Oregon: 2018-19 Pac-12 Men's Basketball Champions

Payton Pritchard posted 20 points, seven assists, six rebounds and four steals as sixth-seeded Oregon beat top-seeded Washington 68-48 in the Pac-12 men's basketball championship game on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Louis King added 15 points for the 23-12 Ducks, who won their fourth Pac-12 tournament championship game in school history. Paul White added 14 points.

Jaylen Nowell scored a team-leading eight points for the 26-8 Huskies, who shot 33.3 percent from the field and 5-of-23 from three-point range. Washington only scored two points over the first 10 minutes of the second half.

             

What's Next?

Both teams will wait to hear their names on Sunday during the NCAA tournament selection show, which begins at 6 p.m. ET on CBS.

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LAS VEGAS — After trailing by just two points at half, the Washington men’s basketball team went on the wrong end of a big run that ultimately cost them in a 68-48 loss to Oregon in the Pac-12 championship game.

The offensive struggles against the Ducks continued today for the Huskies, who shot just 33.3 percent from the field and a measly 5-of-23 from distance.

Now, all the Huskies can do is sit and wait for the fates come Selection Sunday, where a loss casts some doubt on if the Dawgs will hear their names called. 

The first half featured a mostly back-and-forth contest before the Ducks began to generate a sliver of separation near the midway point. Oregon Guard Victor Bailey Jr. knocked down a heavily-contested three-point shot from the right wing to take the UO lead to four with 7:10 to go in the half.

After a series of back-and-forth buckets between the two teams, Matisse Thybulle scored on a tough floater to close out the half for the Huskies and trim the deficit to just two at the break.

It was a tough offensive start for leading UW scorer Jaylen Nowell, as he scored his first points of the game at the 4:17 mark in the opening frame and was shooting 2-of-5 from the field with a turnover at the half.

The second half didn’t start any better for the Huskies, who through nine and a half minutes had only scored two points and suddenly found themselves trailing by 16.

Finally, a Noah Dickerson layup in the post broke an over seven-minute scoreless streak midway through the second half. 

But the Ducks kept the pressure on. Led by Payton Pritchard, Louis King, and Paul White, who each scored in double figures, Oregon put on enough points to secure the upset and win yet another Pac-12 tournament championship.  

No Washington player scored in double figures.

The CBS selection show will air at 3 p.m. on Sunday, where the Huskies are hoping for their first tournament appearance since 2011.

New Mexico State: 2018-19 Western Athletic Men's Basketball Champions

For the second straight year, the Grand Canyon men's basketball team came one win away from earning its first-ever NCAA Tournament bid.

And for the second straight year, it was top-seeded New Mexico State that dashed the Lopes' dream.

New Mexico State routed GCU 89-57 in Saturday night's WAC Tournament championship game at the Orleans Arena to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Aggies, who won all three of their matchups with GCU this season, defeated the Lopes 72-58 in last year's championship game in the same venue.

Everything went right for the Lopes in the first five minutes of Saturday's game, as they jumped out to a 10-2 lead and had the thousands of Lopes fans in attendance on their feet. But it was all Aggies, who won their 19th straight game, the rest of the way. NMSU out-shot, out-rebounded and out-defended GCU, to the delight of the NMSU fans who made the trip from Las Cruces.

Junior guard Carlos Johnson, who scored career highs in the Lopes' wins in the WAC Tournament quarterfinals and semifinals -- 66 total points in the two games -- was held to nine points on 3 of 9 shooting Saturday.

GCU shot just 7 of 30 from 3-point range, NMSU went 17 of 39 from beyond the arc.

Coached by former Phoenix Suns star Dan Majerle, GCU is in its sixth year at the NCAA Division I level, but this was just its second season of NCAA Tournament eligibility. Saturday's result means the Lopes will have to wait at least one more season to punch their first-ever ticket to the Big Dance.

Abilene Christian: 2018-19 Southland Men's Basketball Champions

The UNO bid for a second NCAA tournament berth in three seasons came up short Saturday (March 16) in a Southland Conference championship loss to Abilene Christian in Katy, Texas.

The Privateers trailed by 15 points in the first half and never got closer than eight points in the second half of the 77-60 loss. Abilene Christian will play in the NCAA tournament in the second season of postseason eligibility after its transition from the Division II level.

UNO (19-13) reached the conference final with a semifinal win Friday against top-seeded Sam Houston State. The Privateers held the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye to the quarterfinal round of the eight-team tournament. The game Saturday with the third in three days for UNO.

UNO turned the ball over 13 times in the first half and trailed 40-29 at halftime. The deficit reached 15 points a second time in the second half before a 7-0 run drew UNO within 61-53. The Wildcats (27-6) ran away from there.

Bryson Robinson, one of two current players from the NCAA tournament team from two years ago, scored 14 points with four 3-pointers. Scott Plaisance added 13 points.

Although not qualified for the NCAA tournament, UNO could have a postseason opportunity. The school played last season in the College Basketball Invitational, an event in which schools submit a bid for a chance to play at home.

Duke: 2018-19 Atlantic Coast Men's Basketball Champions

CHARLOTTE—One week ago Saturday, the Blue Devils walked off the court in Chapel Hill ready to hit the reset button prior to starting postseason play.

Three wins, 81 points and 30 rebounds by Zion Williamson later, it's safe to say Duke is back at its best.

The third-seeded Blue Devils clinched their 21st ACC tournament title Thursday after knocking off No. 4 seed Florida State 73-63 Saturday evening. Duke used a 25-11 run in the opening minutes of the second-half to break open a game that was tied at halftime. Williamson capped his stellar tournament for the Blue Devils with a 21-point, five-rebound performance as Duke collected its first piece of hardware of the 2018-19 campaign.

Williamson's scoring total for the week was a program record for a three-game run in the ACC tournament.

The Blue Devils (29-5) struggled to find consistency out of the gates, missing each of their first eight attempts from the perimeter as Florida State jumped out to a 27-19 advantage. Duke then started to push the tempo and took advantage of eight first-half turnovers from the Seminoles (27-7) to tie the game at 27 and entered halftime tied at 36.

Terrance Mann hit a triple out of the locker room to give the Seminoles a three-point lead, but the Blue Devils came right back with a classic Duke second-half run. Tre Jones hit a jumper, Zion Williamson hit a pair of layups, Javin DeLaurier hit two at the line and a reverse layup by Jones in transition capped a 10-0 spurt. The Blue Devils took a 46-39 advantage with 16:29 remaining—then their largest of the night.

Less than three minutes later, Duke went on another 8-0 spurt to open up a 58-44 advantage, forcing a Florida State timeout with 11:11 remaining. The Blue Devils opened the half with 10 consecutive made 2-pointers and coupled that with stifling defense that held Florida State to just three of its first 15 from the field out of the break.

The Seminoles fought back and cut the Duke lead to as little as five, using a 12-3 run to trim the deficit to 61-56 with 5:28 remaining—behind a team-high 14 points from ACC Sixth Man of the Year Mfiondu Kabengele—but Florida State could not slow down the Blue Devils enough down the stretch. A bucket by Jones and a 3-pointer by Cam Reddish from the left wing with 1:20 left put the game away.

Jones continued his recent attacking mentality on offense, but was more efficient than in past games. The floor general added a season-high 18 points, on 8-of-14 shooting, while racking up six assists in the process.

After a slow start from R.J. Barrett, the freshman phenom began to attack and ended up with 11 first-half points and 17 in the contest. Barrett complemented another stellar offensive showing from Williamson, who paced the team with 12 in the opening period and led the Blue Devil scoring game on the interior.

Both teams showed sloppiness in the first half, combining for 15 turnovers. The teams took better care of the ball out of the locker room, as Duke won the turnover battle 13-12.

