Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Late Afternoon Snacks: Philly Friday is 2-0 for city teams so far

La Salle v Kansas State

KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 22: Angel Rodriguez #13 of the Kansas State Wildcats shoots against Jerrell Wright #25 and Sam Mills #10 of the La Salle Explorers in the second half during the second round of the 2013 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at the Sprint Center on March 22, 2013 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Game of the Day

No. 13 La Salle 63, No. 4 Kansas State 61: I’m a firm believer that there can only be one game of the day, and I chose this one because the Explorers were the biggest underdogs of the day, having started out in the First Four, and because they beat Kansas State in front of what was, essentially, a home crowd in Kansas City. The Explorers have found their way to the day’s other upset darlings, Ole Miss. They’ll meet Marshall Henderson and company in the round of 32.

Meaningful Results

No. 7 Creighton 67, No. 10 Cincinnati: This was a close game, but the higher-seeded team won in the end. The Bearcats had four players in double figures, but Creighton had Ethan Wragge bombing away from outside, where he hit 4-5 treys and left room inside for big Doug McDermott to operate. I highly suggest you click the link, because Rob Dauster thinks the Bluejays can take down Duke in the next round.

No. 9 Temple 76, No. 8 NC State 72: Rarely have we seen a team exhibit such defensive indifference (thanks for the phrase, Raph) in such an important game. The Wolfpack played the toreador defense and couldn’t win a close game because they lacked a matador when things got tough. Temple will need more than that against likely next-round foe Indiana, but a win is a win.

No. 12 Ole Miss 57, No. 5 Wisconsin 47: Marshall Henderson declared his intentions to go out and gain the attention of professional basketball scouts today, and he did. First, he did it in negative fashion, as he bombed his way to a 1-13 first half. The willing tourney villain recovered somewhat in the second half and ended up with 19 points as the Rebel Black Bears advanced to play the K-State/La Salle winner.

No. 2 Miami 78, No. 15 Pacific 49: The Hurricanes had on painfully-bright yellow and orange shoes in this one, but they blinded the Pacific Tigers with stellar play, not footwear. Durand Scott and Shane Larkin proved that they are one of the best backcourts in the tournament, and a true danger to make a long run.

No. 2 Duke 73, No. 15 Albany 61: The Dukies may not have dominated Albany, but they still showed they have all the pieces necessary to win a title. Duke advances to face Creighton.

Starred

Khalif Wyatt, Temple: Wyatt took his “Old Man Guard” game and advanced to the next round over the sleek, high-flying Wolfpack. Wyatt was good for 31 points and 5 boards in the win.

Seth Curry, Duke: Against the smaller Great Danes, Curry was able to use all of his arsenal, including some drives to the hoop. He even banked in a long three, which amused the pun-happy amongst us, since it happened in Wells Fargo Center. Curry ended up with 26 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Doug McDermott, Creighton: McDermott had 27 points and 11 rebounds, and was remarkably efficient along the way. He hit 50 percent of his three-pointers and all of his free throws to help the Bluejays hold off Cincy.

Struggled

Roman Banks, Southern: The head coach of the Southern Jaguars was so proud of the effort his kids put in, that he couldn’t contain his emotions in the post-game press conference. We feel you, big guy.

NC State’s defense: The stats show that the Wolfpack didn’t put in much effort - the Owls had a high shooting percentage, and only lost five turnovers all game long - but you really had to watch the game to see just how thoroughly dis-interested NCSU seemed in the whole process of stopping opposing scorers.

Hofstra and Furman: Both programs said goodbye to head coaches, as Jeff Jackson resigned under pressure and Mo Cassara was outright fired after a terrible season on and off the court.

Eric Angevine is the editor of Storming the Floor. He tweets @stfhoops.