Friday marked the return of the NCAA Tournament to Greenville. It is the first time the Upstate has had the tournament since 2017. Friday's slate featured four games, two of which went as expected with the favorites cruising. The others were compelling down to the wire games that had combined total margin of 3 points.
2 seed Auburn out of the Midwest Region opened the dat taking on 15 seed Jacksonville State. The Tigers took care of business as expected downing JSU 80-61. Auburn took control early and jumped out to a double digit halftime lead of 39-27. Auburn held JSU to 31% shooting on the day, including 32% from three. An encouraging sign for Auburn fans was the fact they shot the 3 pointer a touch better than they had late in the season. The Tigers hit 35% of their threes Friday which was an improvement from their late season shooting swoon. Jabari Smith and Walker Kessler proved to be too much for the outmanned Gamecocks. Smith had a team high 20 points and game high 14 boards, Kessler had a baker's dozen and grabbed 10 rebounds. Auburn had 4 in double figures, 5 with 9 or more. Their ball movement was tremendous as they dished out 23 assists as a team on 28 made field goals.
The day's 2nd game was a battle that came down to the wire between Southern Cal and Miami. The Hurricanes edged So. Cal 68-66 after the Trojans had a really slow start. Miami built a 31-20 halftime lead thanks in large part to forcing 12 1st half turnovers. So. Cal clawed their way back and made the game compelling. A couple of questionable late calls went against Southern Cal and Coach Andy Enfield had plenty to say about that in the postgame press conference. The Hurricanes were able to hang out despite shooting an abysmal 1 of 14 from deep. Miami got a star-like performance from Guard Isaiah Wong who had a game high 22. Trojan Guard Drew Peterson did what he could to bring them back scoring 8 of his 17 in the final minute of the game, but it was too little too late. Miami spoiled the homecoming of Trojan Forward Chevez Goodwin, a Columbia Native who played at both Wofford and College Of Charleston before heading to Hollywood. Goodwin had a solid performance though as he had 10 points and 6 boards in 27 minutes.
The night session featured the first song of the last dance for the legendary Coach K. As expected, Duke had no trouble with Cal-State Fullerton downing them 78-61. Duke star Paolo Banchero looked the part of a projected top 3 NBA pick. The Freshman had 8 points in the first 4 minutes and finished with a double-double of 17 and 10. He was one of five Blue Devils in double figures in the game. Wendell Moore had a complete performance of 13 points, 6 boards and 6 assists. Duke shot it and shared it well, hitting 41% from downtown and dishing out 21 assists on 30 makes.
The nightcap was a back and forth thrill ride, as Michigan State edged Davidson 74-73. The Wildcats led for most of the 2nd half but Michigan State would go a tear late. The Spartans closed the game on a 19-6 run to take the win. Joey Hauser had a career high for Michigan State with 27, he also grabbed 8 rebounds to led the way. AJ Hoggard had 14 and Gabe Brown added a dozen. Davidson got a team high 18 from Luka Brajkovic, they had three others in double figures. The Wildcats were just unable to close the game out as Michigan State would not go quietly.
Sunday's two games at the Well will both be for a spot in the round of 16. Duke and Michigan State will meet in a matchup of the two great coaches in the game. Coach K and Tom Izzo have a combined 20 Final Fours and 6 National Titles. Izzo's resume features 3 straight Final Fours from 1999-2001 and back-to-back appearances in 2009 and 2010. Coach K has 5 National Titles to his name and 12 Final Fours, he had stretch of 6 appearances in 7 years between 1988 and 1994. Duke and Michigan State will square of at 5:15 Sunday evening. Auburn will take on Miami, that game is set for a 7:45 tipoff. Coach Jim Larranga will look to rekindle the magic he had in 2006 when he led George Mason to their only Final Four appearance in program history. Bruce Pearl will look to lead Auburn to its 2nd Final Four in 4 years, after taking them there in 2019. You can hear Westwood One's coverage of the NCAA Tournament on ESPN Upstate.