Duke did manage to improve in an area that it has struggled mightily in throughout the season—at the charity stripe. The Blue Devils finished the contest with a 81.0 percent clip on free-throw attempts. Duke needed every point it could get at the stripe as the Seminoles could not miss, draining their first 13 attempts and finishing the contest 15-for-16

With the win, the Blue Devils will wait to see if they earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament. If that is the case when the bracket is revealed Sunday at 6 p.m., Duke will likely be in the East Region and will begin tournament play Friday in Columbia, S.C.

Old Dominion: 2018-19 Conference USA Men's Basketball Champions

FRISCO, Texas – Old Dominion is dancing! The Monarchs will make their return to the NCAA Tournament after an eight-year hiatus.

ODU defeated Western Kentucky  in the Conference USA Championship 62-56 on Saturday evening.

This will be the 11th NCAA Tournament appearance for Old Dominion, and the first since 2011. It’s also the first Conference USA title since joining the conference in 2013.

ODU last won a conference tournament title in the CAA back in 2011.

Xavier Green led ODU with 16 points. Ahmad Caver had a near double-double with 10 points and nine assists.

The Monarchs will find out their opponent and destination Sunday on News 3 at 6:00 p.m. during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show.

Montana: 2018-19 Big Sky Men's Basketball Champions

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Sayeed Pridgett scored 18 points and Montana overcame a 12-point deficit to beat Eastern Washington 68-62 on Saturday night for its second straight Big Sky Tournament title and NCAA bid.

Donaven Dorsey and Michael Oguine each added 12 points for Montana (26-8). The Grizzlies also beat the Eagles (16-18) last year in the final.

Jesse Hunt led Eastern Washington with 17 points, and Kim Aiken Jr. had 14.

Playing with a smaller lineup of five guards, Montana took its first lead midway through the second half.

BIG PICTURE

Montana: Montana could be facing the departure of coach Travis DeCuire, who has already been linked to coaching vacancies at major programs.

Eastern Washington: Coach Shantay Legans will have to deal with the loss of Hunt, the senior who lead the team in scoring and was the Big Sky’s top rebounder.

UP NEXT

Montana await its seeding for the NCAA Tournament.

Buffalo: 2018-19 Mid-American Men's Basketball Champions

CLEVELAND – The University at Buffalo men’s basketball team completed the championship sweep Saturday at Quicken Loans Arena.

Jeremy Harris scored 31 points to help the Bulls to an 87-73 win against Bowling Green for the MAC Tournament championship. The Bulls clinched their fourth MAC Championship and their fourth NCAA Tournament berth since 2015. UB won conference titles and received auto bids in 2015, 2016 and 2018.

The Bulls improve to 31-3, a MAC record for wins in a season in men's basketball. The Bulls enter the  NCAA Tournament on a 12-game winning streak, and will learn their tournament destination when the NCAA announces the 68-team field Sunday night. The NCAA Tournament begins Tuesday with the First Four in Dayton, Ohio.

The Bulls also made Nate Oats’ bank account a little more robust. Under the terms of Oats’ new contract, which began Thursday, the fourth-year Bulls coach will receive a bonus of $75,000 for winning the MAC Tournament championship.

Third-seeded Bowling Green finishes the season 22-12. Saturday was the first meeting between the two teams in the MAC tournament

The Bulls took a 12-8 lead less than five minutes into the game, with the help of 3-pointers by Davonta Jordan and Jayvon Graves, and held the Falcons without a shot from the perimeter – Bowling Green opened 0-3 on 3-pointers, and finished 2 for 10 in the first half.

Then, the Falcons hit a drought from the floor. Bowling Green went without a successful shot form the floor for a span of nearly six minutes. In that time the Bulls went on a 9-0 run, and at one point the Falcons called a 30-second timeout with 9:04 left in an attempt to regroup, trailing 24-13.

It didn’t work. UB built its lead to 28-13 less than a minute after the timeout, and led by as many as 12. The Bulls also didn’t allow Bowling Green to hit its first 3-pointer until less than four minutes remained in the half, but Daeqwon Plowden’s shot cut UB’s lead to 36-31, part of a 14-3 run in the final 4:13 that cut UB’s lead to 39-38 with 1:30 left in the half. The Falcons also grabbed 25 rebounds to Bowling Green’s 17 in the first half, including 18 defensive rebounds to UB’s 13.

The Bulls and the Falcons traded leads five times in the first 2:09 of the second half, before Jeremy Harris’ 3-pointer 3:17 into the half tied the game at 50-50, but Dylan Frye hit only his second 3-pointer to break a scoreless drought of 2:31 that gave the Falcons a 53-50 lead.

The Bulls and the Falcons traded the lead six more times in more than two minutes midway through the second half, and UB used an 11-3 run to open its lead to 74-68 with less than five minutes left.

But Nick Perkins fouled out, a fourth foul plus a technical foul, and Justin Turner and Demajeo Wiggins made three of four free throws to cut UB’s lead to 74-71 with 4:26 left. The Bulls didn’t panic, though. Eighteen seconds later, Graves’ 3-pointer opened UB’s lead back to seven points, kicking off a decisive 13-2 run that closed the game for the Bulls.

Prairie View A&M: 2018-19 Southwestern Athletic Men's Basketball Champions

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Gary Blackston and Dennis Jones scored 17 points apiece to lead six Prairie View A&M players in double figures and the Panthers beat Texas Southern 92-86 on Saturday night in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament championship game.

Prairie View earned its second NCAA Tournament berth and first since 1998.

Gerard Andrus had 12 points, Taishaun Johnson and Darius Williams scored 11 apiece and Devonte Patterson added 10 for the top-seeded Panthers (22-12), who have won 11 games in a row.

Patterson made 1 of 2 free throws and Jones added a layup to put Prairie View in front 83-81, the last of 15 lead changes, with 2:11 left. Trayvon Reed's layup with 38 seconds to go made it 85-all but the Panthers went 7 of 8 from the foul line, and TSU committed two turnovers, from there to seal it.

Jalyn Patterson led Texas Southern (21-13) with 24 points, including 18 in the second half. Devocio Butler scored 18, Tyrik Armstrong added 16 and Jeremy Combs had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Combs, the SWAC player of the year, fouled out on the offensive end with two minutes remaining.

TSU had won the last two, and four of the last five, SWAC Tournaments.

Armstrong had 12 points in the first four-plus minutes as the Tigers scored 15 of the first 19 points and a dunk by Reed gave them a 13-point lead but PVAMU answered with a 19-4 run over the next five minutes to take its first lead a 26-24.

The Panthers scored the first six second-half points to take their biggest lead at 51-41 with 18:20 left.

Villanova: 2018-19 Big East Men's Basketball Champions

NEW YORK (AP) – Villanova became the first team to win three consecutive Big East Tournaments, beating Seton Hall 74-72 on Saturday night behind seniors Eric Paschall and Phil Booth and key contributions from freshman Saddiq Bey.

Seton Hall star Myles Powell, guarded closely by Booth, missed a 3-pointer in the closing seconds that could have won it. Booth was called for traveling as he tried to corral the rebound, however, and the Pirates got one more chance with 0.4 seconds left. Anthony Nelson’s long inbounds pass bounced off the backboard and was slapped away by the Wildcats, who got to party on the Madison Square Garden floor yet again.

The 25th-ranked and top-seeded Wildcats (25-9) were in the Big East final for a fifth straight year, and have won four of the last five championships. The only loss during that span was to Seton Hall in 2016, and Powell and the third-seeded Pirates (20-13) gave Villanova all it could handle once again.

Powell scored 25 points to cap a spectacular three days at Madison Square Garden for the high-scoring guard.

