Bedlam on Baltic Avenue

Oral Roberts: 2022-23 Summit Men's Basketball Champions

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- Max Abmas had 26 points and 11 assists and Oral Roberts overwhelmed North Dakota State 92-58 in the Summit League tournament championship game Tuesday night to clinch an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament.

Reserve Patrick Mwamba scored 17 of his 20 points in the first half and Issac McBride, Connor Vanover and reserve DeShang Weaver each scored 10 points for Oral Roberts.

Oral Roberts (30-4) finished 18-0 in league play and won twice in the league's postseason tournament. It's the program's seventh NCAA tournament berth.

The Golden Eagles failed to make the NCAA tournament last year following their 2021 run to the Sweet 16, which ended with a 72-70 loss to Arkansas.

When asked what it would take to duplicate the 2021 run after beating the Bison, Abmas said, "We've got to continue the intensity that we've had in this (Summit) tournament."

Boden Skunberg scored 18 points, Andrew Morgan 13 and Damari Wheeler-Thomas 10 for the Bison (16-17).

Gonzaga: 2022-23 West Coast Men's Basketball Champions

LAS VEGAS -- Gonzaga's players heard the criticisms this wasn't the same Bulldogs team that has been among the nation's elite in recent years, and they even struggled themselves to live up to the program's enormous expectations.

"There were numerous days where I was not fun to be around," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.

The Bulldogs kept working at it, and on Tuesday night, No. 9 Gonzaga sent a message to the rest of the country with a dominant-from-the-start 77-51 victory over No. 16 Saint Mary's in the championship game of the West Coast Conference tournament.

The Zags (28-5) continued their domination of the WCC with their fourth consecutive tournament championship and 10th in 11 years, with Saint Mary's in 2019 being the only exception. Gonzaga has won 21 tournament titles overall.

Drew Timme scored 18 points and became Gonzaga's all-time leading scorer, earning tournament Most Outstanding Player.

"I took for granted winning," Timme said. "I won so much in my career, it's a shock not to win. I think early in the year, it just kind of made me appreciate what it takes to win night in and night out. I think sometimes we kind of assume we were just going to win because we're Gonzaga.

"Sometimes it's hard not to fall into mindset we just need to get to March. It was grind this season. I think that grind has made us as a group appreciate each and every night winning and what it takes to win and be a good team."

Saint Mary's (26-7) was seeded first in the tournament after the teams split the regular-season series, and Timme said it was strange wearing a blue jersey rather than the customary white one. The Gaels were the last team to beat Gonzaga, which takes a nine-game winning streak into the NCAA tournament that includes beating Saint Mary's to end the regular season.

Both teams will find out their seedings and destinations Sunday.

Gonzaga made 58% of its shots, while holding Saint Mary's to 33% shooting. The Bulldogs led by as many as 37 points and never trailed.

Timme was efficient in making 8 of 10 shots to lead four Bulldogs into double figures. Malachi Smith scored 14 points, Nolan Hickman had 12 and Julian Strawther 10. Anton Watson had 10 rebounds.

Timme's short jumper with 10:18 left put him alone in first place as the leading scorer in Gonzaga history. He entered just five points short of breaking the mark, and his 18 points for the game gave him 2,210 for his career. Frank Burgess held the previous record of 2,196 from 1958-61.

Logan Johnson led the Gaels with 20 points, and Alex Ducas scored 10.

Gonzaga took control early, using a nine-point run to go up 14-4 and maintained a double-digit lead most of the way from there. The Zags at one point in the first half made 10 of 12 field goals, and by halftime, they had taken full command with a 37-19 lead.

"I told our guys we played 32 games and played pretty well in 32 of them," Saint Mary's coach Randy Bennett said. "This one, we're off. You can credit them. They played well. We didn't show up."

Charleston: 2022-23 Colonial Men's Basketball Champions

WASHINGTON, D.C. (AP) – The College of Charleston (CofC) Men’s Basketball team is heading to the Big Dance.

CofC’s Ryan Larson scored 23 points and his effort at both of ends of the floor late helped send Charleston past upset-minded UNC Wilmington 63-58 on Tuesday night in the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament championship and clinch an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

It’s Charleston’s first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2018 and sixth overall.

Larson, a 6-foot-1 senior, scored 15 points after halftime, making 4 of 7 from 3-point range after missing his first two 3s before the break. He came up with all four of his steals after halftime, too.

Larson had pair of steals — one of which led to a breakaway layup — and banked in a 3-pointer with the Cougars (31-3) in the midst of a late 12-0 run they used to secure the win.

“I’m just so proud of this team,” said Larson, who transferred from Wofford where he played from 2018-22. “Everyone doubted us all year and we kept proving them wrong; kept winning games. Total team effort today.”

Ante Brzovic scored 16 points for Charleston which currently has the highest win total in Division I-play this season.

UNC Wilmington led 27-24 at intermission before Charleston outscored the Seawolves 18-7 over the first 5:53 of the second half for a 42-34 lead. The Seawolves countered with 15-0 run with Trazarien White scoring eight and Amari Kelly six and UNCW led 49-42 with 9:52 left. Charleston took the lead for good on Larson’s breakaway layup off the steal for a 55-53 lead with 3:33 left and the Seawolves went into an almost four-minute scoring drought.

The Cougars entered the tournament as the second seed against fourth-seed UNCW (24-10), which was coming off an overtime win the night before against top-seeded Hofstra.

Kelly and White each scored 16 points for the Seawolves.

Northern Kentucky: 2022-23 Horizon Men's Basketball Champions

INDIANAPOLIS -- Marques Warrick scored 18 points and Sam Vinson added 16 to lead Northern Kentucky to a 63-61 victory over Cleveland State and win the Horizon League Tournament championship on Tuesday.

