The first round of the NCAA March Madness has wrapped up. Upsets, buzzer-beaters and and soul-crushing bracket busters were plentiful, creating a memorable first round. If you missed any of the highly exciting action here is a game by game recap.
The Obvious Blowouts
BUDDY HIELD of the Oklahoma Sooners.
Kansas - 105 Austin Peay - 79
The overall number one seed takes care of business easily.
Villanova - 86 UNC Asheville - 56
Boring and solid Villanova beats boring and bad UNC-Asheville. No one is surprised, no one really cares.
Oregon - 91 Holy Cross - 52
Oregon beats the team with a regular season losing record Holy Cross. Yes Holy Cross made the tournament with a 15-19 record. Again no one is surprised.
Texas A&M - 92 Green Bay - 65
A&M's size is too much for the run and gun Phoenix squad.
Oklahoma - 82 CSU Bakersfield - 68
My beloved Sooners and the sensational BUDDY HIELD handle their first round opponent. Hopefully, the first step of a championship season.
North Carolina - 83 Florida Gulf Coast - 67
The very talented Tar Heels look like a strong contender against FGCU.
Indiana - 99 Chattanooga - 74
Yogi Ferrell puts up a double-double as the Hoosiers look to make a tournament deep run.
Kentucky - 85 Stony Brook - 57
Kentucky's starting five all score double digits, and the Wildcats look to be in good shape to make it deep into the tourney. Again.
Xavier - 71 Weber State - 53
Again, boring and solid beats the nobodies.
Virginia - 81 Hampton - 45
After Virginia coach Tony Bennett tok a scary fall during the game, (he came back later fine) Virginia cruised past Hampton.
Iowa State - 94 Iona - 81
Iowa State's starters all score double digits and Georges Niang puts up 28 as Iowa show off their high powered offense.
Utah - 80 Fresno State - 69
Utah's All-American Jakob Poeltl puts up 16 points and 18 rebounds as Utah handles Fresno State.
In summary: The good teams beat the bad teams.
The Close Calls
Super-villian Marshall Plumlee of the Duke Blue Devils.
Maryland - 79 South Dakota State - 74
The very talented Maryland team seemed to have this one wrapped up, but a late game surge by SDSU challenged the Terrapins.
Miami - 79 Buffalo - 72
Miami's Angel Rodriguez hopes to restore the Hurricane's name to its former glory by leading Miami to a deep tournament run.
Duke - 93 UNC-Wilmington - 85
Duke looked very shaky against the Wilmington press, but thanks to the inspired play of Marshall Plumlee, a product of the secret US government project "Operation Gritty Clones," the Blue Devils were able to advance.
The Toss-Ups
UConn - 74 Colorado - 67
Daniel Hamilton did his best Kemba Walker/Shabazz Napier impression, and led the Huskies past Colorado. Will UConn be able to make another tournament run?
Wichita State - 65 Arizona - 55
The Shockers look to electrify the world once again, and make a late run in the tourney.
VCU - 75 Oregon State - 67
VCU kept three Oregon State starters to six or less points, while JeQuan Lewis had 21 points, seven rebounds and eight assists led the Rams to their victory.
Notre Dame - 70 Michigan - 63
Michigan blew an early lead as V.J. Beachem had an important role scoring 18 to lead the Fighting Irish to day after St. Patricks Day win.
Wisconsin - 47 Pitt - 43
The pitifully low scoring affair provided the sloppy game play and missed shots basketball fans are sure to hate.
Butler - 71 Texas Tech - 61
Everyone's favorite underdog looks to keep dancing, as Butler defeats Texas Tech.
Gonzaga - 68 Seton Hall - 52
Son of legendary Lithuanian basketball player Arvydas Sabonis, Domantas Sabonis scored 21 points and grabbed 16 rebounds.
Syracuse - 70 Dayton - 51
Syracuse limited Dayton offensively, while Tyler Roberson dominated the boards grabbing 18 rebounds.
The Upsets
Hawaii - 77 California - 66
Cal's top three players were unable to contribute throughout the entire game, one, Tyrone Wallace, who did not play at all. President Obama picked the game correctly.
Yale - 79 Baylor - 75
Makai "Jimmer 2.0" Mason scored 31 points to beat the favored Baylor Bears. Yale's first tournament win was surely one to remember.
SF Austin - 70 West Virginia - 56
SF Austin created 22 turnovers, while Thomas Walkup scored 33 points on an incredible 19 of 20 FT. This guy did that.
The Super Upset
Middle Tennessee - 90 Michigan State - 81
Reggie "The Incredible Freckle" UpshawMichigan State always makes the Sweet 16 they said. Tom Izzo knows how to win in the tournament they said. Well they were wrong. Middle Tennessee and a spectacular performance by Reggie Upshaw destroyed everyones' bracket, and the Spartans.
The Incredible (The Vines)
Iowa - 72 Temple - 70
Adam Woodbury was able to put back a missed wild shot as the clock expired.
Saint Joe's - 78 Cincinnati - 76
After a Saint Joe's three, it looked like Cincinnati would be able to force overtime. Nope. Octavius Ellis was unable to finish the game-tying slam, and the Bearcats lose in a soul crushing fashion.
Northern Iowa - 75 Texas - 72
After Texas thought they had completed their own miraculous finish win, Paul Jesperson was able to hit this sublime half-court bank. Watch it a few hundred times.
Providence - 70 USC - 69
Providence won on an unforgivable lapse by USC, who allow an easy layup on an inbound pass in the final seconds.
Arkansas Little Rock - 85 Purdue - 83
A shot and game that will go down in March Madness history, as Josh Hagins sinks the Steph Curry-range three in double overtime to defeat Purdue. Simply amazing.