Paschall had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Booth scored 16 points and was selected most outstanding player of the tournament. Bey, who Villanova fans hope will lead the next wave of championship teams, had 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Villanova had a chance to seal it in the final 30 seconds but Paschall was called for a charge when he lowered his shoulder into Myles Cale with 24 seconds left. Powell quickly scored inside at the other end to cut the Wildcats’ lead to 73-72 with 15.5 seconds left.

The Pirates sent Paschall to the line with 13.7 seconds remaining and he made the first and missed the second. Seton Hall rebounded and called a timeout to set up a final play with 8.9 seconds left.

UP NEXT

Seton Hall: The Pirates are headed to their fourth straight NCAA Tournament, matching a school best (1991-94).

Villanova: The defending national champions will be in the NCAA Tournament for the seventh straight season, but will probably be seeded worse than a 2 for the first time since 2013.

Iowa State: 2018-19 Big 12 Men's Basketball Champions

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Something about the Big 12 Tournament brings out the best in Iowa State.

The fifth-seeded Cyclones raced to a big early lead against No. 17 Kansas, then leaned on some balanced scoring and enough stops down the stretch to beat the Jayhawks 78-66 on Saturday night and remain unbeaten in five championship game appearances.

Lindell Wigginton had 17 points, Marial Shayok had 15 and Michael Jacobson 14 for the Cyclones (23-11). They became the lowest-seeded team ever to win the conference tournament and improved to 2-0 against Kansas (25-9) in the finals.

Dedric Lawson had 18 points and Devon Dotson added 17 for the third-seeded Jayhawks, whose last chance to win some hardware will be the NCAA tournament. Their run of 14 consecutive regular-season crowns ended last weekend, and they failed to defend their Big 12 Tournament title.

Meanwhile, the Cyclones made a tremendous about-face during their stay in Kansas City.

They arrived having lost five of their past six regular-season games, and they looked rudderless in losses to Texas and lowly West Virginia. But beginning with a blowout of Baylor and continuing with a quarterfinal win over regular-season champ Kansas State, the Cyclones found their stride.

The Jayhawks, who are still looking for their own, were fortunate to trail 32-22 at halftime.

Lawson, who had 24 points in the semifinals, was 2-of-11 from the field. Marcus Garrett was 0-for-6 from the floor and 1-of-4 from the foul line. Quentin Grimes was 0-or-4 from beyond the arc after hitting five 3-pointers in their win over the Mountaineers on Friday night.

All told, the Jayhawks shot 27.8 percent from the field and missed all nine of their 3-point attempts in the first half. They also were just 2-of-8 from the free throw line.

Iowa State had its own trouble on the offensive end of the floor, getting five shots swatted into the seats. But the Cyclones were effective at getting to the rim, and easy layups by Wigginton and Tyrese Haliburton allowed them to take control.

Their lead swelled to 41-24 early in the second half. And even when the Jayhawks managed to nip into it, they would inevitably miss an open layup or throw the ball away.

Or, Jacobson would knock down an unlikely 3-pointer.

That was the case when the Jayhawks trimmed the deficit to 45-35 with 14 minutes to go. Iowa State's big man calmly drained one from the top of the arc -- all Kansas coach Bill Self could do was smile in disbelief -- and Steve Prohm's squad promptly ripped off seven straight points.

Frustration eventually set in for the Jayhawks down the stretch.

After cutting their deficit to single digits on several occasions, including 72-63 with 1:21 to go, the Cyclones kept answering. And after Grimes was called for a foul on Wigginton, Lawson spiked the ball under the basket and was whistled for a technical foul.

Shayok made the two technical foul shots, Wigginton made two more, and the chants of "Let's Go, Cyclones!" began to reverberate throughout Sprint Center in celebration of another title.

BIG PICTURE

Iowa State has leaned on Shayok and Talen Horton-Tucker much of the season, but Wigginton and Haliburton shined in Kansas City. Wigginton is averaging more than 15 points over his past five games, and Haliburton continues to lead the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio.

Kansas started freshman center David McCormack, but the Cyclones' guard-oriented lineup forced the Jayhawks to match their personnel. Charlie Moore and the rest of their guards struggled shooting the ball, and they were unable to get crucial defensive stops down the stretch.

UP NEXT

Both teams will learn their NCAA tournament destinations Sunday.

Utah State: 2018-19 Mountain West Men's Basketball Champions

LAS VEGAS -- Sam Merrill scored 24 points, Neemias Queta had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Utah State won its first Mountain West Conference championship with a 64-57 victory over San Diego State on Saturday.

Utah State (28-6) scored the first 13 points of the second half to pull away after leading 34-32 at halftime. The Aggies, who joined the conference in 2013-14, were the No. 2 seeds after sharing the regular-season title with No. 14 Nevada.

Merrill, who went 11 of 12 from the free throw line, was the tournament's MVP. Abel Porter had 10 points for the Aggies, who have won 10 straight and 17 of their last 18 games.

Fourth-seeded San Diego State got no closer than five points on two occasions after Utah State's run, cutting it to 60-55 in the final minute. But Merrill responded by hitting two free throws with 43 seconds left to seal it.

Devin Watson scored 18 points in a game the Aztecs (21-13) in all likelihood needed to win to make the NCAA Tournament.

Even though the Aggies led for 12 minutes, 15 seconds of the first half, there were 10 lead changes and seven ties in the session. Neither team could build more than Utah State's five-point advantage.

BIG PICTURE

Utah State: This was the Aggies' first conference championship game appearance since winning the Western Athletic Conference title in 2011 with a 77-69 victory over Boise State. Merrill became the seventh Aggie to reach 700 points in a season and moved into fifth on the team's career scoring list with his 21st point Saturday.

San Diego State: The Aztecs won the MWC tournament in 2002, 2006, 2010, 2011 and 2018. This also was their ninth finals appearance in 11 years, all at the Thomas & Mack Center. They have appeared in 11, a conference record.

UP NEXT

Utah State: Awaits word for a seeding in the NCAA Tournament

San Diego State: Awaits word on a postseason tournament berth.

Let It Ride

Good bye, hard life

Don't cry would you let it ride?

Good bye, hard life

Don't cry would you let it ride?

You can't see the mornin', but I can see the light

Try, try, try let it ride

While you've been out runnin' I've been waitin' half the night

Try, try, try let it ride

And would you cry if I told you that I lied and would you say goodbye or

Would you let it ride?

And would you cry if I told you that I lied

And would you say goodbye or would you let it ride?

Seems my life is not complete I never see you smile

Try, try, try let it ride

Baby you want the forgivin' kind and that's just not my style

Try, try, try let it ride

And would you cry if I told you that I lied and would you say goodbye or

Would you let it ride?

And would you cry if I told you that I lied

And would you say goodbye or would you let it ride?

I've been doin' things worthwhile, you've been bookin' time

Try, try, try let it ride

And would you cry if I told you that I lied and would you say goodbye or

Would you let it ride?

And would you cry if I told you that I lied

And would you say goodbye or would you let it ride?

Would you let it ride

Would you let it ride

Would you let it ride

Would you let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Try, try, try let it ride

Would you let it ride?

Would you let it ride?

Would you let it ride?

Would you let it ride?

-Charles Turner and Randy Bachman

North Carolina Central: 2018-19 Mid-Eastern Men's Basketball Champions

NORFOLK, Va. -- Zacarry Douglas scored all 10 of his points during a 25-6 second-half run and North Carolina Central won its third consecutive Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament with a 50-47 victory against top-seeded Norfolk State on Saturday.

The Eagles (18-15) earned another trip to the NCAA Tournament despite missing nine of their last 10 shots and not scoring for the final 4:03.

Mastadi Pitt scored 14 points and C.J. Kelly 13 for Norfolk State (21-13). The Spartans had a last chance to tie, but after taking a timeout with 8.8 seconds left, they had to settle for a heavily contested desperation heave by Pitt at the buzzer.

