DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — Tramon Mark hit a fadeaway jumper from just inside the 3-point line with 1.1 seconds left, and Texas survived a late rally to beat N.C. State on Tuesday night in a First Four matchup of power-conference teams that limped into March Madness. Mark scored 17 points to lead the Longhorns (19-14), who had lost five of six entering the NCAA Tournament. Texas moved into the bracket as the No. 11 seed in the West region and will face sixth-seeded BYU on Thursday night in Portland, Oregon. Darrion Williams led the Wolfpack with 21 points.
UNDATED (AP) — Duke forward Cameron Boozer is a unanimous first-team All-American in college basketball in voting released by The Associated Press. He was joined on the first team by fellow freshmen AJ Dybantsa of BYU and Darius Acuff Jr. of Arkansas, Michigan's Yaxel Lendeborg and JT Toppin of Texas Tech. Braden Smith of Purdue headlined the second team after he was a first-team choice last season and an honorable mention pick in 2023-24. Graham Ike of Gonzaga was a third-team pick after he was honorable mention two years ago. Jaden Bradley and Brayden Burries gave Arizona two honorable mention picks this season.
UNDATED (AP) — The March Madness spotlight is set to lock on a long list of high-end freshman NBA prospects. This season's potential draft class is considered to be the deepest in years. That group has now reached the NCAA Tournament with a chance to take center stage. The top freshman prospects are BYU's AJ Dybantsa, Duke's Cameron Boozer and Kansas' Darryn Peterson. Others to watch include Arkansas' Darius Acuff Jr., Houston's Kingston Flemings and Arizona's Brayden Burries.
UNDATED (AP) — The NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments generate more wagering than any other event in the United States. The American Gaming Association estimates a record $3.3 billion would be legally bet on the games this year. The proliferation of legalized sports wagering the past decade has spurred the NCAA to increase efforts to keep games on the up-and-up. Players are warned about associating with people seeking inside information about their team or offering enticements to shave points. Support is provided for players who may be targeted for abuse from angry bettors.
UNDATED (AP) — Teams coming off long runs in their league tournaments have a short window to regroup ahead of March Madness. Bigger conferences after waves of expansion have led to longer runs through league tournaments on the eve of the NCAA Tournament. Now it's common to see teams having to play four games in four days in conference tournaments. Then they have a few days for players to recover and recharge ahead of the NCAAs. Big Ten champion Purdue faces that challenge after playing four games in four days to win that title.
UNDATED (AP) — Virginia enters the NCAA Tournament with a new coach and a new style, and the Cavaliers want their first tourney win in years. Virginia plays 14-seed Wright State as a No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region. The program has not won an NCAA game since its 2019 national title run. First-year coach Ryan Odom has Virginia rolling again. His team has won 13 of its last 15 games and pushed Duke in the ACC title game. Virginia now plays faster and scores more. The defense still shines, led by shot-blocker Ugonna Onyenso.
UNDATED (AP) — Olivia Miles makes the types of nifty passes that can leave fans gasping in astonishment. The stunning decision she made last year regarding her future produced a similar reaction. Miles was one of the top WNBA prospects last year but opted to spend one more year playing college basketball while delaying the start of her pro career. She then transferred to TCU rather than returning to Notre Dame. Miles is one of several players who figure to get selected early in this year's WNBA draft after participating in the NCAA Tournament.
UNDATED (AP) — This is the type of NCAA Tournament that should delight college basketball and NBA fans alike. That’s because it features plenty of guys who figure to be part of an extraordinarily deep draft this summer. Most of the attention regarding this draft has focused on the phenomenal freshman class. But a draft class with as much talent as this one also has plenty of promising prospects in other classes.
