Blade College Basketball Coverage: 3/17
3/17/2018
Toledo's Kaayla McIntyre prepares to shoot over Wright State forward Nia Sumpter during a WNIT first round game Friday at Savage Arena in Toledo.
BLADE/JEREMY WADSWORTH
Toledo's Kaayla McIntyre prepares to shoot over Wright State forward Nia Sumpter during a WNIT first round game Friday at Savage Arena in Toledo.
Toledo Women
Ever since the University of Toledo women’s basketball team lost to Kent State in the first round of the Mid-American Conference tournament March 5, Rockets coach Tricia Cullop thought her team deserved to play in the postseason.
After going through a loaded MAC West Division, which she called ‘The Gauntlet,’ playing tough crossover games against the MAC East, and facing a challenging non-conference schedule, Cullop knew her Rockets were battle-tested.
Toledo had its first chance to validate its inclusion in the WNIT field Friday, and the Rockets passed with flying colors in a 64-50 rout of Wright State in a first-round matchup at Savage Arena. FULL STORY ■ PHOTO GALLERY ■ VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS
NCAA Tournament Capsules: Second Round
Michigan Men
Mission for Michigan: Stop Houston’s Rob Gray
WICHITA, Kan. — There were 4.3 seconds left and Houston trailed Cincinnati by one with the American Athletic Conference tournament championship on the line. It’s the stuff kids grow up dreaming about.
For the Cougars’ Rob Gray, it turned into a nightmare after he threw the basketball out of bounds, handing Cincinnati the title. Gray was distressed after the game, but he wouldn’t let that moment define his March.
The senior guard, who’s known for his man bun, had a career-high 39 points Thursday to lead sixth-seeded Houston past No. 11 seed San Diego State, 67-65, to set up a second-round matchup against No. 3 seed Michigan. FULL STORY
Michigan guard Jordan Poole, left, drives on Montana guard Michael Oguine during the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Assistant coach has changed Michigan's defensive fortunes
WICHITA, Kan. — Don Brown isn’t the only decorated defensive coordinator on Michigan’s campus.
Luke Yaklich rightly can claim the same designation.
The 41-year-old was a history teacher and varsity basketball coach five years ago. Now, he’s the architect of a top-five defense. The Wolverines rank third nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com, and it could be their ticket to the Final Four. FULL STORY
UM Notes: NCAA tournament experience not needed for Michigan
WICHITA, Kan. — It was early in Thursday’s game, but it sure felt like everything was unraveling for Michigan.
The ingredients for an upset were baking, and Montana was getting ready to feast.
The Wolverines trailed 10-0, they’d turned the ball over multiple times, and point guard Zavier Simpson, UM’s do-it-all defender, was heading to the bench with two fouls. In came graduate transfer Jaaron Simmons, by way of Ohio University, thrust into a situation he’d been waiting for and brought to Ann Arbor to conduct. FULL STORY
Ohio State men
Two years later, OSU exodus reverberates
On the day Ohio State signed the class that was supposed to bring its men’s basketball program back to Final Four contention, then-Buckeyes coach Thad Matta beamed.
OSU’s 2015 signees ranked first in the Big Ten and fifth in the country according to 247Sports.com, a collection of five different four-star players who many in the basketball world saw as an instant boost for the Buckeyes.
Ohio State recruited nationally and did it well, signing four highly coveted players from out of state — Jaquan Lyle, Mickey Mitchell, Daniel Giddens, and Austin Grandstaff — as well as A.J. Harris from Dayton. FULL STORY