The Norse (22-12), one-point losers to Wright State in last year's title game, advance to the NCAA tournament for the fourth time since 2017.

Warrick made four consecutive free throws in the final half-minute to give the Norse a seven-point lead. The Vikings (21-13) scored twice in the final 10 seconds but a 3-pointer came with just 0.2 left.

Trey Robinson added 12 points for the Norse, who outscored the Vikings 21-7 off turnovers, making 14 steals. They sank 16 of 18 at the line to 5 of 10 for Cleveland State.

Tristan Enaruna scored 17 points and Deshon Parker 14 for Cleveland State. Deante Johnson grabbed 10 rebounds.

There were 14 lead changes and 12 ties in a game in which neither team led by double figures.

Leading by seven midway through the second half, the Norse went scoreless for over six minutes but still led by two with four minutes remaining. They then scored consecutive baskets a minute apart, the second on Vinson's jumper following Brandon's swat of Ramar Pryor's layup attempt.

The Vikings got within three twice before Warrick's free throws.

Vinson and Warwick scored 10 points apiece in the first half to lead NKU to a 33-30 lead.

Four-seed NKU and three-seed Cleveland State finished in a three-way tie for second place with Milwaukee behind Youngstown State. The Norse knocked out Youngstown State and Cleveland State eliminated 2-seed Milwaukee in Monday's semifinals. The finalists split their regular-season series, each winning by a point on their home court.

Furman: 2022-23 Southern Men's Basketball Champions

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Jalen Slawson scored 20 points and Furman beat Chattanooga 88-79 on Monday night to win the Southern Conference tournament and advance to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1980.

The NCAA field contained 48 teams the last time the top-seeded Paladins made the Big Dance. Furman coach Bob Richey had the Paladins on their way last season as the No. 2 seed until David Jean-Baptiste buried a 35-foot 3-pointer at the buzzer to rally top-seeded Chattanooga to a 64-63 victory.

Furman (27-7) took care of business this time around, although adding to the program's record win total didn't come easy.

Slawson had three baskets in an 18-0 run to give the Paladins a 23-7 lead nine minutes into the game. Chattanooga (18-17) was trailing 30-11 when A.J. Caldwell scored the final five points in a 13-0 spurt to pull within 30-26. Chattanooga twice cut its deficit to three, but a layup by JP Pegues gave Furman a 38-33 lead at halftime.

Chattanooga made a late run at the Paladins, using back-to-back 3-pointers from Jamal Johnson and Caldwell's layup to close to within 69-65 at the 5:02 mark -- but the Mocs would get no closer.

Slawson made 8 of 12 shots from the floor with two 3-pointers for Furman. Pegues pitched in with 17 points despite missing all seven of his 3-point attempts and Mike Bothwell finished with 16 points, leaving him 10 shy of 2,000 for his career. Bothwell is trying to become the fifth Paladin to reach the 2,000-point plateau.

Jake Stephens paced Chattanooga with 25 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks. Johnson totaled 17 points and Caldwell posted his first double-double of the season with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists.

Furman made all six of its previous NCAA tournament appearances between 1971 to 1980. Its lone win was a 75-67 victory over South Carolina in 1974. They lost to Pittsburgh 81-78 in the Sweet Sixteen.

Chattanooga and former SoCon member Davidson have made the most NCAA tournament appearances in conference history with 12.

Louisiana: 2022-23 Sun Belt Men's Basketball Champions

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Themus Fulks scored a career-high 23 points, Jordan Brown had 13 points and 16 rebounds and second-seeded Louisiana beat No. 8 seed South Alabama 71-66 on Monday night to claim the Sun Belt Conference tournament championship.

Louisiana (26-7) secured its 11th NCAA tournament berth and first since 2014.

Louisiana's first lead of two points or more came with 12:06 remaining in the second half on a putback by Terence Lewis II for a 49-46 advantage.

After South Alabama went 1 of 2 from the free throw line, Jalen Dalcourt made a jumper in the lane with 27.7 seconds left to extend Louisiana's lead to 67-64. The Jaguars struggled all game from the stripe, going 17 of 28.

Isaiah Moore made two free throws with 17.1 seconds left to get South Alabama within 67-66, but Lewis answered with two makes at the other end to regain a three-point advantage. South Alabama guard Owen White had a long 3-pointer rattle out in the closing seconds, and Kentrell Garnett sealed it with two free throws at 1.4.

Dalcourt finished with 13 points and Lewis added 12 points for the Ragin' Cajuns. Dalcourt and Fulks each made three of Louisiana's eight 3-pointers.

South Alabama (19-16), which knocked off No. 1 seed Southern Miss 78-61 on Saturday, was going for its first NCAA tournament berth since 2008.

Moore scored a career-high 33 points for South Alabama. Kevin Samuel had two blocks in the first half to set a South Alabama single-season record with 86. Samuel also scored 12 points and grabbed six rebounds.

Moore, averaging 18.5 points per game, scored 13 of South Alabama's opening 20 points to help build a six-point lead. The Jaguars led 37-33 at halftime behind 63% shooting and Moore's 16 points.

FFXIV: Endwalking With You, Day 21

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Genshin Impact: Genshin Misadventures - Windblume's Breath, Part 3.

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Kennesaw State: 2022-23 Atlantic Sun Men's Basketball Champions

The Kennesaw State men’s basketball team is going to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.

Terrell Burden hit a free throw with 0.7 seconds remaining to lift the Owls past Liberty 67-66 on Sunday in front of a school-record announced attendance of 3,805 to win the ASUN Tournament and earn their automatic invitation to the NCAA Tournament.

Supporters wearing gold and black were crammed into every possible space of the Convocation Center to witness Kennesaw State playing in its first conference title game in arguably the most important game in school history.