The Spartans closed the first half on a 20-8 run and led 32-22 at the break. It was 34-22 after Alex Long's jumper to open second-half scoring, but Jordan Perkins' 3-pointer started the 25-6 spurt. Perkins had seven points in the run that gave the Eagles a 47-38 lead with 8:18 to play.

The Spartans trailed 50-42 after Jibri Blount's basket for the Eagles with 4:03 left, but got only a driving basket by Steven Whitley and three free throws by Jordan Butler the rest of the way as they missed seven of their last eight shots.

BIG PICTURE

N.C. Central: The Eagles turned over the ball 17 times, but it led to just 13 points for Norfolk State. The Eagles also won the rebounding battle 41-29 with Raasean Davis grabbing 14 and Douglas 12.

Norfolk State: Scoring leader Nic Thomas (14.9 points per game) was scoreless, missing all five of his shots from the field.

UP NEXT

N.C. Central: will await its NCAA Tournament destination.

Norfolk State: will play in the NIT as league regular-season champions.

Vermont: 2018-19 America East Men's Basketball Champions

BURLINGTON, Vt. -- Vermont learned from its loss last year on its home floor to Maryland-Baltimore County in the America East Tournament title game -- a result that paved the way for an even bigger win by UMBC.

Anthony Lamb scored 28 points, and Vermont beat UMBC 66-49 on Saturday to win the America East championship and earn an NCAA Tournament bid.

It was the seventh conference title overall and second in three years for the Catamounts (27-6), who got their revenge on the anniversary of 16th-seeded UMBC's shocking upset of top-seeded Virginia in last year's NCAA Tournament.

"I'm impressed how well we grew over the season and today was a full team effort," Vermont coach John Becker said. "These games are surreal because of the crowd and noise. We were tougher this year because of that game. We had a lot of young guys, so credit our new leadership."

Lamb, the America East player of the year, was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. He went 8 for 16 from the field and had nine rebounds, and he led a strong defensive effort from the Catamounts, who held the Retrievers to 34-percent shooting.

Stef Smith added 17 points for Vermont and Ben Shungu scored nine, all in the second half. K.J. Jackson led UMBC (21-13) with 15 points, and Arkel Lamar had eight points and 11 rebounds.

Lamb hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the second half to start an 11-0 run that put Vermont ahead 39-22.

"The championship game a lot of times comes down to the best player playing like that," Becker said. "I never wanted to put any extra pressure on Anthony, but the reality today is that our best player was a big reason we won."

Both teams got off to slow starts. UMBC missed its first six field-goal attempts and hit only five of its first 16, while Vermont was 7 for 21, missing its first six 3-point attempts. Lamb scored 12 of Vermont's first 18 points and had 19 by halftime, when the Catamounts led 28-20.

"This year the script was flipped after a year ago," UMBC coach Ryan Odom said. "Hats off to Vermont today. Our offense today left a lot to be desired -- give them credit for a lot of that. Lamb had a dynamite game. He's tremendous."

BIG PICTURE

UMBC: The Retrievers handed Vermont its only two regular-season losses in America East play, including a 74-63 win in Burlington on Jan. 23. Lamb didn't play in that game.

Vermont: Recent struggles against UMBC aside, the Catamounts are comfortable atop the America East. They were the top seed in the conference tournament and reached their fourth straight title game and 13th overall. Vermont has seven titles, all since 2003.

STAT PACK

The Catamounts were 1 for 7 from 3-point range in the first half but heated up after halftime, making four of their first six from beyond the arc. ... Vermont shot 41 percent from the floor and outrebounded UMBC 38-27.

UP NEXT

UMBC awaits a possible bid in the NIT or another postseason tournament.

Vermont will learn its NCAA Tournament seeding and destination on Sunday evening.

Colgate: 2018-19 Patriot Men's Basketball Champions

HAMILTON, N.Y. -- Jordan Burns had a career-high 35 points and Will Rayman added 18 to lead top-seeded Colgate to a 94-80 victory over No. 2 Bucknell in the championship game of the Patriot League Tournament, giving the Raiders their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1996.

The victory before a standing-room only, overflow crowd, avenged last year's championship game loss at Bucknell. The Bison won last year's title matchup 83-54.

Rapolas Ivanauskas added 12 points for the Raiders (24-10, 14-5 Patriot League), who have now won a school-record 11 straight games.

Kimbal Mackenzie led Bucknell (21-12, 13-6) with 23 points. Nate Sestina had 21 before fouling out.

Burns hit 6 of 9 from 3-point range and 10 of 16 overall. Colgate hit 12 of 21 on 3s and 30 of 52 from the field for 58 percent.

Colgate held a 43-30 halftime lead, but Mackenzie almost single-handedly brought Bucknell back early in the second half. He hit his first four 3s and scored 16 of Bucknell's first 18 points after intermission to bring the Bison to 50-48 with just under 16 minutes to go.

Colgate answered with an emphatic run, scoring six straight as part of a 23-10 spurt to take a 73-58 lead with 8:25 remaining. Burns scored 11 points during the spurt, including consecutive 3s in a 40-second span. A hook shot by Rayman gave Colgate its biggest lead at 78-59 with 6:50 to go and the Raiders were never headed.

Colgate raced to the 13-point halftime lead thanks to Burns and Ivanauskas, who scored 19 and nine points, respectively. The Raiders held a 21-15 lead with a little more than 10 minutes to go in the half when Burns, who averaged 15.1 points during the season, went to work.

The sophomore guard scored 13 of Colgate's next 15 points in less than a three-minute span, nine of those points coming on three 3s as the Raiders extended to a 36-19 margin with less than six minutes to go. Burns shot 4 of 6 from beyond the arc.

Colgate hit 6 of 13 from 3 and held Bucknell to just 4 of 15 from deep and 11 of 32 shooting overall. The Raiders also dominated on the boards in the period, outrebounding Bucknell 23-15.

BIG PICTURE

Bucknell: It was a disappointing ending for the Bison, who seemed to have all the momentum after climbing to within two. They now await an invitation to the postseason.

Colgate: Euphoria is the word in Hamilton and Jordan Burns is the toast of the town as the Raiders await their first-round matchup in the NCAA Tournament.

UP NEXT

NCAA Tournament bracket announcement Sunday.

A Bedlam Reborn.

After several years of slight modifications to the layout of my blog, The Bedlam on Baltic Avenue, I have finally decided to make the blog more accessible for people of different persuasions while staying true to the Solid Pink color that is an official color of this blog, along with the now adopted secondary shade of French Pink and the tertiary accent of white.

Akatsuki has been retired as mascot of my blog, with Madoka Kaname and Homura Akemi resuming their roles as co-mascots. Version 203 is the version where the Emporio theme is used to allow for better accessibility by computer users who may not be so adept. A few widgets have been axed, and a couple of text widgets have been moved as standalone pages (yes would you believe that there have been no actual pages on this blog until now? And it's been more than 10 years!).

Also, my tumblr page has been updated with a new look took to better emphasize accessibility. The Tumblr Official look had been the look for my blog for years. Now it's been given a change to reflect my ever evolving whims. In this, I am looking forward with hope to bigger and better things.

So, I hope you enjoy the content on the Bedlam, because we have a big year of Saimoe coming up and we'll make sure you know what's going on, because at the Bedlam on Baltic Avenue, there's always something going on down there.

Northeastern: 2018-19 Colonial Men's Basketball Champions

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. -- When Northeastern saw its large lead fading in the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament finals again, the Huskies flashed back to their failure from a year ago and all the hard work they had put in since.

"We learned from that situation," Huskies guard Shawn Occeus said. "And now we're sitting here today."

