On Friday night, Marquette’s coach Buzz Williams decided to bench 3 of his starters due to “undisclosed team violations”. However, #10 Marquette was able to erase a 15 point, 4th quarter, deficit and came back to beat Big East rival West Virginia, 61-60. One of the few starters that played for the Golden Eagles was Senior Jae Crowder. Crowder scored 26 points on 9 for 17 shooting in 40 minutes of play.
On Saturday, #1 Kentucky was able to capture the SEC Conference Title by beating Vanderbilt 83-74. Star forward Anthony Davis was able to connect on 10 of his 11 shots and 8 of his 9 free throws to score a game-high 28 points. He also had 11 rebounds to reach the double-double platform. He is a one-of-a-kind player who also put in 6 blocks for the Wildcats.
Somehow, #5 Kansas was able to come back from 19 points down against #3 Missouri in overtime. This was one of the better games this season in my opinion. Possible player of the year, Thomas Robinson, scored yet another double-double with 12 rebounds and 28 points. Tyshawn Taylor was able to pitch in 24 points of his own on 44 minutes of play. I think the Jayhawks should be considered as one of the best teams in the country, despite their 5 losses.
#2 Syracuse somehow only beat struggling UConn by 2 points. Kris Joseph nabbed three 3-pointers while scoring 21 points for the Orange. With the victory, Syracuse captured the Big East title. Despite the loss, the entire Husky starting line-up was able to score in double digits, with the exception of Lowell native Alex Oriakhi. Unfortunately, not one player off the bench was able to score a single point, and that includes Shabazz Napier.
#4 Duke was able to hold off Virginia Tech in yet another Saturday overtime game. The final score was 70-65. Austin Rivers put in 23 points with the help of 17 free throw attempts. Seth Curry was able to add 19 points of his own for the Blue Devils.
#7 North Carolina was barely able to slip by unranked Virginia in an ACC battle, by only 3 points. Forward Tyler Zeller scored 20 points while fellow Tar Heel John Henson was able to contribute a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. I was really hoping they lost…
On Sunday, #15 Wisconsin handed #9 Ohio State their 6th loss of the season. Star forward Jared Sullinger only connected on four of his shots, and missed all three free throws. He finished the game with a mere 8 points and 6 rebounds.
Notable Upsets:
Georgia 76 #11 Florida 62
Purdue 75 #13 Michigan 61
St. Johns 61 #18 Notre Dame 58
TCU 83 #21 New Mexico 64
Saint Joseph’s 82 #22 Temple 83
Miami 78 #16 Florida State 62