Despite having little experience with success in Division I basketball – the program went 1-28 in 2019-20 – the students and others turned the arena into a hostile environment Sunday.

After the victory, players ran around the court holding up their phones to record the moment. Parents and loved ones flooded the court to exchange hugs and handshakes.

The Owls will learn where they will go and who they will play on the March 12 NCAA selection show.

The victory was secured when Burden, a senior who went to Campbell High, was fouled driving to the basket by Liberty’s Isiah Warfield. Burden hit the first and missed the second. He finished with a team-high 19 points. Chris Youngblood followed with 16 points, Brandon Stroud 12 and Demond Robinson 10.

Kennesaw State built a five-point lead with 1:34 remaining.

Liberty’s Darius McGhee, the conference player of the year and one of the best shooters in NCAA history, hit an acrobatic layup to cut the Owls’ lead to three with 1:28 left.

Stroud was fouled by Ben Southerland. Stroud hit both free throws to give the Owls a five-point lead with 1:04 remaining.

Stroud fouled McGhee on Liberty’s next possession. He hit both free throws to again cut Kennesaw State’s lead to three with 56.8 seconds remaining.

Burden turned over the ball on Kennesaw State’s next possession.

The Flames took advantage with a 3-pointer by Colin Porter to tie the game at 66 with 25 seconds remaining.

With the shot clock turned off, Burden held onto the ball until his final drive.

Making the NCAAs caps a remarkable turnaround led by coach Amir Abdur-Rahim. He was the one who was at the helm for the one-win season in which the Owls finished 352nd out of 353 teams in Ken Pomeroy’s rankings.

Rahim, who played at Wheeler High, led the team to five wins the next season, 13 the next and 26, so far, this season.

Drake: 2022-23 Missouri Valley Men's Basketball Champions

ST. LOUIS — Drake men's basketball won the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament on Sunday, the Bulldogs' first league tournament title since 2008.

The Bulldogs beat Bradley, 77-51, to win the title and earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Braves were the regular-season conference champions, beating Drake 73-61 in the finale. But it was all Bulldogs in the championship.

This will be Drake's sixth NCAA Tournament appearance. The previous trips were 1969, 1970, 1971, 2008 and 2021.

"You never know what will happen in the tournament," Drake's D.J. Wilkins said. "We didn't know if we'd get the opportunity to play Bradley again, so just to be able to do it on this stage for all the marbles, we wouldn't want to have it any other way."

Drake didn’t make a field goal for the first 4 minutes and 43 seconds of the game, and that drought ended when Darnell Brodie separated himself from Rienk Mast and sank a turnaround jumper.

After starting 0-for-5 from the field, the Bulldogs went on a 12-0 run to go up 14-3 on Bradley. Drake’s defense kept the Braves scoreless for 4 minutes and 28 seconds while building its lead.

Drake held a 41-21 lead at halftime. The Bulldogs’ 20-point advantage was the third-largest halftime lead of any MVC Tournament championship game. That was also the second-largest halftime deficit for Bradley this season; the largest was Drake’s 22-point lead when the Bulldogs beat the Braves, 86-61, in January in Des Moines.

But even a 20-point lead isn’t safe in tournament play. Drake was up by double digits in the semifinal against Southern Illinois, and the Salukis went on a 13-2 run to start the second half.

Zek Montgomery kicked off the scoring in the second with a 3-pointer, and Garrett Sturtz responded with two points for Drake. The Bulldogs were able to respond most times that Bradley scored, keeping the lead in the teens or twenties for all of the second half.

Bradley pulled most of its starters with under four minutes to play, as Drake held a 30-point lead.

"Really proud of our guys," Drake coach Darian DeVries said. "They had an unbelievable fight tonight. Played extremely well, maybe as complete a game as we've had on both ends of the floor. So, an incredible moment."

Tucker DeVries led the Bulldogs with 22 points. Sturtz and Brodie each added 12 points in the win.

Drake advanced to the championship game for the third straight year after beating Southern Illinois, 65-52, in the semifinal. Roman Penn led Drake with 16 points in the victory and Brodie pulled down 17 rebounds.

UNC Asheville: 2022-23 Big South Men's Basketball Champions

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Drew Pember had 29 points, Tajion Jones scored 16 in the final 7:35 and No. 1 seed UNC Asheville stormed back to beat seventh-seeded Campbell 77-73 on Sunday, winning the Big South conference tournament championship and advancing to the NCAA tournament for the fifth time.

Ricky Clemons hit a jumper to give Campbell a 66-52 lead, and then Jones took over. The senior guard scored 10 straight points for the Bulldogs (27-7) after Pember made two free throws to cut their deficit to 68-64 with 3:41 to go. Clemons and Jones traded 3-pointers and Pember followed with a three-point play to get UNC Asheville within 71-70.

Clemons hit a jumper with 1:44 to play but the Fighting Camels would not score again. Pember, who has attempted and made more free throws than anyone else in the country, sank a pair. Clemons was fouled but missed both free throws and Jones buried a 3-pointer to put the Bulldogs on top 75-73 with 55 seconds left. The last time UNC Asheville had had the lead the score was 13-11.

Pember, the Big South's Player of the Year, hit 9 of 19 shots but just 1 of 6 from 3-point range. He made 10 of 12 foul shots. Jones sank 9 of 14 shots, including 5 of 8 from beyond the arc. They each grabbed eight rebounds. Fletcher Abee hit three from distance and scored 11.

Jay Pal scored a career-high 26 points to lead the Fighting Camels. The senior made 11 of 18 shots and grabbed 10 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season. He added four assists and blocked two shots. Big South Freshman of the Year Anthony Dell'Orso scored 12 points -- just two after halftime -- and snagged seven rebounds. Clemons, a former walk-on who is now a senior, hit two 3-pointers and scored 17 before fouling out.

