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Sunday, December 22, 2024
Part 4 of our look back at Selection Sundays and NCAA Tournament bubbles over the last 35 years moves into a new decade with our review of 2000-04. Strength of schedule becomes king, Barry Hinson has his first notable snub, and Butler in 2002 and Utah State in 2004 beg the question of just how much do teams like them need to win to get a bid.
Cincinnati won a big road game that by all rights, they should have lost, including what happened before the game. Plus the tight race continues out west, a new leader in the CAA, and now there’s no mystery in a couple of recent Big Ten stories.
The battle of the Cougars in Houston had the best ending of the night. Plus the Backyard Brawl is decisive, a transfer case is settled, and another school appeals its NCAA punishment.
Opening night was as good as advertised, led by the big doubleheader in New York where the nightcap belonged to one freshman in particular. Plus a few road wins lead some close ones, a couple of mild surprises, and some major league blowouts with non-Division I schools.
A string of remarkable parity in the Big West Conference this decade was snapped by UC Irvine, which had a huge season and has emerged as the league’s top program.
After a quiet Thursday, upsets came into play in a noticeable way on Friday. Plus a couple of top seeds get a push for a while, Buffalo owns a state on the hardwood, and the SEC leads the way in coaching changes.
The Pac-12 champions were expected to have a chance at that before the season, though not quite in the fashion they did it. Plus championship games rule the day, a few more semifinals set the stage, and one more coaching change.
A number of teams clinched hard-earned conference titles Thursday night, worthy achievements that deserve more notice than they sometimes receive. Also, the OVC race goes to the wire, and oh, the Pac-12…
A tense, terrific, every-possession-counts battle saw Cincinnati rally to edge UCF on Thursday. Plus, Chris Clemons & Mike Daum climb the scoring lists, San Francisco with a huge road comeback, Michigan makes it look easy & more.
A Big 12 team that has come back to earth in conference play almost suffered a devastating loss on Wednesday – almost. Plus a historic Big East start, road wins in the Big Ten, and a busy night of movement in the Atlantic 10.
