Blue Devils' Griffin becomes 5th Duke player to bolt for NBA
Griffin is heading to the NBA, becoming the fifth Blue Devils player in the past week to declare early for the draft. The school announced Griffin's decision Sunday, the last day for players to declare themselves eligible for the NBA draft. Duke said the 6-foot-6, 222-pound wing regarded as a potential lottery draft pick plans to hire an agent. He averaged 10.4 points while providing size, outside shooting and defensive potential to the wing for the Blue Devils. Griffin helped Duke reach now-retired Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski’s record 13th Final Four while winning the program’s first outright Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title since 2006.
wftv.comTar Heels survive ejection, big rally, beat '21 champ Baylor
All-ACC power forward Armando Bacot had 15 points and 16 rebounds for North Carolina. The Tar Heels won as No. Manek had just drained a 3-pointer that put the Tar Heels ahead 67-42. With Manek out, and Caleb Love fouling out soon after that, the Tar Heels had 10 turnovers as Baylor turned up the pressure and made a furious rally. North Carolina had one more shot, but Davis' 3-point try hit off the front of the rim.
wftv.comNorth Carolina's Manek ejected for throwing elbow vs Baylor
North Carolina's Brady Manek was ejected for elbowing Baylor's Jeremy Sochan in the face in their NCAA Tournament second-round game on Saturday. Manek had a season-high 26 points when he was ejected in the second half. Manek threw the elbow while blocking out Sochan for a rebound.
news.yahoo.comTIPPING OFF: Tar Heels get hot, now take on '21 champ Baylor
Now the eighth-seeded Tar Heels are aiming to make some trouble for Baylor. Knocking off the defending national champion Bears is asking a lot, but there already have been bigger surprises in this tournament and the Tar Heels are hot with wins in seven of their last eight games. Davis' first tournament game as head coach, a 95-63 walkover against Marquette, was the most lopsided meeting ever between Nos. Baylor made fast work of 16th-seeded Norfolk State in an 85-49 first-round win and has won six of its last seven. Anyone worried about the Tar Heels being overwhelmed by a pro-Baylor crowd in Fort Worth, should relax.
wftv.comCarolina routs Marquette 95-63 in Davis' NCAA coaching debut
(AP Photo/LM Otero) (LM Otero)FORT WORTH, Texas — (AP) — Brady Manek scored 28 points, Caleb Love had 21 of his 23 before halftime and North Carolina routed Marquette 95-63 in first-year coach Hubert Davis' NCAA Tournament debut Thursday. The win was in stark contrast to last year, when the Tar Heels sent Roy Williams into retirement with his only opening-round loss in 30 NCAA appearances. The Tar Heels were already up 18 when players from both teams had to be separated. The biggest lead for the Tar Heels was 35. BIG PICTURENorth Carolina: The last time Carolina played Marquette in the NCAA Tournament, in 2011, the Tar Heels had 25 points at halftime.
wftv.comPick Six: Veterans to watch as NCAA Tournament begins
(AP Photo/Chase Stevens)INDIANAPOLIS – There has never been a better time to have senior leadership in the NCAA Tournament than this season. AdVirginia intends to play after withdrawing from the ACC Tournament because of COVID-19 protocols, which means fans will get to say Sam Hauser running the show. Dru Smith is their leading scorer and Jeremiah Tilmon finally reached his potential this season, and both aim to help Missouri snap a four-game NCAA Tournament skid. Herb Jones is an All-American candidate and Jaden Shackelford is Alabama's leading scorer, but John Petty Jr. makes the SEC Tournament champs go. Then there's Tennessee forward John Fulkerson, who sustained facial fractures in an SEC Tournament win over Florida and underwent surgery Sunday.
Oklahoma St. freshman Cunningham breaking out late in season
He scored 13 of his 15 points in the final 10 minutes, and the Cowboys won 79-75. Cunningham’s grasp of how to be most effective is the main reason Oklahoma State is one of the nation’s hottest teams. After he made 12 of 21 field goals and 13 of 14 free throws in the first game against Oklahoma, Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton said the race to determine the top pick in this year's NBA draft should be over. He took just four shots in the second half of a win over Iowa State. “I’m not getting paid by any team, I’m not under -- my rights as a player are not under any (NBA) team.
No. 17 Oklahoma State completes sweep of No. 16 Oklahoma
“Cade just takes the pressure off the rest of us," Oklahoma State guard Bryce Williams said. Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton said Monday's scenario was strange. Oklahoma State rallied, and Rondel Walker's 3 finally put Oklahoma State ahead 32-30. Oklahoma State: The Cowboys are rising quickly and gaining confidence. Oklahoma State visits No.
Cunningham scores 40, Oklahoma St tops No. 7 Oklahoma in OT
Oklahoma State's freshman star scored 10 of his season-high 40 points in overtime to help the Cowboys defeat No. Now, the Cowboys will try to duplicate the performance — the teams will meet again on Monday at Oklahoma State. Harmon had 14 points at the break for Oklahoma while Cunningham had 13 for the Cowboys. AdA 3-pointer by Harmon pushed the edge to 10 at the start of the second half before Oklahoma State surged. With Oklahoma State up by two, Reaves drove and found Brady Manek for the tying layup with seven seconds to play in regulation.
Reaves lifts No. 12 Oklahoma over No. 14 WVU 91-90 in 2OT
14 West Virginia 91-90 on Saturday. Culver scored seven points in the second overtime to put West Virginia ahead 88-85 with 2:12 left. Reaves capped the scoring with a floater in the lane over McBride with 27 seconds left. West Virginia got it right back on a tie-up during the ensuing inbounds pass. AdAfter the ball went out of bounds again and West Virginia kept possession, McBride lofted a pass underneath the basket to Culver.
Harmon scores 18; No. 24 Oklahoma tops No. 9 Alabama
De'Vion Harmon scored 18 points to help No. I thought these guys (Oklahoma), they play hard to begin with, and then when they’re down two starters, they really bought in. “Anytime you can win a game like that is big from a resume standpoint, big from a confidence standpoint, momentum. A pair of free throws by Keon Ellis gave Alabama a 60-59 lead with just under four minutes to play. Alabama could take a significant hit with this loss, especially given the players Oklahoma was missing.
Butler scores 22, helps No. 1 Baylor beat Oklahoma 65-54
Baylor guard Jared Butler (12) drives around Oklahoma guard Alondes Williams (15) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Norman, Okla., Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2020. The sophomore guard scored 11 of his 22 points during a crucial five-minute stretch in the second half, and No. 1 Baylor beat Oklahoma 65-54 on Tuesday night for its Big 12-record 23rd consecutive win. Bears guard MaCio Teague, the team's leading scorer in Big 12 play, sat out for the second straight game with a wrist injury. "I was really pleased how our guys responded in the second half," Drew said.
Baylor up to No. 1, beats Oklahoma 61-57 for 15th win in row
(AP Photo/ Jerry Larson)WACO, Texas – Freddie Gillespie and the Baylor Bears can now say they have been No. You’ve got to win your homes games, and we did and that’s all that matters," coach Scott Drew said. Baylor (16-1, 6-0 Big 12) won its 15th game in a row, second only to No. Manek had 21 points to lead Oklahoma (12-6, 3-3), following up his career-high 31 points only two days earlier against TCU. Baylor: The Bears had never before won six consecutive Big 12 games in the same season.