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March Madness 2022: Houston moves onto Sweet 16; Creighton stuns Iowa in upset
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The madness continues! Sunday’s slate of NCAA Tournament games will set the men’s Sweet 16 field, while day 1 of the second round starts for the women.
Three of the four No. 1 seeds (Stanford, Louisville, South Carolina) in the women’s bracket take the court and three double-digit seeds (Iowa State, Miami, Notre Dame) hope to continue their Cinderella stories on the men’s side.
Mike Krzyzewski and the No. 2 Duke Blue Devils look to further their postseason – which is Coach K’s final season at the helm – when they take on No. 7 Michigan State Sunday night. It will be the sixth time Krzyzewski and Tom Izzo have faced off in the NCAA Tournament.
NCAA Tournament on Sunday:Matchups, TV, streaming and odds for men’s and women’s second-round games
NCAA Tournament bracket:Follow March Madness
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Creighton stuns Iowa
A potential matchup circled by bracket forecasters last Sunday was South Carolina possibly facing Iowa in the women’s Elite Eight.
Of course, the two-seed Hawkeyes would need to get past the second round. And No. 10 seed Creighton had different plans.
The Blue Jays stunned Iowa inside a raucous, gold-clad Iowa-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday 64-62 to advance to the program’s first Sweet 16. Lauren Jensen, who transferred from Iowa after last season, led the way with 19 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 12.6 seconds remaining.
Monika Czinano had 27 points (11-for-14 from the field) but only two came in the fourth quarter and she went 1-for-6 in the final 10 minutes. Star Caitlin Clark (15 points) was mostly neutralized by the Blue Jays defense and also only had two points in the fourth quarter.
Iowa had three looks at the rim down two and a chance to send the game to overtime, but all three attempts came up short.
Houston’s coach celebrates shirtless
Kelvin Sampson and the Houston Cougars are going to their third consecutive men’s Sweet 16. The only appropriate way to celebrate? By popping off the top and having his players douse him with water, apparently.
Late tech call sinks Illinois
The officiating in college basketball has been an issue throughout this men’s NCAA Tournament, and that trend continued once again during Sunday’s second-round matchup between Illinois and Houston.
Officials basically penalized Illinois’ R.J. Melendez for protecting himself from a potentially horrific fall.
With a little less than nine minutes to go in the second half, Melendez broke free down court for a fast-break dunk to cut the deficit to four. Now, Melendez went quickly into his two-handed dunk and hung on the rim to let his momentum swing him back. It wasn’t an unsportsmanlike move, but the officials couldn’t help themselves.
They called Melendez for a technical foul for hanging on the rim. Houston closed out the game on a 22-11 run.
— Andrew Joseph, For The Win
Houston handles Illinois
The final score doesn’t indicate how close this men’s 4-5 matchup was, with Houston knocking off the higher-seeded and Big Ten regular season champion Illini, 68-53.
The Cougars used a late 11-0 run to pull away and advance to their third consecutive Sweet 16 under coach Kelvin Sampson. All but one point came from Houston’s starters. Taze Moore (21 points) and Jamal Shead (18 points) led the way.
Illinois’ season ended in the second round for the second straight season. Kofi Cockburn had 19 for the Illini.
Zags can go as far as Drew Timme can carry them
After a first half in which coach Mark Few said Memphis “got up into us and we were just running around the 3-point line,” Drew Timme — who had attempted only three shots the first half — got considerably more active and aggressive in the paint, and his teammates did their part to find him.
Timme, the junior forward, started the half on a tear, scoring 11 consecutive points to pull Gonzaga within striking distance. The WCC Player of the Year scored 21 second-half points on 9-of-13 shots, willing Gonzaga back from 10 points down and helping the Zags to an 82-78 win over 9th-seeded Memphis. With the victory, Gonzaga advanced to its seventh consecutive Sweet 16.
Going deeper, and maybe even to the program’s third Final Four? Well, that will come down to Timme and how far he can carry them.
— Lindsay Schnell
OPINION: Are you not entertained? If not, the problem isn’t women’s basketball. It’s you.