Pal had 16 points and eight rebounds by halftime to guide Campbell to a 38-35 lead at intermission.

The Fighting Camels (16-18) made their only trip to the Big Dance in 1992, losing to eventual champion Duke in the first round 82-56. Campbell is the sixth No. 7 seed to advance to the Big South title game. All six lost to the top seed.

UNC Asheville sports a 2-4 record in its four previous NCAA tourney appearances.

Southeast Missouri State: 2022-23 Ohio Valley Men's Basketball Champions

EVANSVILLE — Southeast Missouri State men’s basketball coach Brad Korn shared a teary-eyed embrace with his parents. After an emotional 89-82 overtime win over Tennessee Tech in the United Fidelity Bank Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championship, all the family could do was shed joyful waterworks. That clinched SEMO’s first NCAA Tournament berth in 23 years and the SEMO faithful showered the players and coaches with praise.

At long last, and after four games in as many days, the wait was over. A timeline concluded with a story fitting enough for tears.

“You don’t do anything on your own,” the third-year coach said. “They get to share in that moment as well. I heard a long time ago, that surround yourself with amazing people (and) you’ll be surprised how far they can take you. I know I’m extremely blessed with these guys, this university, my family.”

The emotions of the night can’t be summed by the numbers. The six lead changes and five ties don’t come close to showing why a family cried in the stands. The Golden Eagles were about one shoe size away from snapping their 60-year danceless run.

Fifth-seeded SEMO took a two-point lead with 2.2 seconds remaining in front of 1,728 fans at Ford Center, leaving TTU needing a miracle it was painfully close to achieving. Jaylen Sebree chucked a Hail Mary pass to Diante Wood, who turned and hit an off-balance shot he thought was for the win. It was a similar play to that which ended Eagles’ coach John Pelphrey’s playing career 31 years prior.

Bucket, but his foot was on the 3-point line — “buzzer tier,” Korn called it. He sent TTU to overtime instead of the dance. Korn’s tears were nearly for a loss and Tech’s wait was almost over.

SEMO players were in tears but quickly needed to dry them. There was still overtime.

“They said, ‘Hey, remember this feeling. We’ve got five minutes to not feel this way,’” Korn said of Phillip Russell, Chris Harris and Dylan Branson. “I give them all the credit in the world for that and having the perseverance and the grit and the toughness to get it done.”

Tears fell again, but for joy and accomplishment on the Redhawks’ end. Wood watched from the opposite baseline after being an inch from ending a generational waiting period.

“I wanted to soak it all in, see how it felt, the pain,” Wood said. “(I can) come back next year, know about the feeling. Don’t want to be in that position again.”

Four games in four days. Austin Peay in 2016 was the only other team to win the OVC tournament after playing on opening night. The odds were against SEMO. Korn knew it but presented a challenge to his team before departing for Evansville.

Believe they can win the championship. Pack for four days.

Those were the options, or the players were instructed not to board the bus. That resulted in a 23-year wait ending and the Redhawks heading to March Madness.

“The guys have had a calmness, a steadiness about them all week,” Korn said. “The moment was not too big.”

“Everybody always had the right attitude,” Harris said. “We don’t want to be the outlier. It’s been so long since we actually won a championship and we see other teams winning championships all the time, so figured it’s our turn to step up.

It feels good to bring a basketball championship back home.”

A daunting task lies ahead for Korn and his Redhawks. They’ll likely be paired as a 16-seed against one of the tournament favorites or in the First Four to have the chance at playing one of the top teams. But Korn has experienced the Madness, albeit as an assistant at Kansas State.

“The balls are different, the floor is different, the arena — everything is different,” Korn said. “It’s going to be different coaching in the NCAA Tournament than it was as an assistant.

“This is what we do. This is what these guys do. To be able to have that, these guys are going to be able to see and experience, it’s at a different level. You literally walk around like royalty, people treat you so well. I’m looking forward to it.”

Amidst all the celebration, cheering and jubilation, it could be easy to forget how close it was to going the other way around. An inch, a shoe size, a step — one of those things changing is the difference between SEMO going to the tournament and watching the opposition celebrate; between tears in celebration and those in agony.

In essence, it was everything college basketball is supposed to be.

“If that’s not the definition of March Madness,” Korn said, “I don’t know what is.”

Fairleigh Dickinson: 2023 Northeast Men's Basketball Representative

Fairleigh Dickinson became the first team to punch its ticket to the 2023 NCAA tournament on Saturday -- and the Knights did it without winning their conference tournament.

Merrimack, the 1-seed in the Northeast Conference tournament, is still in the midst of its four-year reclassification process from Division II to Division I and is therefore ineligible for the NCAA tournament. However, the NEC announced last summer it would allow Merrimack to participate in the conference tournament this season. Merrimack winning the regular-season title meant the championship game runner-up would advance to the NCAA tournament should the Warriors make it to the title game.

That situation played out on Saturday. With Merrimack beating Sacred Heart in the first semifinal on Saturday, it meant the winner of the second semifinal between Fairleigh Dickinson and St. Francis (Pa.) would earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Fairleigh Dickinson, the 2-seed in the tournament, knocked off 3-seed St. Francis 70-50. Demetre Roberts led the way with 18 points and five assists, and Ansley Almonor (15 points) and Grant Singleton (12 points) also scored in double figures.

Merrimack and Fairleigh Dickinson will still face each other in the NEC tournament title game on Tuesday (7 p.m., ESPN2).

It's a huge accomplishment for first-year head coach Tobin Anderson, who took over a Fairleigh Dickinson team that finished 4-22 last season. Anderson, who had been the head coach at Division II St. Thomas Aquinas since 2013 before taking over at FDU, guided the Knights to a 15-win improvement.

