From The Sports Desk: Cinderella’s Rough Weekend

2 hours ago

Entering yesterday afternoon, nan magic of nan NCAA Tournament seemed to beryllium connected life support. Through nan first 3 and a half days, location had been tons of blowouts and nary existent Cinderella stories. Then came 2 spectacular finishes: St. John’s beating Kansas astatine nan buzzer, and Iowa knocking disconnected No. 1 seed Florida, nan defending nationalist champs.

Just erstwhile we started to uncertainty … March Madness pulled america backmost in.

We dive into nan topsy-turvy first play of nan NCAA Tournament below, and our Rohan Nadkarni has much complete at NBC News. Stay tuned for much sum passim nan week, too, arsenic nan tourney rolls on.

Party Like it's 1999

For tons of assemblage hoops fans, what makes March Madness typical is nan seeming randomness of it. The mini schoolhouse that comes from nowhere. The subordinate who becomes a people hero. The Cinderella story. The emotion that thing tin hap successful immoderate fixed game.

A fewer days in, this year’s NCAA Tournament had been mostly lacking that element. More than one-third of nan first-round games ended arsenic blowouts, pinch a squad winning by 20 aliases much points. On Friday, nan favorites went a cleanable 16-0 for nan first clip since 1992, according to ESPN. Imagine that: a March Madness time pinch no madness.

What that near us, arsenic a consolation, was immoderate high-quality early information matchups betwixt powerfulness convention teams.

Like St. John’s vs. Kansas. Coach Rick Pitino vs. Bill Self. That crippled came down to nan ligament yesterday. St. John’s had nan ball, tied game, 3.9 seconds left. In nan huddle, defender Dylan Darling, who hadn’t made a changeable each game, asked for nan ball. Sure enough, Darling made a layup arsenic nan clip expired, sending St. John’s to its first Sweet 16 since 1999.

“The shot near my hands and I deed nan ground, and I didn’t moreover spot nan shot spell in,” Darling said. “I conscionable heard everybody going crazy.”

Later, No. 1 Florida looked arsenic if it mightiness skate by No. 9 Iowa, until nan Hawkeyes’ Alvaro Folgueiras deed a go-ahead, area 3-pointer pinch 4.5 seconds remaining. After he made nan shot, Folgueiras pointed to nan sky, arsenic is his tradition, to grant his precocious father.

After nan timepiece struck zero, and Iowa had secured its first Sweet Sixteen berth since 1999, Folgueiras recovered his mother successful nan crowd and hugged her. “This 1 is for her and my dad,” he said. “He’s watching up there.”

Iowa and St. John’s mightiness not beryllium your accepted Cinderella stories. But this year? We’ll return it.

(For much connected Cinderella’s hardships this year, read Nicole Auerbach over astatine NBC Sports.)

More Magic Moments

Before we move our attraction to nan Sweet Sixteen, let’s tally done immoderate moments you might’ve missed from nan weekend:

Tooth Fairy: On Friday, UCLA’s Skyy Clark was wrestling for a loose shot against nan University of Central Florida, erstwhile his beforehand bony sewage knocked out. Later that night, Clark went to spot a dentist. “I’m each bully now,” he told reporters nan adjacent day. “So outcry retired Dr. Goldfine. He sewage maine right. Took maine successful astatine for illustration 12:00 astatine night. Thank you to him.”

All that effort, and nan Bruins mislaid to UConn successful Round 2.

Timeout!: A chaotic series unfolded astatine nan extremity of nan Kentucky-Santa Clara game. Allen Graves deed a 3-pointer to put Santa Clara up pinch 2.4 seconds remaining. Then Santa Clara coach Herb Sendek tried calling timeout to group up nan team’s defense, but nan referees apparently missed it. Kentucky inbounded nan shot and Otega Oweh deed a occurrence changeable to nonstop nan crippled to overtime. After nan Wildcats won successful OT, Santa Clara was near wondering what-if.

Dominique Dimes: In nan Kansas-California Baptist game, each eyes were astir apt connected Darryn Peterson, nan early NBA draught pick, who scored 28 points successful his tourney debut. But nan Lancers’ Dominique Daniels Jr., a 5-foot-10 defender from Compton, California, scored 25 points himself. It was reminiscent of a clip erstwhile shorter guards could predominate assemblage basketball. “I conscionable doubled down connected who I americium and who God made maine to be,” Daniels said afterward.

Women's Bracket Roundup

Some of nan first and 2nd information women’s tourney games astir apt could’ve been called disconnected by halftime. Even immoderate of nan amended matchups turned into blowouts. No. 2 seed LSU walloped No. 7 Texas Tech by 54 points. No. 2 Michigan crushed No. 7 NC State by 29. No. 3 Duke hit No. 6 Baylor by 23.

But nan first play of women’s hoops did present immoderate highlights. On Saturday, No. 9 seed USC, playing without injured prima JuJu Watkins, hit No. 8 Clemson successful overtime 71-67. Jazzy Davidson, nan Trojans’ adjacent large star, had a breakout performance, tallying 31 points, six rebounds and 5 assists. The Watkins-Davidson duo will beryllium 1 to watch adjacent year.

Then yesterday, successful nan 2nd round, No. 4 Minnesota and No. 5 Ole Miss gave america different nail-biter. The Golden Gophers, playing connected their location court, made a fourth-quarter comeback and won connected a last-second jumper by Amaya Battle.

“I deliberation immoderate hoops player, erstwhile you sprout connected your own, you’re like, OK, three, two, one, propulsion it up location and spot what happens,” Battle said afterward. “It was existent life today.”

Later, No. 3 TCU besides outlasted No. 6 Washington, 62-59, successful overtime.

What We're Watching

Want much basketball? We person nan 2nd time of Round 2 from nan women’s tourney coming up tonight. After its thrilling triumph complete Clemson, USC is rewarded pinch … a lucifer against No. 1 South Carolina. Good luck, Trojans. Also, Vanderbilt’s Mikayla Blakes had 30 points against High Point successful Round 1.

All times are Eastern:

6 p.m.: No. 1 seed UConn vs. No. 9 Syracuse, connected ESPN
7 p.m.: No. 2 seed Vanderbilt vs. No. 7 Illinois, connected ESPN 2
8 p.m.: No. 1 seed South Carolina vs. No. 9 USC, connected ESPN
10 p.m.: No. 1 seed UCLA vs. No. 8 Oklahoma State, connected ESPN

What We're Reading

Tragic news successful nan NHL world arsenic Minnesota Wild newsman Jessi Pierce died successful a occurrence along pinch her 3 children and a dog.

Jessie Diggins, nan most-decorated cross-country skier successful U.S. history, finished 12th in her past race.

Arsenal’s disappointing capacity successful nan Carabao Cup last shows why nan Premier League title title isn’t over, NBC Sports’ Joe Prince-Wright says.