Midwest Region – First Round: No. 2 Georgetown shut down No. 10 Maryland-Baltimore County 66-47 to move into the second round against Davidson. The Hoyas’ defense held the Retrievers to 32.7 percent shooting from the field. UMBC hit eight three-pointers to avoid an embarrassing blowout, but the Retrievers could not handle Georgetown’s experience and height. Seniors Jonathan Wallace and Roy Hibbert scored 13 apiece to lead Georgetown, which had four players reach double figures in scoring. Georgetown also hit three-pointers and shot 51 percent from the field.
No. 13 Siena became the second 13-seed to win in Tampa today, following in the footsteps of San Diego against Connecticut earlier this afternoon. The Saints squashed No. 4 Vanderbilt 83-62 by preventing the Commodores from hitting three-pointers. Vanderbilt was only 4-of-20 from three-point range, and senior guard Shan Foster was only 1-of-5 from long range to finish with 13 points. Junior guard Kenny Hasbrouck led the Saints with 30 points on 9-of-14 shooting. He was a perfect 10-of-10 from the free throw line, and Siena was 22-of-25 from the line to help the Saints hold off a Vanderbilt team that struggled at times to score. Siena will play Villanova next.
Tampa Turmoil delivered the final surprise of the day as No. 12 Villanova erased an 18-point first-half hole to upset No. 5 Clemson 75-60, the fourth double-digit seed to upset a team in Tampa today. Coach Jay Wright coined the term Tampa Turmoil after the game to explain the madness occurring in Florida. Sophomore sharpshooter Scottie Reynolds caught fire at the right time to lead the Wildcats with 21 points and hit four three-pointers. Clemson’s free throw shooting woes helped Villanova come back as the Tigers hit only 14-of-23 attempts.
No. 10 Davidson and sophomore sharpshooter Stephen Curry ousted No. 7 Gonzaga 82-76, rallying from an 11-point hole behind Curry’s 40 points. Curry broke a tie with a three-pointer in the final minute, and the Wildcats held off the Bulldogs at the free throw line. Gonzaga contained Curry in the first half, holding him to 10 points, but he exploded in the second half for 30, finishing 8-of-11 from three-point range.
[3/21/08]