The NEC's situation is similar to what happened in the ASUN tournament last season, with Bellarmine winning the conference tournament despite being ineligible for the NCAA tournament due to its reclassification status. Jacksonville State was the regular-season champion, so the Gamecocks earned the automatic bid even though they lost to Jacksonville in the conference tournament semifinals.

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At New Mexico St, a meltdown that runs beyond basketball

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — Of all the troubling video made public over a year of crisis at New Mexico State – from the brawl involving basketball players to the fatal shooting of a 19-year-old, allegedly by one of those players, to the police interviews with the coach afterward – one 42-minute log of footage might best explain how the school is in the mess it is today.

In that video, captured on police body cam, an officer is interviewing the university’s $500,000-a-year chancellor, Dan Arvizu, and his wife, Sheryl Arvizu. The officer had been called to the couple’s house to resolve a dispute that came out of Sheryl’s suspicion her husband was having an affair with a staff member at New Mexico State.

Dan Arvizu denied the affair. Sheryl Arvizu ended up being booked into jail on a battery charge that was later dismissed. Officials at the school’s Office of Institutional Equity looked into the allegations for possible conflict-of-interest issues, though there was no report filed.

During these fraught days at New Mexico State, where the once-treasured men’s basketball program has been shelved for the season after that fatal shooting and a gruesome allegation of locker-room hazing, the Arvizu police video is a reminder of who is ultimately responsible at a university that has, in many eyes, become unhinged in areas well beyond basketball. The Associated Press spoke to more than a dozen people affiliated with the university, many of whom expressed deep concerns with leadership at the school. Some said they did not want their names used because they feared retribution.

“People are embarrassed,” said Jamie Bronstein, a history professor who also serves as vice chair of NMSU’s faculty senate. “People feel terrible for the students.”

In a letter sent to “Our NMSU Community” after the AP published this story, Arvizu acknowledged that his family had been through “a deeply personal situation.”

“Importantly, there is no truth to the allegations made that evening,” the letter said. “It was a low point for me, and since that time, my wife and I have worked to rebuild our relationship. I am confident this matter has not impacted my ability to lead our university.”

Questions some people are asking on this 14,000-student campus, where some of the adobe-colored dorms and classroom buildings are a short walk from livestock barns, have as much to do with school leadership as they do with the basketball program.

There have been seven different presidents, interim presidents and chancellors over the past 15 years at the second-biggest university in New Mexico. In addition to its isolation — set near the jagged mountains of southern New Mexico, NMSU is some 400 miles from the nearest major media market in Phoenix — the school is unique in that its student body is 63% Hispanic and more than a quarter of the students are the first members of their family to attend college.

“What makes NMSU such a special place is the huge opportunity to change students’ and their families’ lives by increasing our students’ social mobility,” business professor Jim Hoffman said. “This is why excellent leadership, thoughtful decision making and wise use of (limited) resources are so important.”

No matter the disadvantages, New Mexico State has always been able to make a name for itself every March thanks to a men’s basketball program that traditionally thrives on the strength of players and coaches who don’t always take the traditional route to Division I. But this year, the program disintegrated.

The unraveling can be traced to an NMSU football game last Oct. 15 in which a handful of the school’s basketball players got into a brawl with students from rival New Mexico. Video of the melee shows junior forward Mike Peake among those throwing punches.

No police report was filed that night, and five weeks after the fight, the players headed to Albuquerque for one of the season’s most anticipated games, against the Lobos. It was there that Peake broke curfew and went to the dormitory complex of one of the students involved in the fight at the football stadium.

Video from the apartment parking lot shows Peake being attacked with a baseball bat before exchanging gunfire with the student, Brandon Travis. Both men fall. Peake was taken to the hospital with leg wounds that required surgery. Travis later died from his gunshot wounds. Peake, who was acting in self-defense, has not been charged with a crime. Police video shows Peake in a hospital bed after the shooting asking to get his gun back because “that’s my only weapon.” Guns are not permitted on New Mexico State’s campus or on school-related road trips.

The morning after the shootings, players and coaches were loaded onto a bus to head back to Las Cruces, only to be stopped on Interstate 25 by police, who were still piecing together details from the night before.

The Aggies continued to play for nearly three more months. On Feb. 12, Arvizu canceled the season after allegations surfaced about three players ganging up on a teammate in what a police report said included a possible incident of criminal sexual contact. Two days later, Arvizu fired the coach, Greg Heiar. The player who made the allegations said similar hazing incidents had been occurring since summer. Arvizu said he was never made aware of the hazing. School spokesman Justin Bannister said school policy calls for employees to report misconduct to the Title IX office and that the university is “looking at additional support systems” for the future.

At a news conference after those moves, the chancellor said he was sure the “despicable acts” and potentially illegal behavior were confined strictly to the basketball team.

“There will be consequences,” Arvizu said.

Both the shooting and hazing incidents are being sorted out by internal and third-party investigations. Some observers are skeptical they will ever get the full story.

“I feel that we’ve all been left in the dark,” said one longtime Aggies fan, Amy Rohr.

The chancellor’s notion that the problems have been walled off in the basketball program is hardly a consensus around campus.

Current and former employees the AP interviewed described scenarios in which top-level administrators refused to hold themselves or others accountable, both inside and outside the athletic department. One said the “guardrails” designed to protect students and faculty — from everything from retaliation for whistleblowing to sexual improprieties — had all but disappeared.

“Because there’s so much churn in our upper administration, we never get to the point of hammering out who is actually accountable for upholding policies,” Bronstein said.

In one instance, a lawsuit last year filed by a Jane Doe alleges a longtime professor with ties to the athletic department “harassed and groomed female students for years, coercing them into sexual relations and bragging about the same” while school officials looked the other way. The plaintiff alleges she was sexually assaulted by the professor.

