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Late Night Snacks: No. 2 Wichita State remains undefeated, Harvard punches its ticket

marshall

GAME OF THE NIGHT: Eastern Kentucky 86, Murray State 83

Eastern Kentucky managed to hold on despite having to deal with second half foul trouble, beating the Racers by three in an OVC tournament semifinal. Corey Walden led five Colonels in double figures with 24 points, and as a team EKU shot 59.3% from the field. Cameron Payne led the Racers with 24 points, but they fell just short of setting up a title game rematch with Belmont. Instead it’s EKU who will play the Bruins, and the two teams split the regular season series.

IMPORTANT OUTCOMES

1) Harvard 70, Yale 58

Tommy Amaker’s Crimson become the first team to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament field, getting off to a 16-2 start to beat the Bulldogs in New Haven. Siyani Chambers led the way with 17 points and six assists, and Yale players other than Justin Sears (28 points, 13 rebounds) combined to shoot 7-for-34 from the field.

2) No. 2 Wichita State 80, Evansville 58

The Shockers moved to 32-0 with a comfortable win over Evansville in the Missouri Valley Conference quarterfinals. Ron Baker and Cleanthony Early scored 17 points apiece to lead the way, and outside of D.J. Balentine (31 points) Wichita State clamped down on the Purple Aces defensively. Next up for Wichita State is Missouri State, who held off Illinois State in a low-scoring affair (53-48).

3) Western Michigan 78, Central Michigan 64

With Toledo’s performance in non-conference play and the fact that the East Division has dominated the MAC in recent years, Steve Hawkins’ Western Michigan team hasn’t received as much attention as they deserve this season. On Friday night the Broncos clinched a share of the MAC regular season title and the top seed in next week’s conference tournament, with all five starters reaching double figures. David Brown led the way with 17 points.

STARRED

1) D.J. Cunningham (UNC Asheville)

Cunningham scored 18 points (8-for-10 FG), grabbed 19 rebounds and blocked two shots in the Bulldogs’ 96-87 win over Radford to advance to the Big South semis.

2) Desmar Jackson (Southern Illinois)

Scored 23 points (8-for-14 FG), grabbed 11 rebounds while also racking up six steals in the Salukis’ 63-58 win over Northern Iowa in a Missouri Valley Conference quarterfinal.

3) Justin Sears (Yale)

Sears made 11 of his 16 shots from the field, finishing with 28 points and 13 rebounds in a 70-58 loss to Harvard.

STRUGGLED

1) Javier Duren (Yale)

Missed all eleven of his shots from the field in the Yale’s 70-58 loss to Harvard.

2) Duke Mondy (Oakland)

Shot 1-for-8 from the field, accounting for five points and three turnovers in the Golden Grizzlies’ 73-57 loss to Wright State in a Horizon League quarterfinal.

3) Illinois State’s starters

The Redbirds’ starters combined to shoot 6-for-29 in their 53-48 loss to Missouri State in a Missouri Valley Conference quarterfinal. Zach Lofton scored 25 points off the bench for Illinois State.

CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS


  • Big South: Winthrop eliminates regular season champ High Point
    Andre Smith’s three-pointer with five tenths of a second remaining gave the Eagles the 62-60 win over the regular season champion Panthers. The result means that High Point will be headed to the Postseason NIT. The other winners on Friday were UNC Asheville, Coastal Carolina (in double overtime) and VMI.
  • CAA: Hofstra holds off UNCW
    Just one game in the CAA Friday night, with Hofstra beating UNCW 78-70. The Pride, who face regular season champion Delaware on Saturday, were led offensively by Zeke Upshaw. Upshaw was one of three starters to play all 40 minutes, finishing the game with 22 points and three assists.
  • Horizon League: Milwaukee knocks off Valparaiso
    Milwaukee took care of Valparaiso, 74-57, setting up a semifinal matchup with rival and Horizon League regular season champ Green Bay. Jordan Aaron scored 20 points and Matt Tiby added 18 for the Panthers, who finished the season 7-9 in conference play. Also advancing to the semis was Wright State, who will play Cleveland State after beating Oakland 73-57.
  • Missouri Valley: Desmar Jackson propels Southern Illinois past Northern Iowa
    Desmar Jackson scored 20 of his 23 points in the first half, pushing the Salukis out to a 36-18 halftime lead. UNI was able to fight their way back into the game due in part to the use of a triangle-and-2 defense, but SIU made the big plays late to hang on for the 63-58 win. They advance to play Indiana State in the semis, with the Sycamores beating Loyola (IL) 75-62.
  • OVC: Belmont coasts to title game
    Belmont advance to the OVC title game for the second consecutive season with an 86-63 win over Morehead State. OVC Player of the Year J.J. Mann scored 16 points to lead five Bruins in double figures.
  • SoCon: The Citadel upsets UNCG
    The Citadel won just two conference games this season, but that didn’t stop the Bulldogs from knocking off UNCG 86-76 to advance to the SoCon quarters.Ashton Moore scored 24 points and Matt Van Scyoc added 20 for The Citadel, who will play Wofford on Saturday. The other winners on Friday were Samford and Georgia Southern.

NOTABLES


  • Utah Valley won the WAC regular season title outright with a 64-55 win over Bakersfield. Dick Hunsaker’s team had already locked up the top seed in next week’s conference tournament, and at the very least they’ll be headed to the NIT after the conference tournament.
  • Akron won its 20th game of the season, holding off rival Kent State 58-54. Keith Dambrot’s Zips locked up the four-seed in next week’s conference tournament with the win.
  • Columbia handled Penn 74-55, winning their 19th game of the season.

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