The 2021 men’s college basketball championships continued on Saturday with four regional semifinal matchups. A couple of Cinderella teams saw their stories come to an end, a No. 1 seed clinched its first trip to the regional finals in almost a decade, and one game came down to a shot at the final buzzer.
No. 3 – Arkansas vs. No. 15 – Oral Roberts
FINAL: 72-70 – Arkansas
No. 15 seed Oral Roberts was a last-second three-pointer away from becoming the first 15th-seeded team to reach the regional finals in tournament history. Max Abmas, one of the best scorers and three-point shooters in the country this season, got a clean look off at the buzzer to win the game, but his shot bounced high off the rim and out, and No. 3 seed Arkansas was able to run off and celebrate.
Oral Roberts looked like it was on its way to making history for a good portion of the game. After taking a 35-28 advantage into the locker room at halftime, Oral Roberts extended its lead to as much as 12 points in the second half.
Arkansas clawed its way back, but for a while, couldn’t manage to pull ahead. A layup from Jalen Tate with 5:02 to go gave Arkansas a 62-60 lead, its first since the 8:48-mark of the first half.
Kevin Obanor knocked down a free throw to put Oral Roberts ahead, 69-68, with under two minutes to play. Tate quickly responded with another jumper, putting Arkansas back in front by one. A foul on Moses Moody sent Oral Roberts’ Francis Lacis to the free-throw line with 0:36 on the clock. After missing his first shot, Lacis tied the game by making the second. Davonte Davis hit the go-ahead jump shot with four seconds left to give Arkansas a 72-70 lead.
Tate led Arkansas with 22 points and six assists, shooting 9-for-17 from the floor. Justin Smith grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds and added 12 points to finish with a double-double. Davis scored the second-most points for Arkansas, finishing with 16, along with eight rebounds. Moody finished in double figures as well, scoring 14 points despite a 4-for-20 shooting performance.
Abmas scored a game-high 25 points on 8-of-19 shooting (3-for-8 from three-point range) to lead Oral Roberts. Kevin Obanor registered a double-double for a third-consecutive tournament game, finishing with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Both Abmas and Obanor played the entire 40 minutes as well.
The thrilling win puts Arkansas in the regional finals for the first time since 1995. It's also Arkansas’ 10th comeback victory this year when trailing by double digits.
Arkansas will face No. 1 seed Baylor in the South Regional finals on Monday, March 29.
No. 1 – Baylor vs. No. 5 – Villanova
FINAL: 62-51 – Baylor
No. 1 seed Baylor battled its way past No. 5 seed Villanova to advance to clinch a spot in the regional finals, despite a slow start and rough three-point shooting performance.
The South Region’s top-seeded team scored just 23 points in the first half and trailed by seven at the midway break. Baylor shot just 3-for-19 from behind the arc (15.8%), going an abysmal 2-for-12 in the opening period. However, Baylor adjusted, and attacked the paint in the second half. Baylor shot just over 44% (26-for-59) for the game, but shot 53% in the final 20 minutes.
Baylor went on a 14-2 run midway through the second half to take a 47-41 lead, and, ultimately, control of the game. Baylor’s defense had as much of a turnaround as the offense, holding Villanova to just 21 points on 37.5% shooting, along with an 0-for-9 showing from three, in the second half. Baylor out-scored Villanova 23-10 over the final 11:31 and forced 16 turnovers in the game.
Adam Flagler led Baylor in scoring with 16 points, shooting 4-for-6 from the floor and 6-for-6 from the free-throw-line. Davion Mitchell was the only other Baylor player to finish in double figures, scoring 14 points. Mark Vital grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, while also adding six points.
Baylor’s matchup against No. 3 seed Arkansas on Monday, March 29, will be its first appearance in a regional final since 2012.
No. 8 – Loyola Chicago vs. No. 12 – Oregon State
FINAL: 65-58 – Oregon State
After a slow, low-scoring first half, No. 12 seed Oregon State bested No. 8 seed Loyola Chicago, 65-58; ending the latter’s postseason run.
Oregon State got off to a poor start offensively; but so did Loyola Chicago. The latter didn’t score for the final 5:48 of the first half, and Oregon State was able to take a 24-16 advantage into halftime. Oregon State was able to stretch its lead to 13 points in the second half before Loyola Chicago made things interesting in the final minutes.
Aher Uguak cut Loyola Chicago’s deficit to three with 3:31 left, hitting a layup to make it 47-44. A couple of jumpers from Jarod Lucas and free throws helped Oregon State secure the win. Lucas practically sealed the victory with a three-pointer that gave Oregon State a 56-49 lead with 1:12 left.
Ethan Thompson led Oregon State with 22 points and hit four of his eight free throws in the last minute to help secure the win. Thompson also tied for a team lead in assists with four and added four rebounds. Warith Alatishe finished with a double-double for Oregon State, scoring 10 points and grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds.
For Loyola Chicago, senior Cameron Krutwig led the way with a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double. Loyola Chicago’s shooting came up short all afternoon, especially down the final stretch when it tried to make a comeback. Oregon State held its opposition to just 33.3% shooting overall (18-for-54) and 21.7% from three (5-for-23).
Oregon State will face No. 2 seed Houston in the Midwest Regional finals on Monday, March 29. The matchup will be Oregon State’s first official appearance in a regional final since 1966; its last trip in 1982 has since been vacated.
No. 2 – Houston vs. No. 11 – Syracuse
FINAL: 62-46 – Houston
No. 2 seed Houston got out to a fast start and then finished strong, advancing past No. 11 seed Syracuse, 62-46.
Houston took command of the game early, jumping out to a 10-2 lead in the first six minutes. Syracuse tied the game, 20-20, with around five minutes left in the first half, thanks to a trio of free throws from Buddy Boeheim. Houston answered with a 10-0 run to close the period, taking a 30-20 lead into the locker room.
Syracuse’s deficit grew to as much as 12 early in the second half. Boeheim hit his first three-pointer of the game with 15:41 to go, pulling Syracuse back within nine. Boeheim’s shot sparked a small run from his team, as Syracuse cut it to 41-37, Houston, with 12:42 left.
Once again, Houston answered. The No. 2 seed went on a 9-2 run, not allowing a Syracuse field goal for over seven minutes. DeJon Jarreau came up with a steal and threw down a thunderous dunk, giving Houston a 58-43 lead with 3:09 to go; its largest of the night at that point – it would grow to as much as 17 in the final minutes.
Quentin Grimes led Houston with 14 points. Justin Gorham finished with a double-double, scoring 13 points and recording a game-high 10 rebounds. Marcus Sasser added 12 points, while also finishing with a game-high four steals.
Boeheim, whose three-point shooting helped spearhead Syracuse’s offense through the first two rounds, was ice cold, scoring 12 points on 3-of-13 shooting and going just 1-for-9 from behind the arc. As a team, Syracuse shot 28% overall (14-for-50) and 21.7% from three (5-for-23).
Houston will make its first regional final appearance since 1984 on Monday, March 29. No. 12 seed Oregon State will be Houston’s fourth double digit-seeded opponent in this tournament, making Houston the first team in history to ever face four double digit seeds in a single year.
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Tournament action continues on Sunday, March 28, with the second day of the regional semifinals. The first of four games, No. 1 seed Gonzaga vs. No. 5 seed Creighton, is set to tip-off at 2:10 p.m. ET. The final matchup of the day, No. 6 seed Southern California vs. No. 7 seed Oregon, is scheduled to start at 9:45 p.m. ET.
Coverage on Sunday of the men’s college basketball championships will be available on WGR, starting at 2 p.m. ET.