Another case alleges that two professors who blew the whistle about hiring practices they claimed flouted human-resource policies had their complaints intercepted by an administrator involved in the hiring, who then pushed for disciplinary cases to be opened against those professors. One has been demoted from his deanship.

Bronstein and others told of the Office of Institutional Equity, which handles Title IX and other discrimination complaints and should have been on the front lines of the hazing allegations, as being marginalized, with administrators ignoring some recommendations produced by the office and putting others off.

In his letter, Arvizu said the school has added staff to the OIE, and that whistleblowers are protected under state law.

“And, under NMSU’s Administrative Rules and Procedures, retaliation is explicitly prohibited,” Arvizu wrote.

Some of the dissatisfaction among faculty was resolved last year, when President John Floros stepped down and Provost Carol Parker was fired in the wake of a resolution of no confidence submitted by the faculty senate.

Among the complaints in that resolution were allegations of misappropriation of funds, unethical hiring and promotion practices and a long list of consequences of the “broader impacts of systemic failure of leadership.”

Parker is currently suing the university. Floros was able to keep his $450,000-a-year salary. The approximately $950,000 in annual salary for Floros and Arvizu was nearly triple what former New Mexico Gov. Garry Carruthers made in his dual role as chancellor and president for five years ending in 2018.

Arvizu’s five-year contract runs out in June. In December, regents made the decision not to renew it, leaving NMSU to face the basketball crisis with no president, a provost position in flux and a lame-duck chancellor.

The athletic director’s job seems secure: When Arvizu dismantled basketball for the season, he went out of his way to back Mario Moccia, who is in his 10th year as AD.

One under-the-radar move the administrators made came in 2019 when they ended a policy that stated student-athletes would be dismissed if found guilty of (or pleaded no contest to) a felony. That allowed one player to remain on the team at the time the rules were changed. It also furthered New Mexico State’s reputation as a place where athletes and coaches get second chances — perhaps without accountability.

At his news conference, Arvizu defended the rules changes that led to the new policy, while Moccia defended his hiring record, conceding that “nobody bats a thousand.” The AD insisted the vetting process for Heiar was solid.

It was the first head-coaching job at a Division I school for the 47-year-old Heiar. Among those he had worked for over two decades as an assistant included Larry Eustachy, Will Wade, Gregg Marshall and Chris Jans. All have endured embarrassing episodes that cost them their jobs. Jans, who left New Mexico State for Mississippi State after last season, came to Las Cruces shortly after he was fired from Bowling Green when a video surfaced of him slapping an unidentified woman on the butt at a bar.

One of Heiar’s assistant coaches, Edmond Pryor, lasted less than three months after being arrested on allegations of forgery. Another of Moccia’s hires is women’s basketball coach Jody Adams, who was accused of being abusive toward players when she coached Wichita State.

For decades, though, New Mexico State has not been shy about taking risks to advance its sports programs. One of the program’s glory eras came in the 1990s when coach Neil McCarthy embroiled a team filled with junior-college transfers in an academic scandal that ended up costing him his job.

Even after he was fired, basketball kept putting this school on the map come March. The Aggies have been to March Madness 11 times since McCarthy left after the 1997 season, always as a double-digit seed with a reputation for giving the big boys trouble. Though the Aggies never moved away from taking players with riskier academic records, the school has not been charged with a major NCAA infraction since 2001.

Regardless, there won’t be any postseason this year, and it’s anybody’s guess as to who, or what, will be left from the team that was 9-15 when the hazing allegations arose and the season was called off. Two players quit shortly after the hazing allegations. Moccia said there would be basketball next season, though the status of the players remaining was up in the air.

“The entire program has caught on fire, and the fire has burned down everything, and all that’s left are the roots,” said Jim Paul, the former NMSU AD who fired McCarthy.

Christopher Hamilton, a freshman who was walking across campus the day Heiar’s firing came down, said the whole situation was “just disappointing, and it’s sad that it’s your school.”

He said he hoped to go to basketball games again someday. But on a recent Saturday, when the Aggies had been scheduled to play a home game at the Pan-Am Center, all anyone could see on the hardwood was the cartoon drawing of the school’s mascot at halfcourt: the mustachioed, gun-toting cowboy known as “Pistol Pete.”

___

AP reporter Susan Montoya Bryan contributed to this report.

Genshin Impact: Genshin Misadventures - Windblume's Breath, Part 1.

#GenshinImpact #WindblumesBreath

Genshin Impact: Genshin Misadventures - The Sumeru Inquisition, Day 10.

#GenshinImpact

25 or 6 to 4

Waiting for the break of day

Searching for something to say

Flashing lights against the sky

Giving up, I close my eyes

Sitting cross-legged on the floor

25 or 6 to 4

Staring blindly into space

Getting up to splash my face

Wanting just to stay awake

Wondering how much I can take

Should I try to do some more

25 or 6 to 4

Oh yeah!

Feeling like I ought to sleep

Spinning room is sinking deep

Searching for something to say

Waiting for the break of day

25 or 6 to 4

25 or 6 to 4!

ISML 2022: That's! A! Wrap!

ISML 2022: That's! A! Wrap!

An Era Of Saimoe Finally Draws To A Close

By Jo-Ryan Salazar

The Bedlam On Baltic Avenue

24 February 2023

This is the final Saimoe news bulletin for the International Saimoe League on The Bedlam on Baltic Avenue. Nearly two decades of memories, great battles and countless sagas in the Saimoe movement drew to a close with the conclusion of Match Day 8 in the 2022 International Saimoe League Eliminations Period.

The first of three Female Division necklaces up for grabs went to Mashiro Shiina, who defeated Violet Evergarden 3241-1550. Elaina was third with 1222 votes, Nao Tomori was fourth with 870 votes, Miko Nakano was fifth with 781 votes, Mai Sakurajima was sixth with 66 votes, Rem was seventh with 564 votes and Yukino Yukinoshita was last with 500 votes.