Northeastern is sitting once more as CAA Tournament champions after Vasa Pusica had 21 points off seven 3-pointers and helped his team regroup after blowing a double-digit lead to defeat top-seeded Hofstra 82-74 on Tuesday night.

The situation was so eerily similar to the 2018 finals. Northeastern led College of Charleston by 17 in the second half, then watched the Cougars cut down the nets after an 83-76 loss.

"Without that loss maybe we wouldn't be in this position right now," said Pusica, named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

The second-seeded Huskies (23-10) won the league's automatic NCAA Tournament berth for the second time in five seasons and ninth time in school history.

"Are we off the one line?" Northeastern coach Bill Coen joked when asked about possible seeding.

"We're so excited to be included and so excited to play wherever they send us," he said.

It didn't appear Northeastern was heading anywhere but back home with another disappointment when Hofstra opened the second half with a 28-12 run to tie things at 54-all on Jacquil Taylor's two foul shots with more than nine minutes left.

That's when the senior Pusica took charge. His fourth 3-pointer put the Huskies back in front. Pusica added another long-range basket three minutes later for a 66-58 lead. By the time he made his sixth 3, Northeastern led 71-60. Pusica screamed in celebration, one he and his teammates held in for almost a year.

"I'm not sure I have the words to describe tonight," Coen said.

The Pride (26-8) could not recover despite 29 points from the nation's second-leading scorer, Justin Wright-Foreman.

"We have to own it," Pride coach Joe Mihalich said. "Let's cut to the chase, they played two halves, we played one."

Hofstra, as the CAA regular-season champions, has a guaranteed spot in the NIT. The Pride were seeking their first NCAA berth since 2001 when Villanova coach Jay Wright was leading Hofstra's program.

Bolden Brace had 10 points, 10 rebounds and came an assist away from a triple-double for Northeastern, which finished with five players scoring in double figures.

Hofstra came in on a roll with four straight wins and with the CAA's top scorer in Wright-Foreman shooting the lights out. Wright-Foreman set a league tournament record with 42 points in a semifinal overtime win against Delaware on Monday night. But Wright-Foreman and his teammates were mostly cold in the opening half as the Pride fell behind by double-digits 13 minutes in as Huskies pushed the pace for a 19-7 run.

Northeastern hit five 3-pointers in the stretch with Pusica's two in a row from long range getting the run going. By the time Jordan Roland hit a wide-open look from left side of the basket, the Huskies were ahead 23-12 and appeared to be cruising.

Hofstra, the CAA's top scoring and best shooting team this season, shot just 28 percent (9 of 32) in the first period. Wright-Foreman went 3 of 12 overall before the half and made just two of seven attempts from behind the arc.

Taylor had a game-high 15 rebounds for Hofstra.

BIG PICTURE

Northeastern: The Huskies showed they can shoot, finishing 50 percent (26 of 52) from the field and 45.2 percent (14 of 31) from 3-point range. They could prove hard to handle in the NCAAs.

Hofstra: The Pride tied things in the second half behind Wright-Foreman. But it may have taken too much energy to keep things going. Hofstra will be a difficult NIT out for whichever mid-level power conference opponent they draw.

NORTHEASTERN'S NCAA HISTORY

The Huskies have a pair of NCAA victories as double-digit seeds, topping sixth-seeded Fresno State in 1981 and sixth-seeded St. Joseph's a year later. Northeastern is 3-8 all time in tournament play and has lost its last six opening NCAA games.

FAREWELL, CHARLESTON

This game ends the CAA's three-season run at the North Charleston Coliseum. Next year's event will start a three-year stint at the more centrally located Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, D.C. Seven of the league's 10 members are located in the state of Virginia or north.

UP NEXT

Northeastern will await its NCAA Tournament matchup.

Hofstra is headed to the NIT as the CAA's regular-season champion.

Northern Kentucky: 2018-19 Horizon Men's Basketball Champions

DETROIT -- Northern Kentucky earned an NCAA Tournament bid for the second time in three years.

And this time, the Norse will not be satisfied with just appearing in college basketball's showcase.

Dantez Walton had 15 points and 14 rebounds for his first double-double, leading second-seeded Northern Kentucky to a 77-66 win Tuesday night over top-seeded Wright State in the Horizon League Tournament final to put the program back in the 68-team field next week.

The Norse had a solid showing two years ago, losing to second-seeded Kentucky 79-70 , and yet they don't plan to simply show up and play in the NCAA Tournament.

"We're going in to win that game just as much as the other team," Horizon League Tournament MVP Drew McDonald said after scoring 13 points, grabbing eight rebounds and making five assists. "We're going to enjoy it, but we're going to go right back to work soon because we're not done yet.

"We have more to accomplish."

The Norse (26-8) had control of the entire league tournament final with four starters and a reserve scoring in double figures, less than 24 hours after McDonald made a game-winning, buzzer-beating 3-pointer against Oakland. Jalen Tate scored 17 points, Zaynah Robinson had 15 points off the bench and Tyler Sharpe, a former Louisville walk-on, added 11 points and two steals.

"The way we played, hopefully we'll be able to catapult that into the NCAA Tournament," Northern Kentucky coach John Brannen said. "Drew said it best, when you have the opportunity to experience something the first time and you don't achieve the ultimate of getting a chance to move on forward and advance, it puts a little bit more emphasis on it the second time.

"And maybe you look at this less as a gift and more as an opportunity."

The Raiders (21-13) struggled to score, making it difficult to come back in a game they trailed for nearly 39 minutes.

Wright State's All-Horizon League player, Loudon Love, was 2 of 13 and scored nine points.

"We've ridden him all year," Wright State coach Scott Nagy said. "We'll take him any day for sure. He just had a tough game."

Reserve Bill Wampler had 16 points and Mark Hughes and Cole Gentry each scored 15 for the Raiders, who shot 37.5 percent.

Wright State scored first and didn't lead again in a matchup of teams that shared the regular-season title after each team won by four points on its home court. Early on, it didn't look like the series tiebreaker was going to be closely contested.

The Norse led by 18 points with 5:02 left in the first half and led 44-34 at halftime.

"We came out with intense energy and we made everything hard on them," Sharpe said.

Northern Kentucky went on an 11-3 run midway through the second half to lead by 19 points and coasted to victory.

"They had some average players statistically play great and that made it tough to guard their really good offensive players," Nagy said.

BIG PICTURE

Northern Kentucky: Balanced scoring and good passing led to eight players making assists and six players hitting shots in the first half.

"We had good ball movement and when we do that, we're a tough stop," Sharpe said.

Wright State: With a chance to earn consecutive NCAA Tournament bids for the first time in school history, the Raiders simply could not make enough shots inside or beyond the 3-point arc to have a chance to win.

"We didn't make shots and they were a big reason why," Nagy said.

UP NEXT

Northern Kentucky: The team will be able to enjoy its accomplishment before finding out Sunday night who it will be matched up with in the NCAA Tournament. Next season, the deep team should contend for the Horizon title even without McDonald and Robinson.

Wright State: Top seeding in the league tournament gave the program an automatic bid to the NIT.

"There's no one in the NIT that wants to be in the NIT," Nagy said. "There are 36 teams and they all want to be in the NCAA Tournament. I've coached in the NIT before and maybe my best win was in it when South Dakota State had its only Division I postseason win ever. We were ready and that will be our job to get our guys ready."

The Raiders will lose three starters next season, but McDonald will be back along with Jaylon Hall and Grant Basile after both had surgeries.

North Dakota State: 2018-19 Summit Men's Basketball Champions

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- Vinnie Shahid heeded his teammates' advice after a rough first half, and helped lead North Dakota State back to the NCAA Tournament.

Shahid scored 20 of his 22 points after halftime, and the Bison beat Omaha 73-63 on Tuesday night in the Summit League Tournament title game to earn their first NCAA Tournament bid since 2015.

