2023 NCAA Tournament thread

[Da Coach]

Can anyone tell me what Bradley players are leaving the program other than Jashon.

So far, Ja'Shon is the only one confirmed. Everyone else has one or more years of remaining eligibility. But there could be other announcements coming.

[Da Coach]

NCAA 3rd round (Sweet 16) games tonight (Tuesday, 3/23)-

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/scoreboard/_/date/20230323/seasontype/3/group/100

[carter]

Michigan St goes down,yes!!

[BUSongwriter]

So . . . the Big Ten gets eight teams in the Big Dance and none are left in the final 15. Still, I bet they'll get that many -- or more -- in next year's tourney.

That being said, what a game from both Michigan State and Kansas State. One of the best I've ever seen. That Nowell is a magician. 19 assists, 20 points. Incredible!

[tomahawk chop]

So . . . the Big Ten gets eight teams in the Big Dance and none are left in the final 15. Still, I bet they'll get that many -- or more -- in next year's tourney.

That being said, what a game from both Michigan State and Kansas State. One of the best I've ever seen. That Nowell is a magician. 19 assists, 20 points. Incredible!

That was an incredible game, just goes to show you how important the point guard is for their team. Once again the big ten is a complete failure in the tournament.

[Da Coach]

Michigan St goes down,yes!!

Final score- Kansas State 98 Michigan State 93 in overtime

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/boxscore/_/gameId/401522191

Kansas State advances to the Elite 8. They improve their record to 26-9 under first year head coach Jerome Tang, after KSU went 14-17 last season under Bruce Weber. Tang is a good coach, but this kind of turnaround would not have been possible without the advantage of the Transfer Portal, the immediate eligibility rule, and the huge NIL money they can offer.
The entire starting 5 for Kansas State, along with every reserve who played, are transfers. The star of the game was starting guard Marquise Nowell, who had 20 points and 19 assists in the game. He transferred to Kansas State from Little Rock. Keyontae Johnson, who was tonight's leading scorer for Kansas State with 22 points and 6 rebounds, is a grad-transfer from Florida. Starting forward Nae'Quan Tomlin (11 points, 7 rebounds) transferred to K-State from Chipola Junior College. Starting guard Cam Carter (12 points, 6 rebounds) is a transfer portal player from Mississippi State. And the other starting guard, Desi Sills (7 points), is a grad-transfer from Arkansas State.
Reserve forward David N'Guessan (11 points tonight) transferred to K-State this season from Virginia Tech. Another reserve forward, Ismael Massoud (15 points tonight) is a transfer from Wake Forest, and the other reserve in tonight's win, Abayomi Iyiola, transferred in this season from Hofstra.
All 8 players who saw action in tonight's win over Michigan State are transfers, 7 from other Division I schools, and one from a junior college. And they have at least 4 other kids on the roster who didn't play tonight, who also are transfers. This is what the portal, immediate eligibility, and the NIL rules allow the big schools to do. If they aren't successful one year, they raid other teams' rosters and rebuild whenever necessary. Good for them. They used the new rules to their advantage, but it's the other schools who lost the players who suffered.

[Stryker]

The MSU vs KSU game was the best game of the tournament imo quickly followed by Gonzaga vs UCLA. FDU over Purdue was also amazing. Really nice to see Gonzaga and FAU both in the elite 8. Really hoping for Princeton, SDSU, Xavier, and Houston to win tonight. Houston I'm a bit conflicted on as Sampson I can't stand. Oh well.

[Da Coach]

Yes, the Kansas State-Michigan State game was fantastic. And the Gonzaga-UCLA game was, too. It came down to the final shot by Gonzaga when Strawther hit that 30 foot+ shot like it was nothing. Drew Timme solidified his place as a lottery pick in the NBA Draft with his 36 point, 13 rebound game.

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/35928855/3-seed-gonzaga-rallies-2-seed-ucla-advances-elite-8

[LittleBrave]

Yes, the Kansas State-Michigan State game was fantastic. And the Gonzaga-UCLA game was, too. It came down to the final shot by Gonzaga when Strawther hit that 30 foot+ shot like it was nothing. Drew Timme solidified his place as a lottery pick in the NBA Draft with his 36 point, 13 rebound game.
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...vances-elite-8

2 awesome games for Sweet 16 for sure!

And how about that 5' 8" PG for K State who had an incredible game with 20 pts, and NCAA record 19 assists!

Man, I wish we had a 5' 8" PG too!!!

[Da Coach]

2 awesome games for Sweet 16 for sure!

And how about that 5' 8" PG for K State who had an incredible game with 20 pts, and NCAA record 19 assists!

Man, I wish we had a 5' 8" PG too!!!

Yes, Markquis Nowell. He was a portal transfer from Little Rock, recruited to Kansas State by Bruce Weber. Turned out pretty good for Kansas State and Jerome Tang.

[Tommy]

2 awesome games for Sweet 16 for sure!

And how about that 5' 8" PG for K State who had an incredible game with 20 pts, and NCAA record 19 assists!

Man, I wish we had a 5' 8" PG too!!!

haha! Right! That stat line should put to rest the talk about Deen being too short, right?

[BUfan14]

haha! Right! That stat line should put to rest the talk about Deen being too short, right?

Eh, I mean one elite player at a high major who averages over 2 steals (He has averaged at least 2.2 for 4 straight years) and 8 assists a game, along with 87% free throw shooting and 14.5 points does not prove it is not a concern to me. There are always outliers, but generally speaking being that height makes it difficult to be a complete player. Players do it, but it still isn't the norm. Averaging that many steals and assists also shows me he is solid defensively and quick with his hands.

Deen is a fine player for a team to have, but he has a long way to go to be Markquis Nowell. Impossible to be that player because of height? No. Likely? Also, no.

[Tommy]

Eh, I mean one elite player at a high major who averages over 2 steals (He has averaged at least 2.2 for 4 straight years) and 8 assists a game, along with 87% free throw shooting and 14.5 points does not prove it is not a concern to me. There are always outliers, but generally speaking being that height makes it difficult to be a complete player. Players do it, but it still isn't the norm. Averaging that many steals and assists also shows me he is solid defensively and quick with his hands.

Deen is a fine player for a team to have, but he has a long way to go to be Markquis Nowell. Impossible to be that player because of height? No. Likely? Also, no.

Point stands. Height is not the reason. Talent level might be, but height does not preclude someone from success in college basketball is the point.

[BUfan14]

Point stands. Height is not the reason. Talent level might be, but height does not preclude someone from success in college basketball is the point.

Sure, but it also doesn't help in some cases. Deen certainly has more struggles to overcome than a player that is much taller. Duke had trouble driving at all this year to the point where he didn't even put up layups unless literally wide open. Duke had trouble creating his shot at times because of players being taller than him. Duke struggled to stop shooters at times because he was too short to disrupt them, and he often got in foul trouble. That is not to bash him at all. He is a solid, but streaky shooter, and seems to be a nice leader on the court. He is not a liability in any area, but height certainly creates challenges. It is why Deen had to get subbed in and out at the end of games this year when Bradley was experiencing their best run.

So no, a small player can be really good. But the percentage chance it happens is very low. It has to be a really special player able to overcome all of the obstacles we just talked about. So height might not preclude it, but it certainly adds obstacles to it.

[Da Coach]

The last two #1 seeds lost today (Alabama & Houston). #1 Purdue and #1 Kansas lost last weekend. This is the first time since 1979 that no #1 seed will be in the Elite 8.
There is only one #2 seed still alive, Texas.