The second Female Division necklace went to Yui Yuigahama, who defeated Shiro 2598-2256. Nagisa Furukawa was third with 1306 votes, Nanami Aoyama was fourth with 820 votes, Illyasviel von Einzbern was fifth with 680 votes, Konata Izumi was sixth with 434 votes, Yuri Nakamura was seventh with 378 votes and Yui-nyan was last with 237 votes.

Ai Haibara won the third Female Division necklace, prevailing over Kumiko Oumae 3420-3376, Shouko Nishimiya was third with 1100 votes, Isla was fourth with 720 votes, Hu Tao was fifth with 576 votes, Iroha Isshiki was sixth with 469 votes, Megumi was sixth with 402 votes and Eriri Spencer Sawamura was last with 345 votes.

The first Male Division pendant up for grabs went to Conan Edogawa, who delivered the Final Upset of the Round as declared by the Bedlam, a 2968-2796 scalp of Miyuki Shirogane. Accelerator was third with 1344 votes, Sakuta Azusagawa was fourth with 1100 votes, Kazuto Kirigaya was fifth with 873 votes, Taki Tachibana was sixth with 654 votes, Subaru Natsuki was seventh with 508 votes and Touma Kamijou was last with 470 votes.

Takashi Natsume took the second Male Division pendant after belting Shidou Itsuka 2321-1793. Shirou Emiya was third with 1354 votes, Saika Totsuka was fourth with 1103 votes, Saitama was fifth with 870 votes, Ryuunosuke Akasaka was sixth with 761 votes, Kazuma Satou was seventh with 617 votes and Ainz Ooal Gown was last with 560 votes.

Tanjiro Kamado earned the third Male Division pendant of Eliminations 8, a 2058-2021 victor over Sasuke Uchiha. Gilbert Bougainvillea was third with 1502 votes, Inuyasha was fourth with 1181 votes, Nasa Yuzaki was fifth with 1019 votes, Mikaela Hyakuya was sixth with 904 votes, Mochizou Ouji was seventh with 789 votes and Tomoya Aki was last with 560 votes.

Finally, a convoy of dual matches and the odd race involving more than two took place to cap off an era of Saimoe to be believed. Schwi Dola flew past Jibril 2294-1552, Mahiro Oyama defeated Hideyoshi Kinoshita 1905-1417, Hitori Gotou rocked Yui Hirasawa 2793-2192, Jinx leveled Vi 1777-1017, Pikachu shocked Ai Kizuna 2879-1639, Aqua Minato prevailed over Kokori Amamiya 1607-1555, and in a battle of hololive rivals, Gawr Gura (1336) outlasted Pekora Usada (1281) and Kanaeru Kobo (958).

Amiya sailed past Laffey 2004-1353, Mikoto Misaka finished off her service to Saimoe with victories over Gotou (3454-2344) and Kanade Tachibana (3400-2172), Takagi took down Nagisa Kubo 2142-1498, Raiha Uesugi rolled past Takebayashi 1782-1594, Wein Salema Arbalest won a 1459-1246 snoozer over Kazuya Souma, Nodoka Manabe barreled past Jun Suzuki 1850-1355, Shuu Ogata defeated Haruhiko Ichijou 1632-1438 and Tom outdid Jerry 1987-1904.

Chisato Nishikigi routed Kei Karuizawa 3316-1315, Satoshi and Pikachu eased past Sakura Kinomoto and Cerberus 2713-2142, Mio Akiyama boomed past Ryou Yamada 2694-2107, Lelouch Lamperouge stormed past Light Yagami 2694-2107, Yuki Nagato hammered Fate Testarossa 2206-959, Archer torched Loid Forger 2366-2334, Yuki prevailed over Shinya Yukimura 1493-1304, Lyrule drove past Yu-no 1402-1195, Catarina Claes clocked Aileen Lauren Dautriche 1628-1303 and Seika Ijichi pulverized Kou Yagami 2532-1166.

Nishikigi and Takina Inoue teamed up to defeat Azusa Nakano and Yui Hirasawa 2691-2498, Umaru Doma trounced 2652-1049, Erika Kurumi defeated Laura La Mer 1441-993, Kana Sukoya blew past Himiko Toga 1720-1051, Yamada bounced back with a 2616-2487 statement win over Konata Izumi, Sanae Dekomori thumped Souji Mitsuka 2281-1016, Eru Chitanda had Houtarou Oreki's number 2431-1840, Shuu Ogata outhandled Rentarou Satomi 13900.2-12321.9 and in a special group race, Saber came away victorious with a score of 23777.7.

Wrapping up an era of Saimoe that millions around the world witness in real time, Shinku defeated Yaya 1650-1406, Isuzu Sento drove past Mai Kawakamu 2013-1292, Seiya Kanie overcame Tatsuya Shiba 1689, and Rudeus Greyrat closed the Saimoe era with a 1766-1281 victory over Naofumi Iwatani.

That's. A. WRAP! The International Saimoe League has concluded for the very last time, and the Bedlam on Baltic Avenue thanks you for what has been a journey of anime greatness to remember. This blog will continue to cover other things, such as content on its YouTube sister channel (Bongaboi151) and sports recaps, but all the bulletins you see here can be viewed in their entirety on bedlamba.blogspot.com. Thank you for your support of the International Saimoe League. May your love for all things anime shine here, now...and into the future.

ISML 2022: In Mikoto Misaka's Words

My name is Mikoto Misaka, and I have succeeded in winning re-election as Saimoe Prime Minister. However, I decided to make a decision with my fellow champion, Houtarou Oreki, who was also re-elected as Deputy Saimoe Prime Minister. After having lunch in Academy City to discuss the next steps, we both agreed to make this announcement.