FUN FACTS ABOUT EVERY TOURNEY TEAM: From elephant races to blood shooting lizards
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Travel
Razzies royally torch 'Diana' musical and 'Space Jam 2,' show love to Oscar favorite Will Smith
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In its proclamation of the worst films of 2021, the Razzies lambasted a critically reviled Princess Diana musical and LeBron James’ “Space Jam” sequel, but spread love instead of hate for Will Smith.
The Golden Raspberry Awards, annually announced the day before the Academy Awards, bestowed five dishonors on Netflix’s “Diana: The Musical,” a filmed production of the recent Broadway show that closed after 33 performances. “Diana” beat out “Infinite,” “Karen,” “Space Jam: A New Legacy” and “The Woman in the Window” for worst picture, plus picked up worst screenplay and worst actress for star Jeanna de Waal.
“New Legacy,” the live-action/animated hybrid basketball comedy featuring James hooping it up with Bugs Bunny and Co., earned three Razzie awards. James was named worst actor and also was saddled with worst screen couple – which went to James and “Any Warner Cartoon Character (or WarnerMedia Product) He Dribbles On” – while the movie snagged worst sequel.
How to watch the 2022 Oscars:Everything you should know about Sunday’s Academy Awards
“House of Gucci” star Jared Leto lost his Screen Actors Guild race for best supporting actor but nabbed the Razzie for worst. And Bruce Willis does so many VOD movies now that he received his own special category (worst performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 movie) that, to no one’s surprise, he won – for “Cosmic Sin.”
Smith, who’s expected to win the best actor Oscar Sunday for “King Richard,” received this year’s Razzie Redeemer Award for previous Razzie honorees who’ve come back with quality efforts. Recent winners include Ben Affleck, Sylvester Stallone, Melissa McCarthy and Eddie Murphy.
The full list of this year’s Razzie “winners”:
Worst picture: “Diana: The Musical”
Worst actor: LeBron James, “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst actress: Jeanna de Waal, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst supporting actress: Judy Kaye, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst supporting actor: Jared Leto, “House of Gucci”
Worst performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 movie: Bruce Willis, “Cosmic Sin”
Worst screen couple: LeBron James and Any Warner Cartoon Character
(or WarnerMedia Product) He Dribbles On, “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst remake, rip-off or sequel: “Space Jam: A New Legacy”
Worst director: Christopher Ashley, “Diana: The Musical”
Worst screenplay: “Diana: The Musical”
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Business
As more marijuana dispensaries get targeted by robbers, SAFE Banking Act lingers in Congress
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A bill that could allow electronic transactions at weed dispensaries nationwide is again make its way through Congress but the SAFE Banking Act might not be the cure-all that supporters envision.
In over a decade of operating cannabis shops in Washington, Shea Hynes never once worried about his stores getting robbed at gun point – until recently: In a span of three weeks, his stores were robbed three different times at gun point.
Reports of armed robberies at cannabis dispensaries like Hynes’ have nearly doubled in the first quarter of this year compared with all of last year, according to data maintained by the Craft Cannabis Coalition. The group, which represents more than 50 stores in Washington, has recorded more than 65 armed robberies so far this year, compared with 35 in 2021 and 29 in 2020.
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CHICAGO — In a ridiculous coincidence, the Saint Peter’s Peacocks wrote NCAA Tournament history on National Peacock Day with a thrilling upset of Purdue.
The mid-major became the first-ever No. 15 seed to reach the Elite Eight, outdoing previous No. 15 seeds Oral Roberts (2021) and Florida Gulf Coast (2013). Exactly 0.8% of people picked the Peacocks to get this far, with the school from Jersey City, New Jersey, defying all odds. Is Saint Peter’s the best Cinderella of all time?
Meanwhile, the ACC is sitting pretty with three teams – Duke and now North Carolina and Miami (Fla.) – in the Elite Eight on the same day the Big Ten saw its last team go down.