"My teammates did a good job of giving me confidence," said Shahid, who was 1-of-4 shooting before the half. "They told me, `Keep being aggressive, keep being aggressive. It's going to fall when we need it to."

The No. 4-seeded Bison (17-15) also got 15 points and seven rebounds from Tyson Ward.

North Dakota State saw a 14-point second-half lead evaporate before securing the win with a late run. Omaha (21-10) tied it at 51 with 8:37 to play and had a chance at the lead, but Matt Pile missed a free throw on a potential three-point play. From there, the Bison went on a 9-0 run and were never threatened again, sealing the win with free throws down the stretch.

"This is a really good, talented Omaha team," North Dakota State coach David Richman said. "We knew they were going to make a push and that push happened. But this group has really grown."

Mitch Hahn scored 16 points and Zach Jackson had 15 for Omaha. Pile finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds while KJ Robinson scored 11 points.

Ward got back on track after scoring a season-low three points in North Dakota State's semifinal win over Western Illinois. He had 25 points in a quarterfinal win over Oral Roberts.

Ward had 11 against Omaha at halftime, and then Shahid took over. Shahid's 3-pointer as the shot clock expired with 2:10 remaining lifted the lead back to 10.

The No. 2-seeded Mavericks had gone the final 6:44 of the first half without a field goal. North Dakota State built a 41-27 halftime lead.

"You can't play uphill all night," Omaha coach Derrin Hansen said. "They had the lead for 36 minutes of the game. When you play uphill all night, it takes a lot of energy to overcome that."

BIG PICTURE

North Dakota State: Has a 1/3 record in the NCAA Tournament, including an 80-75, overtime upset of No. 5 seed Oklahoma in 2014. This was the Bison's fifth title game appearance in seven years.

Omaha: This is the second time Omaha has played in the Summit League title game. The program has never played in the NCAA Tournament.

BENCH PLAY

NDSU's Cameron Hunter scored 12 points off the bench and hit all three of his attempts both from 3-point range and from the free-throw line. Meanwhile, Omaha got just six bench points, all from Ayo Akinwole.

UP NEXT

North Dakota State: The Bison will find out their NCAA Tournament opponent on Sunday.

Omaha: The 21 wins are the most in the Mavericks' Division I history. They lose one senior in Jackson.

Saint Mary's: 2018-19 West Coast Men's Basketball Champions

LAS VEGAS -- Saint Mary's ended the nation's longest winning streak and Gonzaga's six-year reign as West Coast Conference Tournament champions, grinding out a 60-47 victory in the title game on Tuesday night.

Saint Mary's (22-11) all but shut down the nation's highest-scoring team by slowing the game and forcing Gonzaga to grind out possessions instead of playing fast and free.

The Gaels held Gonzaga's leading scorer Rui Hachimura in check and limited the Zags (30-3) to 2-of-17 shooting from 3-point range to end the nation's longest winning streak at 21 games.

Gonzaga's 18-game WCC tournament winning streak, dating to the 2012 title game, also came to an end, and so too could its bid for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Instead of waiting for Selection Sunday, Saint Mary's left no doubt by earning its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2017 with its first WCC title in nine years.

Jordan Ford had 17 points and Tanner Krebs scored 13 for the Gaels.

Brandon Clarke led Gonzaga with 16 points and Hachimura was held to nine, nearly 11 under his average.

Gonzaga dominated the WCC during the regular season, finishing 16-0 while winning by a conference-record 27 points per game.

Two of those wins came against Saint Mary's: 66-55 in Moraga and 94-46 in Spokane.

The Bulldogs cruised into their 20th straight title game under coach Mark Few -- and 22nd overall -- by crushing Pepperdine 100-74 in Monday's semifinals.

Saint Mary's controlled the pace in round three against Gonzaga, bogging down the Zags' offense and forcing them into difficult shots. Gonzaga struggled to get anything to fall, open or not, scoring a season-low 24 points by halftime and missing six of its seven 3-point attempts.

The Zags also had a hard time containing Krebs. The junior, who averages 8.9 points per game, had 13 by halftime to push the Gaels to a 27-24 lead. Saint Mary's did it with second-leading scorer Malik Fitts limited to less than a minute because of foul trouble.

Saint Mary's continued to bog down Gonzaga and Fitts scored eight quick points to open the second half. The Gaels extended the lead to 48-41 with 7 1/2 minutes left and answered every time Gonzaga tried to make a run.

BIG PICTURE

Saint Mary's played arguably its best game of the season at the best possible time. Now it's on to the NCAA Tournament.

Gonzaga was never able to speed the Gaels up and rev up their high-scoring offense, showing a weakness that could be exploited in the NCAA Tournament.

UP NEXT

Both teams await their NCAA seedings.

Fairleigh Dickinson: 2018-19 Northeast Men's Basketball Champions

LORETTO, Pennsylvania -- Darnell Edge scored 21 points, Kaleb Bishop and Jahlil Jenkins added 20 points apiece, and Fairleigh Dickinson earned its second trip to the NCAA tournament in four years with an 85-76 victory over St. Francis (Pa.) in the Northeastern Conference Tournament championship on Tuesday night.

The second-seeded Knights (20-13) shot 64 percent (30 of 47) from the field and beat the top-seeded Red Flash (18-14) on the road for the second time this season. All five starters for the Knights scored in double figures. Elyjah Williams and Mike Holloway Jr. scored 12 points each for Fairleigh Dickinson, which used a 17-8 run to close the first half to take control and never let St. Francis get closer than three in the second half.

Bishop made 8 of his 10 shots for the Knights, including all three of his 3-point attempts, and added a team-high 10 rebounds.

The Red Flash were searching for their first NCAA appearance since 1991 and just the second in school history but couldn't slow the Knights down when it mattered.

Jamaal King led St. Francis with 21 points and eight assists. Isaiah Blackmon finished with 13 points, but the Red Flash made just 4 of 17 free throws while Fairleigh Dickinson converted 18 of 20 at the line.

UP NEXT

Fairleigh Dickinson: A likely No. 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament

St. Francis: A spot in the National Invitational Tournament as a reward for winning the NEC's regular season title.

Iona: 2018-19 Metro Atlantic Men's Basketball Champions

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Coach Tim Cluess has set the bar pretty high at Iona. It's what he's used to doing.

Asante Gist had 22 points, Tajuan Agee added 18 and top-seeded Iona defeated Monmouth 81-60 on Monday night to win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title for the fourth straight time.

Iona (17-15) is the first men's team to win four straight league titles.

"It means a lot to me because I wanted to do something special for Iona because they believed in me and gave me a chance," Cluess said. "I always look to bars to try to beat."

The Gaels were the top seed for the 10th time and have won four of their 12 conference titles as the No. 1 seed. The top seed had not won the tournament since Siena in 2010, the longest drought of any conference in the country.

E.J. Crawford had 15 points, Ben Perez scored 14, and Rickey McGill added 10 for Iona. McGill, the only player to be on four conference champions in league history, was named tournament MVP

Iona started the season 2-9, losing seven straight before beating Monmouth at home. The Gaels will enter the NCAA Tournament riding a 10-game winning streak.

"It just shows how much time we put in the gym as a team, how we never quit, never gave up, and here we are now," McGill said.

Monmouth (14-21), the sixth seed, was seeking its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2006 and first under coach King Rice, who took over in 2011. It was a rematch of the 2016 title game, which Iona won 79-76, and the result left a bad taste.

"Today we lost to a better team, which is hard for me to say because I don't really believe it," said Diago Quinn, who led the Hawks with 13 points, the only player in double figures. "But we lost to a better team."