At the conclusion ofthe final match day of the 2022 International Saimoe League, Eliminations Match Day 8, Houtarou and I will symbolically resign from our positions and formally dissolve the Saimoe Diet for good. I enjoyed my first tenure in this office, many years ago, and so did Houtarou in his capacity, but we felt that it would not really be right to have a second term, or for this movement to have to continue.

We have stayed the course. We have run the race. We have kept the faith. And through your commitment and your years of believe and support and voting, we have succeeded in leaving our legacy.

From this point forward, we are our own people. With different thoughts, ideas, beliefs, passions. No man or woman in this world is better or worse than his or her ally in arms. We grow stronger together, as one, with a belief that we all are special, beautiful, powerful, inviolate, invincible in our own way.

Whether you are hero, or a villain, or both, whether your are a man, a woman, an animal, a concept, whether your are here with us or not, you matter. You always will matter, even after our story is over and your continues, and others begin. The world endures, and moves on. But the legacy and tales of our deeds, in bringing happiness and inspiration around the world remained.

Houtarou and I do not regret leaving Saimoe, as all of us will. Many years have come, with great battles, endless debates, ideas and movements shared by you, the fans, the supporters, the dreamers. We see you, we appreciate you, we love you for it.

But you know as well as I do that nothing lasts forever. There will be new contests, new challenges, by other groups around the world who want to celebrate what this movement did for many years, many editions. They celebrate your love and support of the finest people. Us. All of us.

I will not forget the memories we all had in directing the voice of the world's fans, the great moments we all took stock of. I believe it is important that we keep all of this with us and know that the years will pass, but Saimoe will never be forgotten.

I want to thank everyone who took part in this process, Touma, Kuroko, Index, Accelerator, and so many people I can't name off the top of my head. But it is a list that goes on and on and on. If I were to name them...I don't think I can finish this address I sending to you with a heavy heart...and a clear mind and direction.

I want to close my final address to the world with a simple message, paraphrased from a tragic video game villain who eventually was able to see the light. Remember. Remember us. Remember...that WE ARE SAIMOE.

Good night, may God bless you, may God bless Japan and the world, and may God bless Saimoe. Thank you.

-Mikoto Misaka

20 February 2023

BoBA ISML 2022 Predictions: Eliminations Match Day 8 (FINAL)

ARENA 1 [[Rem - 3]] [[Sakurajima Mai - 2]] [[Violet Evergarden - 1]] [[Nakano Miku - 8]] [[Elaina - 5]] [[Shiina Mashiro - 6]] [[Yukinoshita Yukino - 4]] [[Tomori Nao - 7]]

by >=300
Over/Under: 125000
Over

ARENA 2 [[Yuigahama Yui - 1]] [[Shiro - 3]] [[Furukawa Nagisa - 2]] [[Aoyama Nanami - 4]] [[Illyasviel von Einzbern - 5]] [[Izumi Konata - 8]] [[Yui-nyan - 7]] [[Nakamura Yuri - 6]]

by >=300
Over/Under: 125000
Over

ARENA 3 [[Nishimiya Shōko - 2]] [[Isla - 8]] [[Haibara Ai - 7]] [[Isshiki Iroha - 5]] [[Megumin - 3]] [[Hu Tao - 1]] [[Ōmae Kumiko - 4]] [[Sawamura Spencer Eriri - 6]]

by <=500
Over/Under: 125000
Over

ARENA 4 [[Edogawa Conan - 7]] [[Azusagawa Sakuta - 1]] [[Kirigaya Kazuto - 5]] [[Accelerator - 3]] [[Shirogane Miyuki - 2]] [[Kamijō Tōma - 4]] [[Natsuki Subaru - 8]] [[Tachibana Taki - 6]]

by <=1000
Over/Under: 200000
Under

ARENA 5 [[Natsume Takashi - 1]] [[Totsuka Saika - 5]] [[Itsuka Shidō - 2]] [[Emiya Shirō - 4]] [[Saitama - 7]] [[Satō Kazuma - 3]] [[Ainz Ooal Gown - 8]] [[Akasaka Ryūnosuke - 6]]

by <=1000
Over/Under: 200000
Under

ARENA 6 [[Ōji Mochizō - 3]] [[Gilbert Bougainvillea - 1]] [[Kamado Tanjirō - 6]] [[Yuzaki Nasa - 2]] [[Uchiha Sasuke - 5]] [[Aki Tomoya - 4]] [[Hyakuya Mikaela - 8]] [[Inuyasha - 7]]

by <=1000
Over/Under: 200000
Under

ARENA 7 [[Schwi Dola]] Jibril

by >=500
Over/Under: 25000
Over

ARENA 8 [[Kinoshita Hideyoshi]] Oyama Mahiro

by >=500
Over/Under: 25000
Over

ARENA 9 Hirasawa Yui [[Gotō Hitori]]

by >=500
Over/Under: 25000
Over

ARENA 10 Jinx [[Vi]]

by >=500
Over/Under: 25000
Over

ARENA 11 Pikachu [[Kizuna AI]]

by >=500
Over/Under: 25000
Over

ARENA 12 Amamiya Kokoro [[Minato Aqua]]

by >=500
Over/Under: 25000
Over

ARENA 13 Kobo Kanaeru [[Usada Pekora]] Gawr Gura

by <=800
Over/Under: 30000
Under

ARENA 14 [[Laffey]] Amiya

by <=800
Over/Under: 30000
Under

ARENA 15 Gotō Hitori [[Misaka Mikoto]]

by >=1000
Over/Under: 20000
Over

ARENA 16 Kubo Nagisa [[Takagi]]

by <=800
Over/Under: 30000
Under

ARENA 17 [[Misaka Mikoto]] Tachibana Kanade

by >=500
Over/Under: 20000
Over

ARENA 18 [[Uesugi Raiha]] Takebayashi