A look at three key takeaways from Friday:
Saint Peter’s writes NCAA history
Coach Shaheen Holloway has this team playing inspired basketball, and now the Peacocks (22-11) are just one win from the Final Four. The best Cinderellas of the last two decades to reach Final Fours – George Mason in 2006, VCU in 2011, Loyola-Chicago (2018) all were double-digit seeded mid-majors. But none was as highly seeded as this Saint Peter’s team that’s now beaten No. 2 seed Kentucky, No. 7 Murray State and No. 3 Purdue.
WINNERS, LOSERS:Poised Saint Peter’s keeps the dream alive; bye-bye, Big Ten; hello, ACC
OPINION:Saint Peter’s embodies wackiness and uncertainty of this NCAA Tournament
ANALYSIS:Purdue’s loss leaves Big Ten shut out of Elite Eight. We could see this coming.
MORE:Legendary Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson: Coach K’s farewell tour ends Saturday
OPINION:Houston is leaving Phi Slama Jama in the 1980s for good
While other bracket-busting NCAA Tournament darlings of yesteryear have had flair (FGCU’s “Dunk City”) or a lovable fan (Loyola’s Sister Jean), this team from the MAAC is doing it with defense, namely with nine steals. In spite of being undersized against the Boilermakers, the Peacocks used aggressiveness and hustle to outduel their seemingly superior opponent behind 6-8 freshman Clarence Rubert and 6-7 junior Hassan Drame. Daryl Banks III (14 points) is the go-to scorer for Saint Peter’s, but Mr. Clutch has been guard Doug Edert (10 points) off the bench. One stat to note: a 19-for-21 clip from the free-throw line. What’s been most impressive is the Peacocks’ ability to stay hungry and poised under pressure, winning close games in all three NCAA Tournament matchups.
Blue-bloods show title potential
Duke and Villanova advanced on Thursday, and fellow blue-bloods Kansas and North Carolina will now join them in the Elite Eight. And yes, if both the Blue Devils and Tar Heels win Sunday, we could see them meet in the Final Four.
Ever since North Carolina embarrassed Duke in coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Heels have been red-hot – knocking out No. 1 Baylor in the previous game in overtime. That continued against a UCLA team that reached the Final Four last year and seemed destined to get back. Caleb Love was brilliant again, finishing with 30 points off six three-pointers. Armando Bacot’s tip-in with 22 seconds left sealed the win in another impressive outing for coach Hubert Davis’ resilient team.
The last remaining No. 1 in the NCAA Tournament, Kansas stayed alive, escaping Providence by five points. It’s coach Bill Self’s ninth trip to the Elite Eight with Kansas and 11th of his career, as the Jayhawks (31-6) are one win from the Final Four. They’ve now won eight in a row and are looking like a title contender after entering the NCAA Tourney having won the Big 12 tournament.
The secret weapon for Kansas has been guard Remy Martin. For the third consecutive tournament game, Kansas got a jolt off the bench from the fiery Martin (23 points), the Arizona State transfer who has erupted in these NCAAs after playing a reserve role throughout 2021-22.
ACC > Big Ten
Despite garnering nine NCAA Tournament bids on Selection Sunday – the most of any conference – the Big Ten is out following Purdue’s stunning exit vs. Saint Peter’s. The league tanked in the first two rounds, with No. 5 Iowa – the conference tourney champ – getting upset by Richmond in the first round. No. 3 Wisconsin, No. 4 Illinois, No. 7 Michigan State and No. 7 Ohio State all lost in the second round. And now, with Michigan’s loss to Villanova, the overall underachievement is on full display. That’s a 9-9 finish in the tournament.
No Big Ten team has cut down the nets since 2000 (the Spartans), and it’s a depressing outlook for the league that posted the second-best NET score in 2021-22 and showcased several teams with Final Four potential.
The ACC, which finished with the sixth-worst NET score as a league, has Duke, North Carolina and Miami all in the Elite Eight. That’s after the Tar Heels, Hurricanes and Notre Dame were all bubble teams in early March. The NCAA Tournament is about matchups and pathways. No matter how well the Big Ten did in the regular season, much like the Pac-12’s surprising finish last year, the ACC is well-positioned with three teams still alive and two of them title contenders.
Follow college basketball reporter Scott Gleeson on Twitter @ScottMGleeson.
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