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The day before the Hofstra Pride played its first NCAA tournament game in 25 years against the Alabama Crimson Tide, head coach Craig “Speedy” Claxton showed up to a media press conference in Tampa wearing a custom-made black hoodie with a white Hofstra logo and the words “THE GUARDFATHER” inscribed on the front. The first […]
There are no mid-majors in the Sweet 16 in both the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournaments for a second straight year. We know it’s been bad. But how does this trend stack up over the last 20 postseasons? This year’s men’s tournament saw four teams advance to the round of 32. Last year had five. […]
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NCAA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Mid-Major fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys. There are just eight teams remaining in the NIT, and SEVEN of them are mid-majors. Plus, […]
While the number of head coaches who wore suits for first-weekend action is lower than it should be, in Sunday’s late window, Dan Hurley and Nate Oats wrapped up the first and second rounds in blazers, which provided a nice, old-school conclusion to the week. Here is a recap of how the best-dressed head coaches […]
No mid-majors left in the NCAA Tournament? No problem. We still have men’s mid-major postseason action in a different form as the National Invitation Tournament has blessed us with a final eight that includes seven mid-major squads. As we look into the quarterfinals starting Tuesday, let’s preview all of the matchups headed into the final […]
Once again there are zero mid-majors in the Sweet 16, but that doesn’t mean we can’t grasp at straws here. Iowa, led by former Drake head coach Ben McCollum, knocked off reigning national champion Florida 73-72 Sunday to advance to the program’s first Sweet 16 since 1999. McCollum spent one year at Drake and went […]
PHILADELPHIA — The national media told you that Miami was controversial. The national media told you that Miami was something to plant your flag and pick a side on. And even though many of the voices were on the right side, defending the RedHawks as an NCAA Tournament team, to even acknowledge a debate is […]
PHILADELPHIA – To the naked eye, Bob Richey and Dan Hurley may not have a lot in common. Hurley comes from basketball royalty, the son of a Hall of Fame high school coach in New Jersey and playing his college basketball at Seton Hall in the Big East. He’s grown up out of the shadows […]
Hofstra’s meteoric season came to an end on Friday, as the Pride gave Alabama all they could handle for 30-plus minutes before running out of gas against the deeper, more athletic, hot-shooting Crimson Tide. The Pride earned a 13-seed in the NCAA Tournament after a thrilling CAA Tournament where they blew the doors off William […]
No. 14 Wright State fell in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to No. 3 Virginia, 82-73, after a spirited upset effort that put the nation on notice. The young Raiders turned the Cavaliers over, made tough shots, and competed on the glass all afternoon to stay in the game from end-to-end, showing poise […]
Two summers ago, Dominique Daniels Jr. had a ton of options. The 5-foot-10-inch point guard had just completed an electric first year at Cal Baptist after two years at San Bernardino Valley College; at 19 points a game, he was the second-highest scorer in the conference. Cal Baptist was on an upward trajectory, and he […]
The clips are everywhere this time of year, especially this year, now that it’s the 10-year anniversary of Northern Iowa’s most recent NCAA Tournament appearance. There’s the most well-known one, Paul Jesperson hitting the half-court prayer to beat Texas in the first round that year. And then there’s the more painful one, blowing a 12-point […]
So close. No. 10 Santa Clara bowed out in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, 89-84, to No. 7 Kentucky in overtime in a game that featured 20 lead changes and a dozen ties. This season marked the Broncos’ first trip to the NCAA Tournament in 30 years and the first trip to the […]
PHILADELPHIA – You almost couldn’t write a better NCAA Tournament script for the brother tandem of Cole and Cooper Bowser than opening the NCAA Tournament in the City of Brotherly Love on Friday night, when the No. 15 Furman Paladins take on the No. 2 seed UConn Huskies in the opening round of the NCAA […]
In a college basketball landscape that is continually favoring the power conference team behind their big budgets and grand allure, the room for mid-majors seems to be shortening. Yet, all fans still love a good Cinderella. In a recent SBNation Reacts poll, fans overwhelmingly voted that at there would be one or two teams at […]
Justice Shoats, Gavin Doty, Brendan Coyle, Francis Folefac and Riley Mulvey. Those five, and those five only. That’s all Gerry McNamara and the Siena coaching staff were going to ride with on Thursday. And those five gave the Saints’ faithful and the entire country a heck of a lot to cheer for in Greenville. For […]
GREENVILLE, S.C. — With 15 minutes left in the second half of the North Carolina-VCU first-round NCAA Tournament game, Seth Trimble stole the ball from Terrence Hill Jr. and sped down the court for a fast-break layup, giving the Tar Heels a 56-37 lead. That had been the story of the game up until that […]
PHILADELPHIA – Ryan Odom made his name as a head coach delivering the biggest upset in the history of the NCAA Tournament, when his UMBC Retrievers became the first 16-seed to beat a No. 1 seed, defeating Tony Bennett’s Virginia Cavaliers. Eight years later, Odom is the head coach of Virginia, the very team he […]
Akron – Tavari Johnson A two-time All-MAC selection, a top-30 scorer in the nation and one of the league’s top defensive talents, 5-foot-11 Tavari Johnson is as scrappy as they come. Not only did he lead Akron in points and assists this season, but he’s 118th in the country in true shooting percentage by KenPom’s […]
Last year, the High Point Panthers’ men’s basketball program reached a new high point. It made it to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. But that was then. There’s a new zenith right now. HPU notched a 83-82 comeback upset win over Wisconsin in Portland on Thursday afternoon for the program’s […]
It’s March Madness time, and there are some sensational players on the mid-major teams in the field. Here is one player to watch on each squad. Region 1 — Fort Worth UTSA: Cheyenne Rowe The senior forward leads the Roadrunners by averaging 14 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. Western Illinois: Mia Nicastro The junior forward from […]
We’ve all wondered since UNLV last won a national championship as a mid-major in 1990, when it would happen again. Mid-majors have come close – Butler in 2010 and 2011, Wichita State in 2013, San Diego State three years ago – but haven’t gone all the way yet. What if we already knew we were […]
The Horizon League champion Wright State Raiders will call the City of Brotherly Love home this week. Head coach Clint Sargent’s team earned a No. 14 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will meet No. 3 Virginia on Friday in Philadelphia. Wright State currently stands as a just under 20-point underdog, the kind of margin […]
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NCAA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Mid-Major fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys. Cinderella is dead. Or is it? Last year was historically bad for mid-major teams, with none […]
Led by National Player of the Year Cam Boozer, Duke lost two games all year by a combined four points and will have Patrick Ngongba back after missing the last four games. With a thin rotation made even thinner late in the year, Siena’s star guards Justice Shoats and Gavin Doty have stepped up in […]