Trailing by six at the half, the Hawks pulled within 41-38 on Nick Rutherford's 3-pointer with 17:20 left, but the Gaels responded with a 20-2 spurt keyed by the long ball to take control. The Hawks self-destructed, missing five straight shots and committing one turnover during the Iona run.

Iona finished 12 of 29 from behind the arc, allowed only 5 of 24 3-pointers, and tied Monmouth with 34 rebounds.

Gist, who was 5 of 9 from long range, hit a trio of 3-pointers and Crawford converted a three-point play and hit a spinning layup off the glass before adding a pair of free throws to give Iona a 60-40 lead with 12:41 left.

"It's a funny thing getting to the championship game because at some point somebody is going to lose," Rice said. "Iona is a tough out. We've tried everything. You gotta give coach Cluess all the credit. He really gets his kids to play together. That's why they're the best program in the MAAC."

Leading scorer Ray Salnave hit his only basket of the game for Monmouth midway through the second half. By then, the Hawks were trailing by 22. Deion Hammond had eight points and missed all seven 3-pointers he attempted.

Iona topped Siena in the semifinals Sunday and the Hawks defeated No. 2 Canisius to reach the title game.

FAST START

Monmouth jumped to a 6-2 lead at the outset. Then Agee's three-point play started a 15-0 Iona run, and Rickey McGill's pull-up 3-pointer ended it and gave Iona a 17-6 lead less than five minutes in.

After Gist hit a 3 at the shot-clock buzzer to keep the Gaels in front by double digits, the Hawks methodically pecked away at the lead. Hammond hit a shot off the glass after a miss, followed by a fast-break layup, and Marcus McClary's layup closed the gap to 33-30 in the final minute of the half.

Agee's low-arcing 3 from the left wing gave Iona a 36-30 lead at the break. The Gaels held a 12-2 edge in points scored off turnovers.

GAELS RULE

The teams split the season series. Salnave's basket with 1.1 seconds left gave the Hawks an 83-81 home win in late January as Iona's Crawford was held to just seven points, only the second time he didn't score in double figures this season. He had 20 points in a 103-84 win over the Hawks at home in the conference opener on Jan 3.

AWFUL START

Monmouth started the season with 12 straight losses before Rice figured a way to turn things around. The Hawks had won four straight entering Monday night's game and a victory would have put Rice's record at 132-132.

FREE-THROW DROUGHT

Both teams were making an average of more than 15 free throws a game. In the first half, Monmouth was 1 of 2 and Iona hit its only one. The Gaels hit 19 of 23 in the second while the Hawks finished 5 of 12 overall.

IRON MAN

Monmouth's Quinn set a school record by playing in his 135th game.

NEVER GETS OLD

Iona has made the title game six straight times under Cluess, who was named MAAC coach of the year for the second time.

HE SAID IT

"They could have quit any time and they didn't," Cluess said about his Gaels and their tough start to the season.

BIG PICTURE

Monmouth: The Hawks showed some late-season spunk after their awful start to the season, which bodes well for next year.

Iona: The Gaels might lament that this was the last conference tournament in Albany for a while. They're 20-2 in the Times Union Center over the past seven years. The MAAC is moving the tournament site to Atlantic City for the next three years.

UP NEXT

NCAA Tournament bracket announcement on March 17.

Wofford: 2018-19 Southern Men's Basketball Champions

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Nathan Hoover is the guy who never stops competing in Wofford practices regardless of the situation.

That feistiness carried over to the Southern Conference Tournament championship game on Monday night.

The junior guard scored all 20 of his points in the second half on 5-of-6 shooting from the field and went 8 of 8 from the foul line as No. 20 Wofford battled back to defeat UNC Greensboro 70-58 to win the tournament title and earn an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.

"That's the way I grew up -- whatever you do, you do with all you got," Hoover said. "I'm a very emotional person, and I know when I get that way I can get the fans and my teammates fired up. And when I do I know we are very tough to beat."

Tournament MVP Fletcher Magee also scored 20 points and Cameron Jackson had 15 points and seven rebounds as Wofford (29-4) completed a perfect season against conference foes, going 18-0 in the regular season and winning three games in three days in the tournament.

It's the fifth time in 10 seasons that Wofford will play in the NCAA Tournament -- and coach Mike Young knows this is his most talented team.

"This is a really good basketball team," Young said. "Don't give me that mid-major stuff and all that garbage. This is what you see. This is a big, talented team that can score and I cannot wait to play again in that great, great tournament."

Francis Alonso scored 21 points and Isaiah Miller had 19 for UNC Greensboro.

UNC Greensboro (28-6), which lost to Wofford by 30 and 29 points in the regular season, led most of the game and was hoping to pull the upset and steal a tournament berth from a bubble team.

But the Spartans couldn't hold the lead.

UNC Greensboro led 55-50 with 5:41 left before the Terriers went on a 16-0 run, holding the Spartans without a basket for more than 4 1/2 minutes.

Hoover brought the Terriers back on two different occasions with individual 8-0 runs.

He scored eight straight points to give Wofford its first lead at 50-49 with 12:30 left in the game.

Then, with his team down five, Hoover made a floater, a 3-pointer and three foul shots to put Wofford up 58-55 with 3:23 remaining. A minute later he got a crucial steal in the frontcourt and converted two foul shots to put the Terriers up by seven.

"Some guys had brain farts in the second half and (Wofford) executed off of that," Miller said of the Spartans' late collapse.

Young said Hoover was his player of the game.

"He put us on his shoulders when you get right down to it," Young said.

Hoover said he took advantage of open looks created by the Spartans because they were paying so much attention to Magee and Jackson.

"I was able to get open shots and they went down," Hoover said. "It just boosted everything."

LONG DISTANCE STRUGGLES

The Spartans didn't help themselves by shooting 3 of 16 from 3-point range.

Wofford, conversely, was 7 of 23. But what hurt the Spartans just as much is they fouled the Terriers three separate times on 3-point attempts and Hoover and Magee made them pay by making all nine free throws.

"You're trying to contest because they shoot it so well," said Spartans coach Wes Miller.

MAGEE'S QUEST

Magee finished with four 3-pointers, leaving him with 502 for his career -- two behind the NCAA Division I all-time leader Travis Bader from Oakland. Magee will have a chance to break the record in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

YOUNG'S SUCCESS

Nobody will ever say that Young can't win the big one. The Wofford coach is now 5 for 5 in Southern Conference championship games with wins in 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015 and 2019.

BIG PICTURE

UNC Greensboro: The Spartans played a near-perfect game for 35 minutes but went cold down the stretch, perhaps the result of having a short bench. Alonso and Miller attacked the basket well, taking advantage of their playmaking ability. The Spartans have a terrific recruiting class coming in next season.

Wofford: The Terriers have won 20 straight games heading into the NCAA Tournament and on Monday claimed their highest AP Poll ranking in school history at No. 20. With a tough inside-out game and strong backcourt play, the Terriers will be a popular pick to advance in the NCAA Tournament.

UP NEXT

UNC Greensboro: Will likely have to await a call from the NIT.

Wofford: Will play in the NCAA Tournament.

Liberty: 2018-19 Atlantic Sun Men's Basketball Champions

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Scottie James' layup with 55.8 seconds left put Liberty ahead to stay and the Flames capped their first season in a new conference by topping Lipscomb 74-68 Sunday for the ASUN Tournament championship and their first NCAA Tournament trip since 2013.

A year after losing the Big South Conference tournament final on a 3 at the buzzer, Liberty won at packed Allen Arena in a game that featured 18 lead changes in the second half. The Flames won for the second time this season on Lipscomb's home court.

Liberty (28-6) switched to the ASUN Conference for this season and split the regular season title with Lipscomb. The Flames earned their fourth NCAA Tournament bid overall and first since playing in the Big South.

