike Scott, who poured in 15, but nobody else on the team had more than eight points. Mr. Jefferson’s Basketball Team was also beaten badly on the boards, with Florida getting 36 rebounds to Virginia’s 21. We’ll see if the Gators can beat a team from outside the Old Dominion as they face Marquette in the Sweet 16.
Loyola: While a No. 15 seed losing is normally no surprise, the fact that two won this year gave the Greyhounds some hope. However, the team was outrun by No. 2 seed Ohio State, which included a lopsided 49-24 rebounding margin. The Buckeyes’ Jared Sullinger, one of the best players in the tournament, had a relatively quiet game with 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Deshaun Thomas scored 31 and added 12 more boards. Erik Etherly had a good game for Loyola, but Jimmy Patsos’ group simply couldn’t keep up.
Meanwhile, the women are still repping the D.C. area as both Maryland and Georgetown are still alive after winning their respective first round games.
Maryland: The No. 2 seed Terrapins (29-4) defeated No. 15 Navy last Saturday at the Comcast Center in a low-scoring affair, 59-44. Sophomore forward Alyssa Thomas collected a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, nine of which were on the defensive side of the ball. She also became the 27th player to break the 1,000-point mark, a rather exceptional feat as the ACC Player of the Year has two more years of eligibility remaining after this season.
Maryland will now face No. 7 seed Louisville (23-9) tonight in College Park. The two schools met for the first time three years ago when the Cardinals denied the Terrapins a Final Four bid in a 77-60 victory, adding some intrigue to today’s matchup. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN2.
Georgetown: The No. 5 seed Hoyas (23-8) beat No. 12 Fresno State last Sunday despite squandering a 17 point lead. The Bulldogs cut the deficit down to three late in the second half, but the Hoyas held on thanks to their defensive prowess, forcing Fresno State to turnover the ball twice in the final minutes of the game. Senior forward Tia Magee led the team in scoring with 17 points and had a crucial steal that put the team up five after converting both of her free throws with a minute left.
Georgetown now moves on to face No. 4 seed Georgia Tech (25-8) in Chapel Hill Tuesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN2.
Andrew Wiseman contributed to this report.
