Sweet Sixteen Day Two

Day two of the Sweet Sixteen did not have the signature game like Xavier and Kansas State, but we saw some good basketball, big plays, and another top seed packing their bags. Here is a quick look back at the four games from Friday night and a quick look forward to the first two Elite Eight games this evening.

Tennessee 76 – Ohio State 73

The best game of the day was first and was the most surprising to me of any of the Sweet Sixteen games. I have been on the Buckeye bandwagon from early in the year and thought they would cruise past Tennessee and the Michigan State-Northern Iowa winner into the Final Four. That did not happen, however, and the Buckeyes have no one to blame but themselves. Ohio St. gave up way too many easy baskets to the Volunteers, allowing Tennessee to shoot 53% from two point range with many of those being dunks and lay-ups. I don’t want to minimize Evan Turner’s greatness, but playing out of position at point guard he had too many turnovers and forced a few too many tough shots, finishing with six turnovers and shooting only 10-23 from the floor. Turner was not helped much by Jon Diebler, who finished with three points on 1-8 shooting after scoring 43 in the Buckeyes’ first two tournament games. This is not to take anything away from Tennessee, who got a great game from Wayne Chism (22 points and 11 rebounds) and very good contributions from a number of players, but this game was about Ohio State losing it and not Tennessee winning it to me. Even the Buckeyes last possession, trailing by three, was executed poorly. Turner, who looked like he had a chance for two clean looks, took too much time and could not get off a good shot on either attempt.

Baylor 72 – St. Mary’s 49

This game was over in a hurry. Baylor jumped out to an early 19-7 lead and never looked back, extending the lead to 29 points by halftime. Baylor was simply too athletic for the Gaels, forcing previous tournament hero Omar Samhan into a 7-17 shooting night and pushing the pace to an uncomfortable level for St. Mary’s. Baylor looks to be hitting their stride at the right time and should make for a great match-up with Duke for a trip to the Final Four. Besides, who doesn’t love a team with guys named Tweety and LaceDarius.

Michigan State 59 – Northern Iowa 52

Northern Iowa put up a great fight for most of this game, even leading by seven at halftime. Michigan State’s size and athleticism was too much in the end, however, and it was Kalin Lucas’ replacement, Korie Lucious, who played hero down the stretch. Tom Izzo is doing it again, this time with an injury-ridden roster, proving to quite possibly be the best tournament coach in recent history. This game was a well-played, defensive battle throughout with both teams limiting turnovers and keeping the opposition off of the offensive glass. The difference in the game became the Spartans ability to hit a few key shots down the stretch, including Lucious’ spinning, one-foot fade-away that probably sealed the deal for Michigan State.

Duke 70 – Purdue 57

This was a battle of offensive ineptitude for much of the first half, but in the end Duke just had too many weapons for the Robbie Hummel-less Boilermakers. The big three for Duke, Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith and John Scheyer, combined for 57 of the Blue Devils’ 70 points and were too much for the Purdue defense to handle. E’Twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson did everything they could to try and keep Purdue in the game, combining for 41 points, but it was obvious that the Boilermakers were one weapon short in this one. Hummel’s absence was missed on the boards as well, with Duke dominating on the glass to a tune of 45-22 and 15-4 on the offensive glass. Matt Painter did a great job getting this Purdue team to the Sweet Sixteen and putting up a valiant fight in this one, but when you lose your 2nd leading scorer and rebounder, eventually you are going to meet your match.

Now a quick look at Saturday’s Elite Eight contests:

Butler vs. Kansas State – Butler has gotten here on the strength of its defense and that has been K-State’s calling card all year long. I am expecting a hard-fought, grind-it-out, who can make the most plays in the end kind of game. I think the difference in this one could be the Kansas State guards, Denis Clemente and Jacob Pullen, who have been playing as good or better than any backcourt in the tournament so far.

West Virginia vs. Kentucky – This is the game going all the way back to Selection Sunday that everyone has been pointing to as what could be the game of the tournament. These teams are big, athletic, skilled and play defense as well as anyone in the country. This game will probably come down to West Virginia’s ability to put the ball in the hole. No matter how great WVU’s defense is, Kentucky will find ways with all that talent to put the ball in the hoop. The question will be whether the Mountaineers can score enough to limit the big runs Kentucky has been putting on everyone else. I think this will be a close game for the most part, but in the end one big run by Kentucky will be the difference.