The Flames, from Lynchburg, Virginia, were up 29-28 at halftime and never led by more than four.

Garrison Mathews, the ASUN player of the year, made a pair of free throws with 1:31 left to give Lipscomb its last lead at 66-65. James then scored, and Georgie Pacheco-Ortiz hit a 3 with 14.8 seconds remaining for a 70-65 lead. James added two free throws with 8.4 seconds to go for the final margin.

James led Liberty with 17 points. Pacheco-Ortiz added 16, Lovell Cabbil Jr. had 14 and Caleb Homesley 11.

Lipscomb (25-7) was trying to seal its second NCAA Tournament berth. The Bisons beat Florida Gulf Coast on the road last year in the ASUN Tournament championship game.

The Bisons led 28-20 with 4:52 left in the first half. Liberty scored the final nine capped by a layup by Cabbil giving the Flames a 29-28 halftime lead.

Matthews finished with 21 points, Rob Marberry had 18 and Kenny Cooper 14 for Lipscomb.

BIG PICTURE

Liberty: The Flames play some of the best defense in the country, coming in ranked fifth nationally giving up just 60.5 points per game. They showed off just how disruptive they can be against Lipscomb.

Lipscomb: Now the Bisons have to sit, wait and hope that a NET ranking of 42 along with victories at SMU, then-No. 18 TCU, Navy and Vermont help them earn an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament.

UP NEXT

NCAA Tournament bracket announcement on March 17.

Bradley: 2018-19 Missouri Valley Men's Basketball Champions

ST. LOUIS -- Bradley rallied from an 18-point deficit in the second half and earned its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2006, beating Northern Iowa 57-54 Sunday in the Missouri Valley Conference championship game.

Elijah Childs scored 16 points and Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye added 13 for fifth-seeded Bradley (20-14). The Braves advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the ninth time overall -- in their last appearance, as a 13th seed, they beat Kansas and Pittsburgh before losing to Memphis.

Bradley trailed 35-17 with 17 minutes left to play. The Braves used a 12-0 run to get close, then scored six straight points to go up 55-50 on a layup by Childs with 1:41 left. Lautier-Ogunleye had four free throws during the late surge.

Luqman Lundy had 11 points as Bradley won the MVC Tournament title for the first time 1988.

AJ Green led sixth-seeded Northern Iowa (16-18) with 23 points.

The Panthers rushed to a 14-2 lead. Bradley had separate stretches of nearly nine minutes and more than six minutes where it didn't score in the first half, then hit 15 of 26 shots after the break.

ON TARGET

Northern Iowa went 8 of 20 from 3-point range and has made at least one 3-pointer in 628 successive games, the longest streak among MVC teams.

Gardner-Webb: 2018-19 Big South Men's Basketball Champions

RADFORD, Va. -- DJ Laster scored a career-best 32 points and Gardner-Webb beat Radford 76-65 on Sunday to win the Big South Tournament championship and earn its first trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Laster had 30 of the Runnin' Bulldogs' first 44 points, including seven during a 13-5 second-half run that gave them a 46-33 lead. Gardner-Webb (23-11) twice saw its lead shrink to five, but each time answered with the next points to hold off the Highlanders.

David Efianayi added 15 points, all in the second half, and Jose Perez had 11 for Gardner-Webb.

Donald Hicks had 17 points, Ed Polite Jr. 15 and Carlik Jones 14 for Radford (22-11), which was trying to win its fourth conference title and seeking a repeat of last season, when it won its first NCAA Tournament game.

The Highlanders never fully recovered after going scoreless for 8:08 in the first half as the Bulldogs ran off 11 consecutive points and built a 20-7 lead. They closed to within five by halftime and twice down the stretch, but couldn't stop the fourth-seeded Bulldogs, who earned their spot in the championship by knocking off top-seeded Campbell on Friday night.

Radford won the only regular-season meeting, 75-58, also at the Dedmon Center.

Gardner-Webb led 27-22 at halftime and was up 33-28 before Laster led a 13-5 run with seven points, including one of his two 3-pointers and a dunk.

BIG PICTURE

Gardner-Webb: Laster's huge day helped the Runnin' Bulldogs overcome the absence of scoring leader David Efianayi (18.5 points per game) from the score sheet until he made a pair of free throws with 12:18 remaining. Efianayi followed shortly thereafter with a dunk and carried the scoring down the stretch.

Radford: The game may have been the last at home for Ed Polite Jr. a first-team All-Big South selection who fouled out with 31.6 seconds left. Polite had 15 points and five rebounds and is the only player in league history with 1,500 points, 1,000 rebounds, 175 steals, 175 assists and 150 blocks.

UP NEXT

Gardner-Webb: Will play in the NCAA Tournament.

Radford: Will hope for a postseason invitation.

Murray State: 2018-19 Ohio Valley Men's Basketball Champions

EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- Murray State guard Ja Morant was determined to finish the job Saturday night.

With the Racers' NCAA Tournament hopes on the line, the sophomore standout came through in the second half in front of more than 10,000 fans at Ford Center. Morant scored 22 of his 36 points after the break and made all nine of his free throws to give Murray State a 77-65 victory over Belmont in the Ohio Valley Conference championship game.

The Racers (27-4) earned the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament -- the first spot to be taken this year and the team's second consecutive berth under head coach Matt McMahon.

During Friday's semifinal win over Austin Peay, Morant missed five of his 15 free throws. That stuck with the 6-foot-3 point guard.

"I was a little frustrated with myself last night ... I mean, they're free,'' Morant said. "Tonight, I was just locked in and just followed through with all my shots and was able to make them.''

Morant, the OVC Player of the Year, played the entire 40 minutes. He was 13-for-25 shooting and added seven rebounds and three assists. He scored eight successive points down the stretch in the second half to help withstand a rally by Belmont (26-5), which saw its 15-game winning streak end.

After his assist on Tevin Brown's 3-pointer to put the Racers up by six with 56 seconds left, Darnell Cowart drew a charge on the next possession to essentially seal the win.

Murray State outscored the Bruins 11-0 over the final 2:25.

"We found a way to get it done in the second half,'' McMahon said. "I'm just so proud of our team.''

Shaq Buchanan was the primary defender on Belmont sharpshooter Dylan Windler, who had 17 points but was just 1-for-7 from beyond the 3-point arc. The Bruins led 31-26 at halftime but allowed the Racers to go on a 14-2 run early in the second half that changed the complexion of the game.

Overall, there were 15 lead changes. Windler had just two points in the first half but turned it on late. He went on a 6-0 personal run and then made a jumper to put the Bruins ahead 63-62 with 3:40 left.

Morant continued to draw contact. He shot more free throws than the Bruins, who were 8-for-11 at the stripe. It was the second matchup this season between the OVC powers. Belmont won the first, 79-66, on the road on Jan. 24.

KEY STATS

Murray State shot 58.6 percent in the second half after a 36.4 percent clip in the first. ... Belmont connected on 7 of 32 from the perimeter (21.8 percent). ... Murray State made more free throws (16) than the Bruins attempted (11). ... It also out-rebounded Belmont 47-31 with three players tallying nine or more. ... The Racers had a 48-32 scoring advantage in the paint.

TRAINERS ROOM

Belmont played without 6-foot-11 center Nick Muszynski, who suffered an ankle injury in Friday's semifinal win over Austin Peay. The OVC Freshman of the Year averages 14.9 points and led the league in field-goal percentage (60.8) and blocks per game (2.2).

UP NEXT

Murray State: The Racers are headed to the NCAA tournament for the fourth time this decade.

Belmont: The Bruins are forced to wait a week until Selection Sunday to learn their fate. They will hold out hope their resume is viewed favorably by the selection committee to be an at-large team. If they land outside of the bubble, they will play in the NIT as the OVC regular-season co-champion.